Alter Egos

Chapter 20

The next day, Sonic and Shadow found themselves in the town of New Hope, where the citizens were surprisingly energetic and bustling, despite being attacked by a demon with possible godlike powers.

"Okay so the house should be right around... here."
They turned a corner and ended up in front of a little modest looking house. As they approached, Sonic turned to Shadow, asking "Why are you still coming along even after I told you whose house we were going to? You know-" He was abruptly cut off. "It's because there's no guarantee what will happen, and if needed, I can be backup in case something goes wrong."

"Okay... although I don't think I'll get attacked or something, because of... you know...him."
As Sonic said this, he knocked on the door briefly before hearing footsteps approaching.
The door swung open.

"Alva if this is about those supplies I told you to-"

"..."

"What are you doing here."

There was a jackal with long hair tied up into a ponytail of sorts at the door. He was wearing a jacket and some dirty work gloves.

The moment he saw them he tensed up, and his grip on the doorframe was so strong that it probably would have cracked if another voice hadn't distracted him.

A wolf with red fur and glasses appeared at the door, shooting a look at the jackal, who reluctantly turned and walked back into the house. The wolf sighed as Sonic gave him a smile. "Gadget! How's my favorite rookie doing?" Gadget smiled and talked a little before inviting them inside, but Sonic noticed he had a limp, and his leg was covered in bandages.

The jackal who'd "greeted" them at the door was already sitting in the living room. He had a menacing aura that seemed strangely familiar but Sonic couldn't place it until Gadget casually walked up and said "Move over a bit Infinite." before lightly pushing the jackal aside to make room for himself on the couch.

Sonic did an internal double take when he heard that.

"Wait what? That's him? That's the dude who-"

"Huh, didn't expect him to look like that."

"Probably the mask."

"Uhhhhh..."

"Shush, don't forget what we came for in the first place."

"I knew Infinite would be here but I didn't know it was that guy..." Sonic muttered under his breath.
Shadow answered, "To be honest, me neither. His aura seemed a lot more muted, quiet. It was hard to tell."

They sat in silence for a moment until Gadget spoke. "So... you guys are here about the... incident?"
Sonic nodded. "Mmhmm. We just want to ask a few questions about the guy, then we'll be on our way." Infinite scoffed silently and leaned back on the couch. "Make them quick. We still have work to do."

Then he muttered under his breath, menacingly.

"That stupid bastard. Flying in here, wrecking the town, and hurting Gadget... if I ever see him again I'm going to..."

Sonic tried to pretend he didn't hear that last part.

"Anyways," Gadget clapped his hands together briefly to get everyone's attention. "We should probably get started with those questions."

Sonic and Gadget exchanged information on their experiences regarding Achlys, but it was slightly hard to focus when the other two were quietly glaring at each other.

"And so we saw him fly off in the direction of that big, ancient forest a little out west, but we don't really know why."

"Okay, so now we know where to go next then."

Sonic thanked Gadget before him and Shadow started walking towards the door. Gadget saw them out, watching them run together towards the forest.

Infinite joined him at the door a few seconds before they disappeared out of sight. Gadget waited a moment, then turned to the jackal beside him.

"Well?"

The jackal stared at him. "What do mean?" Gadget grinned a bit before replying, "I mean, what did you think of them now? To be honest, I was really nervous that you going to straight up attack them in the middle of our living room." Gadget laughed a little.

"...But you didn't, because you've changed now, for the better, and that means you have another chance to start over." There was a pause.

"I'm worried though..." The jackal looked away.
"Worried? About what?" Infinite put a hand on his chest, and even though it was covered by his jacket, Gadget knew exactly what he was talking about.

"What if I accidentally hurt you... I did so many things and... I don't deserve any of your kindness-"

Gadget suddenly grabbed Infinite's hand, and ignoring him violently flinching in surprise, pulled him into a hug. The jackal didn't know what to do, but nonetheless, he gently wrapped his arms around the wolf and held him close.

They stayed like that for a few moments before they parted. They began to walk back to the reconstruction areas, and as they talked, Gadget smiled.

He really did change. They both knew.

With a content sigh, the wolf went back to work.

———————————————————————————
Hey guys.
I've been going through a lot lately, and things are happening, and it really sucks. I'm going through some school related issues and there's a chance that I may not be able to write this story for possibly the next couple of months, maybe even the whole summer.
I'm hoping that I'll be able to resolve this so I can continue creating, and not just forget about this story and leave it unfinished.
Here's to wishing for the best-

Happy Reading!