Chapter Text
Nothing had changed. All three of them were smiling as they talked. All three of them were there investigating a case as usual.
It was Vector who made the first suggestion of lunch, and Charmy who jumped up in agreement. There was a new joint that’d opened just a few blocks away— one the crocodile had been meaning to take them to try.
Now something had changed. Unlike the way Espio would usually voice his quiet agreement in the decision, he couldn’t. What was stirring in his chest that told him to stay? Whatever it was, he would listen. What ninja would he be if he didn’t listen to his gut?
“Are you sure?” He’d expected Vector to say that, but with a simple nod, him and Charmy were off, the younger of the two looking back at Espio as they exited.
Espio would stare out the window. Waiting. Unsure of what he was waiting for— but he knew he was waiting for something. The breeze seemed calmer than usual, the sun seemed just a little brighter and the sky too looked just a bit more blue than it usually did. That, or maybe he was just overanalyzing everything to the point of seeing changes that aren’t really there.
He’d almost gotten a chance to regret not going with Vector and Charmy, before a quiet knock registered in his ears— one unlike the boisterous thud of Vector’s.
Taking that note, he approached the door somewhat warily. A bit on-guard, he opened it slowly, steadily— tilting his head to get the very first look of the visitor—or even, potential intruder.
But he relaxed immediately upon noticing that fluffy silver fur.
“Hey,” The hedgehog greeted, grinning brightly, his hands behind his back as he swayed up and down on his tip-toes, seeming unable to keep himself in place. Maybe out of anticipation for something, or just a bout of energy. “Are the others here?”
“Vector and Charmy, you mean?” Espio shifted his weight onto his other foot, opening the door a bit wider for him as a silent invitation. “Not currently, no. It’s just me at the moment.”
“That’s alright.” He responded, taking Espio’s invitation to enter and looking around the building. He’d been in it a few times in the past, yet always seemed to be searching around. Espio had assumed he was looking for changes brought on by altering the future, but he also wasn’t quite sure how often Silver did that, or how much exactly could possibly change.
And at that, Espio thought It’d become unusual for Silver to visit the past without any bad news, or needing to fix anything at all. But he didn’t seem upset in the slightest, having even sat down calmly on the small couch in the building and leaning his head back against the rest, relaxed.
Espio shut the door carefully, approaching the hedgehog and standing in front of him, arms crossing as he observed the hedgehog’s behavior.
“Any particular reason you’re here?” Espio asked, watching Silver stare back at him expression-less.
With a slight pause, Silver answered with a shake of his head, rubbing his quills, chuckling somewhat awkwardly. “No, not this time.”
He smiled graciously, his ears tilted slightly forward in a way that Espio took as calmness, but his eyes betrayed that look, a somewhat guilty look present within them. “I just missed my friends.”
“That so?” Espio uncrossed his arms, a small smile finding its way to his face. “I take it you’re in need of some company, then?”
“Yeah.” Silver smiled back, taking his hand away from his quills and resting it next to the other one over his lap. “I-If you don’t mind.”
Espio shook his head. “Of course not.”
Silver observed him quietly for a few moments, before continuing, smile still present. “And, you know...” He readjusted slightly on the couch. “I’m sure you and the others could always use the extra help.”
‘Extra help’ was indeed something the Chaotix was needing at the moment. They’d been particularly swamped ever since the Metal Virus incident, and had yet to catch up on the work. They could always use the assistance, and it seemed that it could help relieve Silver’s somewhat unspoken loneliness while they were at it.
“You’re correct.” Espio nodded, smiling kindly. “We could always use an extra pair of hands.”
“What can I help with?” Silver asked expectantly, the quills atop his head fluffing up a bit as his back straightened out.
Espio tilted his head to the side, thinking over their current stack of cases, most of which were nothing of much interest, given how calm things had been since the incident. “…I can think of something, but it’s not particularly interesting.” He said, lifted his head.
“I can handle boring jobs!” Silver insisted confidently, standing up off the couch. It really did seem as if the boy was finding it hard to keep himself still.
“What is it? Cleaning out the gutters? Small talk with strangers? Doing taxes?”
Espio shook his head and chuckled as the other rambled on. “Those are Vector’s job. I had something else in mind.” He said as he walked over to the desk, opening a drawer and sorting through the various documents.
Silver followed, standing in front of the desk and watching as Espio retrieved a file marked as ‘haunted’, golden eyes narrowing in slight confusion.
