Disclaimer- I don't own Sonic and co.

Let's see how Silver deals with Sonic's military friends, shall we?

Standing in front of this so-called GUN building, Silver almost wished that he had accompanied Tails back to the beach.

The structure was imposing, towering over him. There were bulky vehicles and weaponry parked in front of the place, Silver terrified to take one more step closer.

There were too many people meandering about as well. A mixture of humans and anthros in suits were everywhere he looked, either minding their own business or staring right back at him.

Silver scooted closer to Sonic's side, ready to get this over with. "A-Are your friends out here? Or are they inside?"

Sonic hummed as he scanned the bustling lot. He didn't get a glimpse of Rouge or Shadow anywhere. "Don't see them out here, so they might be inside. If not, we can go straight to the man in charge." He looked at the other glued to his arm and gave a reassuring smile. "No one's gonna bother you here, Silv! They know me, and they're focusin' more on their jobs than us."

"If you say so…" Silver muttered, avoiding the curious eyes still on him. He had no other choice but to believe Sonic, though. This place was a military base or something, right? Then they wouldn't break the law by attacking him. That somewhat calmed his nerves.

"Oh, hello, Blue!"

When Sonic turned at the voice, Silver did too, and his anxiety immediately shot back up at the sight of a bat flying right towards them.

Oblivious to his discomfort, Sonic raised a friendly hand in greeting. "Hey, Rouge!" He then noticed a black and red hedgehog skating under her. "And Shads! Guess we're all here for the same reason, huh?"

"Seems so." Rouge landed in front of him, putting a hand on her hip. "We got called in about the little bomb threat the doctor dropped on our heads earlier. And I heard he tried to bribe you into waving the white flag."

Sonic scoffed. "Keyword: tried. Eggy's got a couple screws loose if he thinks that this is the thing that'll guarantee a win."

"He's so desperate these days. It's a shame, really." Rouge shook her head in mock-disappointment before curiously peering at the white hedgehog cowering behind him. "Now, who do we have here?"

Sonic, seeing Silver's wariness, hoped that he would get used to all of his friends like he was warming up to Tails. He wasn't trembling, though. That was a plus. "This is Silver! He's a little shy." Sonic stepped a bit to the side, giving the psychic an encouraging smile. "Can you say hi, Silv? She won't bite."

"I don't know, hon." Rouge innocently teased, flashing a grin. "He looks sweet enough to sink my teeth into."

Silver actually squeaked.

"Oh boy." Sonic should've known that this would happen, especially since he hadn't warned Silver beforehand. He faced Rouge's puzzled expression and explained, "Uh…he really thinks that you might eat him." That didn't help with the confusion at all. Sonic went on to ask, "You know about my pet hedgehog back home, right?"

Rouge pursed her lips. "Yeah, I think so. Knuckles has mentioned it once or twice."

"Well, this is him!" Sonic animatedly gestured to Silver, the latter looking increasingly uncomfortable. "We fed him a new kind of cat food a few days ago, and then he turned into one of us!"

The confusion morphed into extreme doubt. Rouge furrowed her brow. "Is this some kind of prank, Blue?"

Before Sonic could defend the situation, Shadow asked, "What was in the cat food?" His question was curt and straight to the point, holding no doubt whatsoever.

Rouge sent him an incredulous look. "Wait, so you believe him?"

Sonic appreciated Shadow's belief, but he was thrown off-guard with how intently the striped one was staring at Silver. Silver was nervously staring back, just as puzzled as Sonic was. The speedster answered, "Tails scanned it but didn't find anythin'. We're waiting on a response from the owner of the company to find out exactly what happened. Why? What's got your quills in a knot?"

Shadow didn't respond to the jab, simply giving Sonic a pointed glance. "He's filled with Chaos energy." He crossed his arms, reexamining Silver. "Nearly as much as you."

"Whoa, really?" Sonic perked up at the surprising news. But then again, Silver had to have gotten his ability from somewhere, right? Sonic nudged Silver. "That's probably how you got your powers, Silv!"

Silver had no idea what Chaos energy was or how this very intense hedgehog could sense it, but he subtly nodded anyway because Sonic seemed so excited.

"Powers?" Rouge asked, her uncertainty dissipating. "What powers?"

Sonic guided Silver forward a bit and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Telekinesis! Go ahead, Silv! Show 'em!"

