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Maddie looks up from her phone, her free hand moving to cover her delighted open-mouth expression. “Did you know that a baby echidna is called a puggle?”
Her husband blinks. “A what now? A puggle?” he repeats.
“Right?” She turns her phone, a silent indication for Tom to look at the wiki page she’d pulled up. “I was doing some of my continuing education courses and got curious. Isn’t that so cute? A puggle!”
He rests an arm on the back of the dining room chair she occupies and peers down at the screen. “Huh, I wonder if Knuckles is still a puggle,” Tom muses aloud. “Like, obviously he’s not super young, dude’s toured the whole galaxy, but— do we even know how old any of them actually are? Like, in human years?”
Not for the first time since their family had expanded, Maddie finds herself wishing her veterinary knowledge extended to the little anthropomorphic aliens living in their home. She shakes her head, “I get the feeling that even if we had a conversion to human years, aliens just, you know—” she waves a hand, “—in general live on a different timescale from us. Or at least that’s my theory. There’s just…”
The woman trails off, her brow furrowing as her mind begins down a path it has traveled many times before. A touch on her hand brings her back to the present, and she looks up from the wood grain of the table to see Tom’s concerned face.
“Just…?” he prompts her gently. “Just what?”
Maddie takes in a sharp breath. “There’s so much we don’t know about them. And sometimes, I worry that— I don’t know, maybe we aren’t doing the right things for them? Or what if…what if we’re even doing the wrong things?”
The half-smile Tom offers her is sympathetic. “Those sound like the kind of questions every parent asks themselves.”
“But our kids aren’t like other kids,” Maddie sighs. There’s a comforting hand on her shoulder, and she moves to grasp it immediately. “I just— I wanna make sure we’re doing the best we can to take care of them. Want to make sure they feel at home, you know?”
Tom leans over, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. “I think if they needed something, none of them would hesitate to ask.” The next moment, he’s kneeling down, fixing her with an adoring, but amused, look. “And I promise that you have been the best mom to three aliens that I could ever imagine.”
Maddie can’t help but chuckle at that. Seeing her smile, Tom gets back up on his feet again, but not before pressing a chaste kiss to her lips.
“Still,” he says as they part, “I don’t see why we can’t put in the extra effort for our boys. How about, next time they’re off questing in some far off corner of the world, we do a little research, hm? See what we can find out.”
Her heart swells with affection. “I like the sound of that.”
Assuming Mobian biology is not so far off from that of Earth animals, Tails seems to be the easiest to tackle first. Maddie remembers reading an article that theorized foxes are trying to become domesticated, and in a way, it holds true to what she’s seen. There are many things that Tails likes that cats and dogs like, too: namely, curling up in warm spots, whether that be in the sun or next to the fireplace, getting an adequate amount of head pats and snuggles throughout the day, and playing games to keep himself busy when he wasn’t inventing (though they never did keep him occupied for long — Maddie is pretty sure the little genius solved a Rubik’s cube in less than five minutes the first time he got his gloved hands on one).
So, with all that being taken into account, the first thing the couple thinks of is food.
Their little group of aliens have seemed rather content with human food, with thankfully no allergies to be discovered so far. And, of course, they had their favorites — Sonic with his beloved chili dogs and Knuckles with his grapes and ranch Doritos. But Tails…Tails didn’t seem to have a favorite food as far as she could tell.
Maddie originally chalked it up to how easygoing the little guy was, never wanting to ask too much of her or Tom even several months after he’d gotten settled in with them. So when a few helpful online articles listed out the favorite foods of foxes, well, she couldn’t help but go all out in hopes that something on the wooden serving board would pique his interest.
The woman walks out to their garage (now Tails’ workshop) head held high and food in hand. She’s quite proud of the platter, if she does say so herself. To one side of the charcuterie board is a small bowl of nuts, surrounded by little blocks of cheese that almost perfectly match the fox’s fur. The rest of the spread is taken up by a pile of berries, all in season from the local farmer’s market.
She nudges open the door with her hip, keeping the tray steady. “Knock knock!” she calls out. “It’s snack time!”
There’s a clatter — then, two big blue eyes are peeking out from around the side of a red plane engine. “Maddie!” Tails exclaims, his twin namesakes fluffing up happily. “That doesn’t look like a bag of chips,” he comments astutely.