“We’ve been getting reports from clients about strange noises from a supposedly abandoned building.” He explained, almost bored in his tone, opening the folder and skimming through it. “Says nobody is occupying it, but things fall over and turn off and on all of the time.”
“So it’s haunted?” Silver asked with an interested look, ears perked high up, curious.
“No, I doubt it.” Espio sighed, setting it down. “The building used to be ‘Rotor Tech’, so it wouldn’t surprise me if it was just a machine that never got turned off. Are you… up for the task?”
“Yeah, of course!” He responded, determination glinting in his eyes. “Where is it? I can go right now.”
“I’ll take you.” Espio said, circling the desk and standing beside the hedgehog. “On the off-chance there is someone inhabiting the building, it’s best we stay stealthy. Think you can keep up?”
“Try to stop me!” Silver responded confidently, a bit of friendly competition in his tone, yet something still lurked underneath it all.
Espio tittered, smiling back at him. “Right, then. Let’s go.”
“Lead the way!” Silver exclaimed enthusiastically, following close behind the chameleon as they left the Chaotix building, a feeling of familiarity filling Espio.
Silver was watching the sky all the while as they headed to their destination, seeming almost transfixed by the blue hue. Espio had noticed that the hedgehog had always been fond of the mundane things about life after everything he’d been through in the past (or future, on a technicality). It was something he could admire about him.
“You’ve always liked the sky, haven’t you?” Espio asked, watching him from the corner of his eye.
“It’s so beautiful.” Silver said sincerely, eyes focused on it instead of where they were going. “I missed it.”
There was a certain weight to his last words. A solemn look that flickered in his eyes, even if just briefly. Espio almost asked about it, despite himself, before he pulled his focus back on their way. What could he mean by that?
Silver didn’t say much of anything for the rest of the trip, despite his usual chatter to catch up. He stared up ahead, gazing almost longingly at the sky, the toothy, confident grin from before long gone, an almost blank yet subtly somber expression on his face. And Espio couldn’t bring himself to ask about it. Maybe Silver really was here to change the future, after all, just not ready to admit it. He could wait.
“Ah, is that it?” Silver spoke up after several silent minutes, pointing towards a rather small building up ahead, stopping in place for a moment, his ears perking up a bit.
That was it, indeed. The supposedly haunted Rotor Tech building that they’d been putting off investigating for weeks. He wasn’t entirely certain that Vector wasn’t scared of ghosts.
“…Yes.” Espio responded, approaching it carefully, eyes wandering over the features of the building. There wasn’t much to see from the outside, but it seemed surprisingly well-maintained for something supposedly abandoned. The paint seemed fresh, and the windows were clean, which was a step up from the other buildings nearby.
Silver’s ears shifted all around, flicking in every direction in search of any sound, his eyes gliding up and down the building, examining it for anything out of sorts.
“Do you hear anything?” He asked after a few moments, tilting his head to look at the other boy, his expression almost disappointed.
“No.” Espio responded, approaching the windows, attempting to look inside. He could see where various things had been knocked over onto the ground— the floor covered in scattered pens, papers, and various mechanical pieces— and several computers lined on desks, most of which probably didn’t even work anymore.
Silver watched him, before suddenly approaching and putting his hand over the doors, pressing his face flat against the small window on them to look inside, his quills squishing against the glass.
“I don’t see anything…” He uttered, his voice muffled by both the glass and the way his face was squashed against it, pulling back and looking at Espio behind him.
Espio sighed. “Something about this isn’t right. I have a feeling there’s something else at play here.”
He walked beside Silver, the two looking at each other quietly for a few moments. Silver’s eyebrows furrowed slightly, before he turned his head back to face the door and opened it, stepping cautiously inside.
The action didn’t surprise Espio, the chameleon staying close at his side. Ideally, he would’ve just made himself invisible and waited a few moments to see if anyone else really was present, but since Silver had wanted to help, he chose to follow the hedgehog’s lead.
Nothing happened when they walked in. Silver’s tail stayed pointed up warily as he remained on high-alert, his ears perked and turning in different directions in an attempt to listen for any unusual sounds, anything they could investigate. But the room was calm.
After several moments where they slowly walked in, looking around at the mess, Espio relaxed his shoulders, his own tail lowering.
“Hm.” He frowned a bit, avoiding a pen at his feet.
Suddenly, as if on queue, something shattered— the deafening sound of broken glass filling their ears— the crash echoing in the dark building. Silver instantly raised his arm up protectively in-front of Espio at the noise, his ears folding back at the piercing racket, eyes darting around until he spotted the glass in the near distance. Espio was somewhat surprised at the instinct, eyes widening as he saw the glass, nothing seeming to be there but a shadow.