"Um." Even if Silver wanted to, he probably would have zero control over them because concentration was the last thing on his mind right now. He was standing in front of a bat who was raising many red flags and a hedgehog who shouldn't be as intimidating as he was. He looked like a hedgehog, but… "S-Shouldn't you take care of the bomb stuff first?"

Shadow narrowed his eyes, Silver gulped, and Sonic wondered why Shads was acting this way. He wasn't the friendliest person in the world, but this was a bit over-kill.

Rouge looked between them before taking control of the situation. "He's right," she said, jabbing her chin in the direction of the base. "We can talk about this more after we come up with a game plan for this bomb issue. Shall we?"

Shadow grunted, making his way toward the entrance with Rouge following suit.

Silver felt like he could breathe a little easier. He watched them go, muttering, "You seriously should've given me a better warning. What's up with that Shadow guy? Is he really your friend?"

Sonic was going to have to make up for this little interaction later. He hadn't expected it to go like this. "He wouldn't admit it, but yep!" At Silver's odd look, he explained, "Shadow's uh…complicated. But he's a good friend, though, and Rouge is too."

"Rouge wants to bite me."

"She wasn't being serious! It was a playful tease. She does that sometimes." Sonic chuckled to lighten the mood. He took a step forward, wanting to go before they got left behind. "Try to relax a bit, 'kay? I know we're in a new place and all, but you're safe. Promise."

Silver took a deep breath and nodded. "I'll try." He held hands with Sonic – to the speedster's surprise – and gave a squeeze. Then his lips twitched into a small smirk. "But if she does bite me, I'm holding that over your head forever."

Sonic led him along, snickering. "You have no faith! I'm hurt." He faced forward, about to say something else, but he caught Rouge looking back at them. Her eyes drifted down to their interlocked fingers, and an interested brow slowly rose.

Feeling suddenly flustered, Sonic felt heat rise to his cheeks when Rouge knowingly grinned. It wasn't that he didn't want his friends to find out about him and Silver, but that this was the first time that he'd actually gave the situation some thought.

He could already hear the embarrassing conversations now.

Hoping that his blush wasn't too prominent, Sonic strolled forward with Silver at his side.

"You're not getting involved."

Sonic blinked in surprise at the dismissive tone, not expecting that at all. He leaned against the expansive desk in front of him and frowned. "Seriously? Why not? This is Eggman stuff, I always deal with Eggman stuff!"

The Commander of GUN wasn't fazed by his outburst, shuffling through paperwork as other members ambled around the large office. "While that's true, the priority of this situation isn't who made the bombs, but what they are. They aren't something you can simply spin into and destroy. A specialized team is needed for this, and you're not qualified."

Sonic kind of understood where he was coming from, but he wasn't going to sit on the sidelines for this. "I don't need to be qualified for anythin', though! I'm not gonna try to defuse them, that's your guys' job. Don't you want to use my speed to find them?"

"We don't need speed. We need precision." The Commander opposed, voice steely. "We don't need you running around the city causing a panic. We've already sent out a message to the public to contact us if they had seen any suspicious activity in the last few days that might give us hints about the whereabouts of the bombs."

Sonic glanced over at Rouge and Shadow who were silently observing the conversation. "What about them? They're on the case, but I'm pretty sure they don't know how to safely defuse a bomb."

"While that's true, they have more skills in their arsenal we can utilize than you do." Sonic gaped in shock, re-realizing why he had always stayed clear of this guy. He and GUN had a strained relationship at best. The Commander dismissed him with a wave. "If you want to help so badly, find the doctor and convince him to shut them down. Now leave, I have business to attend to with my agents."

Sonic figured that he had a point about the Eggman thing, but he didn't have to be so rude about it. Then again, what did he expect from the person who had once tried to run him over with a truck?

"Fine!" he huffed, smothering the childish urge to stick out his tongue. "I'm going to find Eggman and shut down his plan before you find a single bomb! Just watch! You'd appreciate my speed then!"

"I'm sure we will," the Commander uttered, obviously waiting for him to leave.

Sonic wasn't going to deny him any longer. He turned on his heel and waved to his friends. "Well, I'm gone. Good luck on your side, guys!"

Shadow curtly nodded, and Rouge returned the gesture. "Back at you, hon." The same grin from before appeared on her face. "And we might come visit later if we can. Haven't spoken in a while and looks like we've got some stuff to catch up on."

Heat threatened to rise to his cheeks once more because he was sure that the 'stuff' she was talking about was Silver – and not just about his existence either.