She grins as he hastily clears away a spot on his workbench, nose sniffing as she sets the board down. “It’s not — thought we’d try something new today,” she tells him. “Chips probably aren’t the best way to fuel that big brain of yours, anyways. So whaddya think, bud?”
His little black nose hasn’t stopped twitching, and it only continues as his eyes drift curiously over the contents of the board. Maddie watches as he lifts a hand, hesitates, then decides on a single blueberry. He holds it up to his eyes as though to inspect it before he opens his mouth and tosses it in — and boy, does Maddie wish she’d brought a camera, because his eyes light up like she’s never seen before.
“Oh wow!” Tails gasps. “What— what was that?” He’s grabbing another handful before she can answer, munching happily on his new snack.
She can only smile at his enthusiasm. “Those are blueberries,” she tells him, then shifts to point to the other ones, “And these are blackberries, raspberries, strawberries— some cheese, here, and some nuts. Peanuts, specifically.”
The fox’s mouth is dropped into a wondrous little ‘o’ as he tries a strawberry next. Again, his face lights up in delight, and Maddie has to hold back a laugh when his tails begin twirling up a storm out of excitement.
“I’ll leave you to it,” she decides, patting him softly on the head right between his fluffy ears. “And you let me know what you think, okay, little kit?”
She really didn’t mean to let it slip out — but the nickname had been swirling inside her head for weeks after her initial findings, what with it just being so cute. But in hindsight, she’s glad it did.
The yellow fox stills, juice-stained white gloves pausing above the snack tray as his head turns so that wide blue eyes can meet hers. “I…” he trails off. At first, Maddie worries she said something wrong; but then there’s a furry little body leaping toward her, and she opens her arms just in time for him to collide with her stomach.
Tails nuzzles his head against her shirt. “Thank you, Maddie,” he says, sincere. The little genius pulls away just enough to be able to look up at her brightly. “I really appreciate it!”
She folds him back in against her and squeezes tight, her heart warm. “Of course, Tails. It’s the least I can do.”
Knuckles is next — and, not-so surprisingly, much more difficult than Tails. Maddie has always considered the red echidna to be their most independent kid, and he’s proved her right time and time again. Still, that made it hard to figure out what she could possibly do to make him feel more at home (other than let him redesign their living room into a battle arena again, which…no, not happening).
The opportunity comes with the late summertime, or more specifically, with a freak heat wave that hits Montana. Maddie can only remember this happening once before when she was a little girl, and the memories don’t do it justice. It’s all the family of five can do to blast the AC and chug water to stay afloat. Even a trip down to the lake doesn’t help them cool down too much, and Sonic’s complaining from the shoreline the whole time doesn’t help everyone’s mood, either.
However, it hasn’t escaped anyone’s notice that Knuckles is the most miserable out of them all. Despite the oppressing heat, Knuckles maintains his everyday routine — outdoor workout in the morning, meditation on top of the roof during the afternoon, and then a second workout outside again in the evening right before dinner (which Sonic would usually participate in, but even the hyperactive hedgehog couldn’t be bothered to spar out some energy in this climate).
Because of his stubborn decision to stick to his routine, Knuckles’ brow constantly has a sheen of sweat across it, and his water intake is at least triple what the rest of theirs is. It’s as though he thinks if he rests inside for one day, his title as a warrior will be stripped from him.
And so, Maddie searches for answers.
It’s another sweltering afternoon when Maddie returns from the grocery store, huffing as she brings in her haul.
“Woah, hey!” Sonic cries out, at her side in a flash and taking one of the large cooler bags from her. “D’ya need help getting the rest of it in?”
“Nope, this is it,” she tells him, and they set the bags down in the kitchen in tandem. She gives him a grateful grin. “Thank you, Sonic. Is Knuckles up top?”
The blue hedgehog rolls his eyes. “Yep, same as usual. Crazy echidna,” he mutters, then zips away. Maddie just shakes her head and works on unloading her unusual purchase.
Ten minutes later finds her walking into the backyard carrying one of the many large bags of ice they now have stocked up. She sets it down at her feet before cupping both hands around her mouth. “Hey, Knuckles! Can you come down for a minute?”