“Show yourself!” Shouted Silver, using his telepathy to move out of the way the table that the supposed vase had been on, to reveal…
…A cat.
“Ah…” Silver blinked dumbfounded for a few moments, lowering his hands at his sides as his ears slowly perked back up, staring back at the feline, which was puffed up defensively, glaring at the two men.
It was a rather scraggly looking thing, its black fur all mussed up, looking rather thin, maybe on the older side.
Silver approached it slowly, reaching his hand out and watching as it sniffed it, slowly relaxing its body and licking his glove.
“It kinda looks like Blaze.” Silver commented fondly, watching the cat rub against his hand with a smile. The cat looked nothing like Blaze. Espio decided to keep that observation to himself.
“Is this really the ghost of Rotor Tech?” Espio said with a fond shake of his head, watching as Silver pet the pathetic feline, eyeing it skeptically.
“I guess that solves that.” Silver said as he gave the cat one last pet, standing back up and turning to face Espio.
The cat, meanwhile, kept rubbing against his legs, pausing a few times to glare up at Espio, before going back to petting itself against the hedgehog, purring lowly.
“How did I do, detective?” Silver asked semi-jokingly with a grin, his hand on his hip. “Did I meet your expectations?”
“For the most part.” Espio responded, finding it hard not to keep eyeing the cat, which had become quickly attached to Silver.
Silver gazed back down at the cat, which was meowing at his feet. He kneeled down and carefully picked it up, the feline behaving strangely compliantly.
“I’ll bring her to a shelter, or something.” Silver said, smiling as he observed the creature, before gently holding it up his shoulder. “She might’ve ran away from home. Maybe she has a chip.”
“Of course.” Espio watched the way the cat was staring at him. “Thank you for your help, Silver.”
Silver nodded, running his hand along the cat’s back. “If you’re done working for the day, we could meet at the park or something once I’m finished. I’d like to talk to you about something.”
“The park…” Espio felt something strange stir in him again. “Sounds good. I’ll meet you there, then.”
“Okay!” Silver grinned, seeming unfazed at the cat hissed towards Espio on his way out of the eerie building, adding to the strange tension Espio felt.
Espio watched Silver exit, taking note of the lack of farewell. Well, they’d see each other soon, so it wouldn’t really matter. This time, he dismissed the feeling. He often did.
It was soon after Silver left that, with one final inspection of the place, Espio did, too— opting not to stop back by the Chaotix building. He’d deal with all of the finalizing the case later.
He waited on a bench at the park. The grass blew calmly under the winds gentle guidance. He didn’t go with Vector and Charmy earlier, and then Silver showed up. Maybe that was the thing he’d been waiting for without even knowing it.
His tail curved as he realized how long he’d been waiting for the other boy, knowing that the sun would be setting soon. While he was left with his thoughts again, he couldn’t help to feel that it was all too strange that Silver had chosen to visit the Chaotix, of everywhere. After all, he was sure that him and Sonic were closer. Maybe even him and Shadow. He wasn’t all that aware of the boy’s relationships.
Did he have a reason to visit them instead? Despite the hedgehog’s usual honesty, he couldn’t help but feel as if he were hiding something. He’d only spent about an hour or two with him so far, but he couldn’t deny that the feeling in his chest had come back swirling.
“Sorry I took so long,” The familiar voice suddenly called out, and before he knew it, Silver had plopped down on the grass next to the bench, laying flat on the ground, his quills pushed back against the sides of his face, staring up at the sky, which hadn’t quite set yet. Espio thought it was weird, but didn’t outwardly question it, as the hedgehog wasn’t exactly the most normal of people.
“She was a stray, after all. Ear clipped and all— I didn’t even notice.” He said, speaking calmly as he gazed over the passing clouds, his eyes squinting just slightly each time the sun was revealed again, shining in his eyes, the gold color reflecting it in a way Espio couldn’t deny was more mesmerizing than the sky itself.
“A stray, huh?” Espio tilted his head to get a better look at the hedgehog, his eyes trained on his features..
“Yeah…” Silver glanced at Espio on the bench, staying at a relaxed still in the grass, his chest rising and falling slowly.
Silence permeated the air. It was late enough that most of the other park-goers had made their way home, and a few random Mobians were all that were left besides them. Even nature seemed hushed at that moment. Silver had said that he wanted to talk to Espio about something, but…
Silver seemed fixated on the sky again, his mind like it was someplace else. Espio almost felt like he wasn’t even there. Like he was watching Silver from the outside.