"If you want! We will either be at the beach or my house, depending on when you're done," he said and left before she could say anything else embarrassing. As soon as he stepped out of the office and closed the door behind him, Silver was in his space. He had to leave the psychic in the hall because of 'top secret things'. The Commander's words, not his.

Silver took one look at Sonic's expression and automatically knew that something went awry. "What happened in there?"

Sonic rubbed the back of his head. "The Commander was bein' stubborn, as always. He wouldn't let me help."

Silver frowned at that and felt guilty at the small amount of relief that bubbled within. Sonic wouldn't be wrapped up in this mess. "Why not?"

"Stupid reasons." Sonic sighed before smirking. "But, I told him that I would find Eggman and get everything straightened out before they would find the first bomb."

And the tiny bit of relief Silver held was squashed. "Why?"

"To prove a point! No one calls Sonic the Hedgehog useless and gets away with it!"

Silver couldn't help but to smile at his enthusiasm, despite the high chance of him not finding the doctor in time. Did he even know where Eggman was right now?

And if Sonic was going to meet with him, then… "Can I go with you when you talk to him?" He'd rather not have Sonic go alone despite the experience he had. He would be worried sick.

"Hm…" Sonic thought about it before his smirk widened. If he'd asked earlier today, Sonic would've nicely shut him down because of safety. But Silver had pulled that little trick today with Blaze's fire, and he believed that the psychic would be a fast learner. "Only if you work hard with developing your powers. Those'll really come in handy with takin' on Eggman! You'll totally throw him for a loop!"

Nervousness danced within him, but Silver perked up anyway. "For sure! I'll work hard on them!"

Sonic crossed his arms and leaned forward. "You sure you're up to it? The training will be tough."

Silver nodded in confidence. "Definitely."

"It takes a lot of training to take on Egghead." There was a spark of mischief in Sonic's eyes. "I won't go easy on ya."

Leaning forward as well, Silver gave his own smirk. "You don't scare me. I can handle it."

They were so close that their noses were nearly touching, and Sonic adored the fire that had sparked in those golden eyes.

"Ahem."

Sonic jolted straight and just realized that there was a group of agents standing impatiently to the side of them. He glanced from them to the office door he and Silver were completely blocking.

Slightly embarrassed, Sonic grasped Silver's arm and pulled him to the side. "Sorry 'bout that!" The workers didn't spare them another glance before walking inside. He and Silver shared a look and briefly chuckled. "Let's ditch this place," Sonic suggested. "These guys are too strict for my tastes."

"No arguments there." Silver hadn't been here for long, but he already yearned for fresh air once more. "Let's go back to the beach."

"That is so unfair," Amy muttered after Sonic had shared the news with her. "Did they forget that they only have three days to find the bombs?"

Tails cradled his chin, the sea breeze rustling his bangs. "I see where the Commander's coming from, though. Kinda. And it's almost like he's asking in a roundabout way for you to help out."

"Huh…" Sonic hadn't really thought about it like that. Of course Mr. Buzzkill wouldn't outright ask for help. "Guess you're right!"

Amy stressfully rubbed her forehead. "This is such a mess…" She shook her head before asking, "What do we do now?"

Sonic tapped his foot against the sand, thinking. He glanced over at Blaze, who was sitting at the same table they had occupied earlier. She was quietly listening to their conversation with a subtle frown.

The speedster pursed his lips when his attention drifted over to Silver. He was by the shore again where the shallow waves grazed his shoes. Crouching low, Silver lowered his hand and shifted it through the water.

Sonic watched him for a second before saying, "I think me and Silv should stay here to work on his powers." He faced Amy and Tails once more. "Tails, Imma need you to get searchin' for Eggman, see if you can locate him anywhere. And Ames, you and Blaze should still head for Cream's place. Get her comfortable, y'know?"

Amy nodded. "Yeah, we can do that. But weren't you going to introduce Silver to them too?"

"We'll stop by later! I wanna work with him now because if I do take him with me-"

"-you want to make sure he's ready." Amy finished for him. "I get it! There's no telling how amazing he'll be once he gets it down pat. Blaze too!" She smiled back at the cat, and Blaze simply cocked a brow. Thinking of something, Amy addressed Sonic. "Oh, can I spill the beans about Silver? I can't wait to see Cream's and Vanilla's faces when the news is dropped!"

Sonic snickered. "Go ahead! After showing them Blaze, they'll have to believe ya, right?"