She sees his bright red head move, then Knuckles rises almost immediately. Maddie remembers the first time she’d interrupted his meditation time — the way he’d shouted proclamations of the pain he would bring should she dare to intrude upon his meditation again. A stern look and a testy countdown from ten had put a stop to that real quick.
“Pretzel Lady,” he greets upon dropping down, head dipping in acknowledgement. “How may I help you this day?”
Maddie offers him a calm smile. Though her eyes catch the sweat dripping down his neck, she doesn’t call it out, knowing he’d probably take it as a sign of weakness.
“Well,” she starts, kneeling down to his level, “With how hot it’s been lately, I was thinking of ways we could all cool off, you know? And you know what I read?”
There’s a pause as he evaluates her. “No,” he states. “I do not know what you read.”
She holds back a laugh at his no-nonsense answer. “I read that echidnas like to lay on something cold when they’re too hot,” she explains. Her hand gestures to the bag of ice in front of her. “So I got this for you! Where do you want me to put it?”
Knuckles’ brow furrows. “…put? It?” he repeats slowly.
“Yes!” Sensing he needs an example, Maddie rips open the top of the plastic bag and pushes it over on its side. Knuckles stands back warily as the ice spills out. “See? We’ll just—“ she turns the bag onto its head, “—make a pile in the grass, like this! So you can still sit out here, but this should help you keep cool.”
The bag is fully unloaded now, and Maddie pats at the ice, pushing it around to lay a bit more flat. The echidna at her side still looks confused, but follows her lead and presses one large, gloved fist against the pile…
…only, instead of continuing the shift the ice around, his hand stays rooted there, and his eyes grow wide.
“This…” Knuckles trails off. “This feels…nice.”
Maddie can’t help but flash him a grin. “Right? I’ve never done an ice bath before, but I bet it’s pretty similar to— oh! Knuckles!” she cries out, reaching out as suddenly, Knuckles is tipping over and falling face-first into the ice.
She panics at first, thinking the heat finally got to him. But then, he lets out a relieved sigh, sinking into the icy bed as though it were made of marshmallows.
“A true warrior’s reward,” he mumbles, relaxed. “The elders must have graced you with their wisdom.”
A fond smile plays on Maddie’s lips. “Or an Animal Planet article,” she jokes. She only gets a content hum in response.
Deciding it’s time to take her leave, Maddie gives a few gentle strokes to his head spines before she stands. “Rest well, puggle. And let me know if you need more ice, okay? We’ve got more in the freezer for you.”
The woman turns and starts toward the door, expecting no reply. Instead, she gets a sudden, “Wait!”
When Maddie turns back around, she sees an awkward-looking Knuckles (though it would probably be difficult for anyone to not look awkward while lying belly-down in a pile of ice). It’s his expression, though, that makes her pause. He looks pensive, hesitant — rare for the forward echidna.
“Thank you,” he says, though he looks like he wants to say more. Maddie gives an encouraging nod. Knuckles glances away in thought; when he looks back several long moments later, Maddie is mildly alarmed to see that his lavender eyes are glassy.
“Thank you for becoming my tribe,” Knuckles tells her, voice cracking only slightly. “It…it means a lot. To me. You would’ve made a great chieftess.”
The smile that comes onto her face is, admittedly, a wobbly one. “Thank you, Knuckles,” she replies, warm. He merely grunts, clearly embarrassed, before he lays his head back down in the ice, sighing.
To say that Shadow’s discovery put her enrichment efforts on hold would be…an understatement.
Maddie can still remember that day so clearly: her and Tom anxiously waiting for their boys to return after Tails had picked up an energy surge in the Alaskan wilderness. When she heard the distinctive sound of Tails’ plane in the distance, she certainly hadn’t expected that they’d have one more passenger than they’d left with.
The black and red hedgehog was weak — that was clear enough by how he had one arm slung around Sonic’s shoulders, his ash-smeared head tipped over in exhaustion. They’d set him up in their pseudo-medbay in Tails’ lab. Maddie had been in the middle of setting up an IV when Shadow whispered something faint. She hadn’t caught it, but Sonic evidently had if the way his grip tightened on Shadow’s gloved hand indicated anything.
Once the darker hedgehog was finally back up and running, it took a while to figure it all out, to get into the swing of a new routine. There were the obvious things, like buying another bed and assuring Shadow over and over that no one wanted him to leave.