“I think me and stray cats have a lot in common.”
The words didn’t register to Espio at first, he was still focused on the tranquil breathing of the other boy, before he finally processed the sentence, not quite understanding the meaning of it.
“In what way?” He asked, finding the comparison strange at first— out of nowhere.
Silver didn’t have a response to that. Maybe he didn’t even hear Espio. It was almost like he’d somehow forgotten the chameleon was there. He must’ve been tired, thought Espio. His behavior was out of the ordinary all day, so he decided not to push further on the matter. Maybe he just wasn’t feeling well— Espio knew he didn’t act quite right whenever he was sick.
His eyes stayed focused on him, not expecting his acknowledgment, when Silver suddenly met them.
“Espio, I…” Silver started speaking as he propped himself up on his elbows, still looking up over at the other boy on the bench, his gaze taking on a guilty look.
“I lied to you.”
Espio raised an eyebrow. “Lied to me?” He questioned. After all, Espio was usually pretty good at spotting lies.
He nodded. “About why I’m here.”
Silver sat up, hugging his knees against his chest, staring off into the distance of the park, where one of the few mobians was taking their leave.
Espio tilted his head curiously. He’d figured that Silver wasn’t really here out of loneliness alone, but he hadn’t quite prepared himself for news that bad. The way he was behaving, though, Espio was expecting the worse.
“Lately, I haven’t been able to clear my mind…” Silver continued, nuzzling his muzzle a bit between his kneecaps. “There’s something about you— all of you— being dead in my future, that’s been bothering me.”
He kept his eyes focused away from Espio, avoiding the other boy’s gaze not-so subtly, his hands clenching tightly as he spoke. In honesty, Espio felt somewhat relieved that it wasn’t anything worse. Espio had never thought too hard about that, however. After all, Silver comes from more than two hundred years into the future, of course they’re all dead by then. Maybe that bothered the hedgehog more than he would’ve imagined.
“I didn’t really think about it before.” Silver turned his head a bit, finally meeting the chameleon’s gaze as he continued. “I guess I thought seeing you all would help me push those thoughts away.”
He paused, seeming to have noticed the perplexed look the other boy was giving him. “Sorry, I know it sounds silly…”
Espio wrinkled his brows a bit, before shaking his head, an understanding look taking the place of confusion. “No, that’s alright. I get it.”
Or maybe he didn’t. But he could. There’s nothing that can be understood by one person, but not another.
Silver was still frowning, though. Espio didn’t understand what he could do to cheer him up, and he did want to see him smile again.
“The sun is setting.” Espio said, looking past him. Silver perked up, head quickly snapping back to look at the sky, a quiet fascination in his look. The sky always seemed to have a calming effect on the hedgehog. It made him wonder what the sky was like in his future.
“Yeah…” Silver murmured quietly, before slowly getting to his feet. “I think I’ve overstayed my visit.”
Overstayed his visit? Espio wasn’t quite sure what he meant by that.
“Wait, are you leaving already?” Espio asked, catching his attention, a bit of a hurry in his tone.
“Yeah, but—“
“Promise you’ll be back, then?”
The words seemed to slip from his mouth without prior warning. Espio was somewhat surprised by this, but didn’t let that creep into his expression. Silver’s eyes widened a bit, though— before a small smile slowly formed at his lips.
Maybe Espio had expected a lot of things today, but Silver suddenly grabbing his hand, squeezing it tightly in a matter that was almost comforting— that was not something he’d expected.
“I promise.” He said, completely sincerely. The earnestness of the action making Espio’s eyes grow a little bigger. The way of which he spoke was overfilling with genuineness.
“I’ll hold you to that.” He responded after gathering his bearings, feeling Silver let go of his hand, yet still feeling that warm buzz that came with his touch.
And within the next few moments, which passed in a blur, Espio was alone. Even the other mobians in the park had left. The chirping birds, crickets, and dogs… everything was quiet, an emptiness in silence’s wake.
He wasn’t sure what had gotten into him when he asked Silver to promise him to come back. While he’d been happy to have Silver visit in the past, it wasn’t like he was consciously looking forward to seeing the boy. They were friends, sure, but both had closer companions.
But he was looking forward to it, now. Spending time with Silver again. Spending time with Silver that didn’t involve life or death. Time that wasn’t focused on what happens in the future. Espio would like more of that with him. And maybe Silver would, too.
Several moments had passed since Silver left. But his warmth stayed.