"I want to be there when you tell them too!" Tails piped up, namesakes swishing back and forth. "After that, I'll go home and start searching for anything Eggman related. And see if that man emailed me back yet…"

Amy clasped her hands together. "Then, it's settled! Come on, Blaze! Let's introduce you to your temporary home!" When the feline stood and stepped up to her side, the pinkette asked, "Try extra hard not to set anything on fire over there, okay?"

Blaze looked down at her own palms. Thin tendrils of smoke were rising from them. She murmured, "I can't make any promises, but I'll make an effort."

"That's good enough for me!" Amy flipped a hand. "And I'm sure the Rabbits will forgive you anyway when they understand the situation. As long as you don't burn their house down."

"Again…no promises."

Tails hummed pensively. "I wonder if inside-out oven mitts would help lower the risk?"

Amy almost looked relieved at his suggestion. "We definitely need to try that once we get there." She then cupped her mouth with her hands and shouted, "Hey, Silver!" When the addressed whipped his head around, she continued, "We're going to Cream's house, see you in a bit!"

Silver seemed a little surprised, probably not expecting them to go, but he smiled and waved anyway.

Tails and Amy waved back, the former regarding Sonic, "I'll come get you guys if I find anything out."

Sonic gave him a thumbs up. "Gotcha!"

The trio walked off, Amy hooking her arm with Blaze's, and Sonic believed that he should tell them about him and Silver later, when everything blew over.

Nodding to himself and eager to start Silver's training, Sonic turned on his heel, jogging through the sand over to him. "We're about to start now! I hope you're ready!"

Silver dried his wet hand on his side and wondered what Sonic had in store. "What are we doing first?"

His brow furrowed when the hero started to jog a little faster. "Somethin' easy! Just catch me with your powers!"

"Catch-" Silver's eyes widened when it clicked. His gut dropped, and he waved his hands frantically in front of him. "Wait! No! I-I'm not ready for that yet!"

"'Course you are! You've done it before!"

"Not on purpose-"

"Too late!"

Sonic jumped high into the air, flying right towards him, and Silver had to do something before the other painfully crashed into him.

Hoping that this would work, Silver thrusted out a hand and frantically shouted, "Stop!" Something in his mind shifted, a burst of color surrounded his fingers, and Sonic froze mid-air. He was so close that Silver's hand was almost grazing his chest.

Silver gazed in wonder as his heart pounded against his ribcage. "I…I did it…" A victorious smile adorned his face as the feat sunk in. "I actually did it!"

Sonic was glad that he took the risk. "See? I knew you wouldn't drop me!"

"Did you really?" Silver asked because he sure had some doubts. "And couldn't you have tested this out another way without giving me a heart attack?"

"Nope! The only ways you've activated your powers was either makin' you sneeze or getting your emotions outta whack. I had to prove it!"

At that explanation, Silver couldn't exactly be mad. One, because there was no way he could get angry at that face, and two, Sonic wasn't wrong. He'd never used his powers on purpose, always accidental.

Until now.

"Okay, so…are we going to focus on using it when I'm calmer?"

Sonic nodded with a wink. "Yep, that's the next step!" He glanced down at his floating body. "Whenever you want to put me down."

"O-Oh! Right." Silver heavily exhaled to control his rapid pulse, guiding Sonic back down to the damp sands. The cyan light faded when he lowered his hand. He still couldn't believe that he'd been gifted like this. First was the transformation, and then this…it was crazy.

"Looks like you've got the 'shutting off' part down pat!" Sonic looked around their area and smiled when he found what he was searching for. "So, we don't have to worry about that!"

Silver watched him go over and pick something out of the drenched sand. "What are you getting?"

"A few seashells to help with your training! They're small and light. Easy things that you can – catch!"

"Huh?" Silver didn't register the shell being tossed at him until it hit him in the chest. He blinked as it splashed in the shallow water below. "You wanted me to catch that? You barely gave any warning!"

Sonic tossed another seashell up and down, musing. "Uh huh. I wanted to check your reflexes, and we gotta work on those for sure." When Silver pouted at the unfairness of it, Sonic chuckled. "But we'll do that later! First, try to snag this one with your powers." He shook the shell in his hand. "Ready?"

"Sure…" Silver concentrated on the shell, nodding after a moment. "Toss it."

Sonic did so. Silver thrusted an arm out like before, and the seashell fell right at his feet. It got washed away by the shallow tide, and Silver muttered, "Well, that didn't work…"

Sonic wasn't deterred, however. "It's fine! Did you really think that you would get it on your first try?" Silver didn't get a chance to admit to it, for Sonic advised, "You gotta keep going! The reward feels so much better when you work for it."