Honestly, him being alive at all was a miracle worth celebrating on its own— but somehow, watching him slowly open up felt like even more of a victory.
He’d stayed away from family movie nights at first, citing he wasn’t interested. But then one day, Maddie heard the creaking of the floorboards mid-movie, and turned to see Shadow standing in the doorway, attention rapt and head tilted in curiosity.
“Shadow,” she called softly, and the hedgehog jumped, startled red eyes landing on her as though he’d gotten caught. Maddie had just patted the empty space on the couch next to her, smiling. “There’s room if you wanna join— and it’s almost gotten to the best part.”
He’d crept in hesitantly, unsure. But he’d sat. And he’d stayed. And that was enough.
Slowly but surely, the expanded family found their way. It was now a regular occurrence to see not only Knuckles, but Shadow as well on the rooftop for afternoon meditation time. The black and red hedgehog was also usually the first of the bunch Tails would call upon to test new gadgets (much to Sonic’s jealous chagrin).
Speaking of their first kid — he and Shadow were, of course, always ready to race at the drop of a hat. Their friendly rivalry clearly sparked something in each other, as well as a fair few arguments. Still, it’s this rivalry that brings about the very first time she sees Shadow actually laugh.
It’s a mental image she’ll never forget: the usually stoic Mobian’s mouth all screwed up as he tried to hold it in, before it finally burst out and he fell to his knees, pointing and laughing as Sonic takes his air shoes for a (very clumsy) test drive on their usual race track.
It’s only when Christmas rolls around that Maddie realizes she wants this to be an extra special holiday season for their newest family member — and she isn’t the only one.
There’s snow on the ground, which was rare for a Green Hills Christmas. The Wachowski family accepts it with cheers, spending the majority of their morning outside before piling in to warm up by the fireplace and dive into lunch.
Maddie considers it a miracle that they’d held off on opening presents this long, and as soon as their meal is finished, the six of them are crowding into the living room to exchange gifts.
Tails, to the surprise of no one, gives each of them gadgets specially tailored to them. Sonic excitedly gifts an assortment of oddly-specific trinkets and knick-knacks, and Knuckles follows it up with handcrafted weapons (Maddie isn’t totally sure the dagger he gives her will be allowed at the vet office, but she nods anyways when he insists she must carry it with pride at all times).
Shadow is a bit awkward when it’s his turn. He hands over neatly wrapped small boxes with care, scratching idly at his quills. “I have to thank Tails for his assistance. It was my idea, but he made it happen,” he states.
The family opens their boxes to find discreet trackers about the size of a dime, each one with a symbol representing them stamped into it. Maddie is amused to see a pretzel on hers and feels warm when she realizes the care and thoughtfulness behind the gift.
“Alright, it’s our turn!” Tom says, clapping his hands together. “Tails, for you— and Knuckles, that one is yours—“ As soon as the gifts are handed out, the four make quick work of the wrapping paper (excluding Shadow, who removes the tape with surgical precision). There are hoots and hollers from all around, and they all laugh when Sonic immediately ties his new soft, brown scarf around his neck and begins to pose.
The excitement has to die down eventually— and when it does, Maddie pulls out one final gift that she’d discreetly hidden behind her. “Shadow,” she says, and ruby eyes meet hers before they fall to the package she holds. When she beckons him close, he doesn’t hesitate, though his eyes show his confusion.
“I wanted— well, we, all of us,” she amends, “We wanted to get you something special for your first Christmas with us. We hope you like it.” Maddie extends it out to him, and Shadow takes it gently. As he begins to slowly unwrap it, she can see the way Sonic bites his lip nervously, and then how Tails gives him an encouraging nudge.
When the last of the wrapping paper is finally pulled back, Shadow takes in a sharp breath, and the room falls still. He stares down at the picture frame, motionless, for several long seconds. Something about the silence seems to break Sonic.
“It’s—“ the blue hedgehog starts, then immediately cuts himself off and tries again. “If you don’t like it, um, we— well, I remembered finding it when we went to the, uh, y’know, the base where— yeah, and um, so we went back to get it, but putting it in a new frame was Maddie’s idea—“
“Thank you,” Shadow whispers. Sonic’s sigh of relief is felt around the room. Maddie watches, heart aching, as the black hedgehog brings the picture frame to his chest, fingers gripping it protectively. She doesn’t need to see the picture — she’d already seen it when Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles had returned with it weeks ago, handing it over like it was made of gold.