Silver pondered that for a moment before agreeing. "I guess you're right…"

"I know I am!"

Silver rolled his eyes and gestured for him to throw another shell. He attempted to block everything out as it flew, lifting his hand at the right moment. It fell to the water again, and Silver felt hints of frustration creeping up.

He smothered it, though, because Sonic's words echoed in his mind. He had to practice so he could get better, so he could help protect Sonic like he had protected him.

However, when shell after shell fell out of the air with no seeable progress, the exasperation steadily grew.

And Sonic saw it, too. It was clear in how Silver gritted his teeth, ran stiff fingers through his quills, and looked at each shell with decreasing hope.

Thinking that it was time for a change in pace, Sonic dropped all of the seashells he had collected until he was holding just one. He approached Silver and softly called, "Hey." Stormy golden irises met his gaze, and Sonic smiled. "How about this…cup your hands together."

Confusion was written all over his face, but Silver did what he was told. Once his hands were cupped, Sonic placed the shell in his palms. "Try to make this one float." He held Silver's hands in his own, thumbs slightly rubbing against the other's wrists. Sonic could already see him relaxing at the touch, despite how miniscule it was. "You got this."

Silver blinked owlishly at him. "Yeah…" He dropped his attention to the seashell resting in his hold. "I can do this." Silver released a shaky sigh. "Sorry about before. I just-"

Sonic shook his head. "Don't worry about it. Everyone gets a little frustrated sometimes. It's natural." His lips twitched upwards. "Now let's see what that incredible brain of yours can do."

Warmth filled Silver at the reassurance, and he was even more determined to pull this off. He stared at the seashell, its off-white coloring near identical to his own. He steadied his breathing and focused his mind.

After a few quiet moments, there hadn't been any movement, and Silver muttered, "Come on, come on…" Sonic rubbed his wrists again in silent encouragement, them both keenly watching the shell.

Seconds ticked by, the sounds of shifting waters, overhead seagulls, and distant voices reaching their ears. Silver didn't allow himself to get distracted, pouring all he had just to get the shell to twitch.

And then it did.

They simultaneously gasped, snapping their heads up to look at each other. Sonic beamed at him. "You did it, Silv!"

Silver shook his head, refocusing on the seashell. "Not yet." The goal was to make it levitate, and he wasn't going to celebrate until he succeeded.

He tried to replicate the same connection as before. He didn't know how to describe it. It was almost if he had flicked the shell with an invisible third hand. Like his mind was a third arm, reaching and reaching and-

Silver's breath hitched when the seashell floated out of his hand. It was only about an inch or so, but it was still floating. "That's…I'm…"

The pure happiness on Silver's face was contagious, Sonic barely containing his own glee. "You're amazing, Silver."

That compliment made Silver's heart soar.

Until Sonic plucked the shell out of the air. "Not as much as I am but-" He teased and tossed it up high, Silver stopping its descent right before it hit his forehead. "-you're gettin' there."

Silver scoffed, but nothing could hurt his high right now.

"So that's the power you were talking about."

Well, maybe something.

Surprised at the new voice, Silver whirled around to find Shadow approaching them. He was alone, Rouge nowhere to be found, and Silver only felt a smidge of relief about that. He still didn't know how to feel about this new hedgehog.

Sonic was caught off-guard by the newcomer as well. He waved a hand in greeting anyway. "Uh, hey, Shads! What are you doin' here? Aren't you supposed to be talking with Mr. Stick-in-the-Mud?"

"I only needed to step out for a while. I told Rouge to pay attention while I was gone." Shadow eyed Silver – his gaze sharp and calculating – before giving Sonic his full attention. "I came here to talk to you."

Sonic furrowed his brow, pondering what was so important to skip out on a tactics meeting. "Okay, well, you're here now-"

"Alone."

Shadow's tone was inarguable, and while Sonic was hesitant to separate himself from Silver, this was apparently something he had to hear. He faced Silver, whose nervousness was written on his face for all to see, and patted his shoulder. "Can you stay here and practice on more shells while we step away for a bit?"

Silver wanted to object, but then again, Sonic had said that him and this guy were friends. He wouldn't lie about that despite how serious Shadow looked. He swallowed thickly. "Just don't go too far."

"We won't!" Sonic placated before walking away, Shadow silently following him. The speedster trudged through the sand until they were far enough away for Silver to be out of earshot. Sonic stood under the shade of a palm tree, regarding his former rival, "So…what's up?"

Shadow wasn't looking at him. His attention was on Silver, who had been watching them go. However, once they made eye contact, the psychic busied himself with gathering seashells. Shadow crossed his arms and asked, "What's the full story with him?"

Sonic scratched his head. Couldn't this have waited until later? "Like I said earlier, cat food changed him into what we are. That's why he was so scared of Rouge before." Sonic shook his head in mirth. "He'd been hard-set that every predator was out to get him. Still kinda workin' with him through that."

Shadow noncommittally hummed. "And the telekinesis?"

"It developed afterward. He got a cold, sneezed, and you can imagine our surprise. We were trying to fine-tune it when you walked up." Sonic smirked. "Why? Jealous of what he can do or somethin'?"

"Don't be ridiculous." Shadow deadpanned at him, unamused. His gaze flickered over at Silver again. "He isn't normal."

The definition of normal was blurred these days, but Sonic agreed that Silver's situation was on the stranger side. "Isn't that sorta obvious? I mean, a few days ago, he could fit in the palm of my hand."

"While the transformation needs to be looked into as well, I'm not talking about that. The Chaos energy residing in him is…erratic."

Sonic rose a brow. Shouldn't chaos and unpredictability go hand and hand?

Shadow sighed. "Ours is moving freely through our bodies, ready to be used at any moment, but it's a steady flow. Within Silver, I sense inconsistent bursts of energy throughout him. Pulsating erratically. Like now." He eyed Silver's form. The psychic was cupping another seashell. "His energy is flickering in and out, tiny explosions occurring below the skin."

"Is that…bad?" Sonic hesitantly questioned. He had gotten the simplistic run-down of Chaos energy way back, how it allowed him to connect with the emeralds and such. Shadow knew way more about it than he did, though, and the prominent frown he was wearing wasn't a good sign. "Isn't that because of his inexperience?"

"Possibly." Shadow's frown didn't let up. After a moment of pensive silence, he turned to leave. "Monitor him," he said over his shoulder. "That's all I came here to say."

Sonic had no chance to respond before Shadow blasted off, and he had to shield his eyes from the displaced sand. Lowering his hand, Sonic stared in the direction the agent left, replaying their conversation in his mind. Was something wrong with Silver despite nothing happening to prove that?"

He faced said hedgehog; Silver was looking in awe at the trail of dust Shadow had left behind. He seemed fine. Maybe…Maybe Shadow was just wary of something new. So what if Silver's energy was wonky? It could calm down soon.

But still…the fact that Shadow told him about it in the first place didn't sit right in his stomach.

Sonic was ousted out of his thoughts when Silver waved him over. He relaxed his expression as he jogged, not wanting to worry him with this new information.

"Shadow has superspeed too?" was the first question when Sonic closed the distance.

"Heh, yeah." Among other things, but Sonic chose to leave those alone for now. Silver would be introduced to them eventually. Instead, he boasted. "But I totally outclass him in speed. I never lose a race."

The awe transferred onto Sonic. "Whoa…" Silver almost looked like he couldn't believe it. "I guess you were holding back when you were carrying me?"

"Yep! Didn't want you to pass out or anything." Sonic pointed to the seashell Silver was holding. "Did you get another one to float while I was gone?"

Silver marginally frowned. "No…I was a little distracted." That was understandable. "What did you and Shadow talk about anyway?"

Sonic shrugged and waved him off. "We were just talking about the Eggman situation and how to deal with it. He doesn't know that I'm thinkin' about having you help with the plan."

A small smile grew on Silver's face. "Oh, okay." Then, he sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. "Does he have to be so intimidating all the time, though?"

"Yeah, you'll get used to it." Sonic lightly quipped, and Silver muttered something under his breath that sounded suspiciously like 'Not anytime soon'. He snorted at that before changing the topic. "How about we go back to practicing? An inch is a pretty good first step, but you're a way off from taking on ol' Eggy."

There was fire in Silver's eyes again. "Not for long if I can help it."

"That's what I like to hear!"

They nodded simultaneously, grinning ear to ear.

Sonic hoped that Shadow was worrying for nothing.

Surely Shadow's words mean nothing, right? He's simply warning – I mean, informing Sonic of this strange new development. Nothing suspicious about it at all. Nope. It's nothing but smooth sailing from here.

Heh.