Shadow seems like he’s lost for words, his mouth parted as though he’s trying to find something to say. Tom gets off the couch and onto his knees in front of him, clapping a hand on his shoulder.
“We know how much she meant to you,” he says kindly. “And we know we’ll never be able to replace her, and that’s not what we want to do anyways. But we’re glad you’re with us now, Shadow. No matter what happens — you’ll always be a part of this family.”
Big red eyes soften, and then, inexplicably, turn to Sonic in a slight glare. “You just wanted to make me cry, didn’t you?” he asks. It’s only the slight upturn of his lips that makes it clear he’s joking.
Sonic lets out a laugh. “Is it working?” he teases.
Shadow rolls his eyes. “Not even close.”
(For his own sake, they all politely ignore the damp trail of fur below Shadow’s right eye.)
“Aww, gotta try harder then,” Sonic says, and he lunges forward, trapping Shadow in a tight hug. “C’mere, buddy! Cry it all out!”
It’s evident to everyone that the struggle that proceeds is mostly for show, and in the end, after a bit of roughhousing, Shadow does concede and allow the hug, even going so far as to rest his muzzle against Sonic’s shoulder.
“Alright!” Tails cheers. “Cuddle time!”
Maddie laughs as red eyes widen at this announcement — but it’s too late. Tails piles in, snuggling up to Sonic’s side, and Knuckles isn’t too far behind, gathering them together and squishing the three in his arms. It lasts only a few seconds before Shadow is sending Maddie a mildly distressed look, and she stands up from the couch clapping her hands.
“Alright, break it up, let’s give the pups some room,” she tells them.
Surprisingly, Sonic is the first to break free, striking a defensive pose. “Hey, who you callin’ pup, huh? I’m a big strong man!” He flexes to prove it.
Tom gets up from the ground with a laugh. “Sure you are, little guy,” he teases. “You let me know when you can reach the top cabinets, okay?”
“He does have a point,” Knuckles cuts in sagely. “You cannot reach very far. You are very short!”
Sonic rolls his eyes. “Oh please, you’re barely taller than me—“
“I’m actually quite a bit taller than you. And more muscular, too.“
“Oh for the love of—“
There’s the sound of someone clearing their throat, and Maddie looks down to see Shadow. When he glances over toward the kitchen, she nods and follows. By the time they reach the other room, she notices that his grip on the frame has loosened — but only slightly.
“I wanted to, uh,” he grunts, “I want to thank you for your hospitality. I never— well, the only home I’ve ever had, or at least remember having, was with Maria. So…thank you for welcoming me into yours.”
Maddie smiles a bit at the formality of his speech, but senses something else underneath it. “Of course, Shadow. And we mean it,“ she says, giving a knowing look. “You’ll always be welcome here, even if you don’t live here. Even if it’s just for visits.”
The black hedgehog’s shoulders hike up guiltily. “I…I don’t know what you mean—“
“Shadow,” she admonishes, and red eyes fall to the floor. Maddie sighs and sinks to his level, catching his worried stare. “It’s okay, Shadow. It’s okay to want to leave.”
He looks up at her, and for a moment, the Christmas lights reflecting in his eyes look like the stars she sees him gazing up at so wistfully. It’s only a matter of time, and they all know it.
But the black hedgehog before her shakes his head. “I shouldn’t, I— I should be happy here,” he insists. “With you and Tom. With the others.”
Maddie crosses her arms. “Who told you that? Who told you what you should do?”
He clenches his fists and looks away again. “No one,” he mutters. “But it…it feels like that’s what I should do. It’s what Sonic did, and Tails and Knuckles.”
“That was their choice,” she tells him. “That doesn’t mean your choice has to be the same. And I’m not telling you that you have to leave, either, but if you do…” Maddie trails off, and Shadow looks back at her. She gives a bittersweet grin and nods her head in the direction of a certain blue hedgehog. “Make sure you at least say goodbye, okay? Don’t just run off on us. Or air-skate, I should say.”
There’s something like realization in Shadow’s eyes before they harden, and he gives her a firm nod. Maddie can only smile back, heart full and never so glad to be the mother of four adorable aliens.