Sonadow Pride Month - Chapter 17: Chapter 17

Sonic and his whole LGBTQ+ couples group were in the park, sitting on two picnic tables that were close to each other so they can be able to talk and have a nice barbecue lunch they planned the day before. Shadow was in charge of the grill, Scourge was in charge of the drinks, Infinite was in charge of the meats and seasonings, Vector was in charge of the veggies and condiments, Mighty was in charge of the ice, Knuckles was in charge of the paper plates, plastic cups, napkins and paper towels, Rouge was in charge of the alcohol, Tangle was in charge of the plastic forks and spoons, and Tikal was in charge of the big aluminum trays.
"Let's get this BBQ started!" Sonic said as he did a cartwheel and ended it with a sweet triple backflip. "Yeah, can't wait to eat once the food is ready!" Tails said as Sonic and the others whooped and cheered, getting the mood up to a happy vibe they all want to feel. Shadow starts the fire on the grill and looks at Infinite and Vector. Infinite had burger patties, chicken breasts, hot dogs, bacon, and even some pork chops along with some burger buns and hot dog buns, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, and paprika. Vector had some corn on the cobs, potatoes, broccoli, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and a jar of pickles along with some ketchup, mustard, mayonnaise, relish, chili, and thinly sliced cheddar cheese. Shadow nodded indicating to them they did a good job in finding some good stuff they can eat for the barbecue.
Mighty had 5 bags of ice in one hand like it was nothing, opening up the bags and putting them in the cooler, while leaving some inside of a cold container so they can have fresh ice for the drinks. Knuckles puts the paper plates, plastic cups, napkins, and paper towels on a foldable table Shadow had that was near the cooler. Scourge and Rouge put in the drinks they got, Scourge puts in fruit drinks, sodas, and ice teas, while Rouge put in sangria, cocito, beer, and liquor inside the cooler. Tangle went to Shadow and pulled out two boxes of plastic forks and spoons while Tikal put down aluminum trays near Shadow so that when he was done cooking, he can put the food separately in each tray.
~1 Hour and 30 Minutes Later~
Sonic, Shadow, and all of their friends were feasting on burgers, hot dogs, chicken sandwiches, corn on the cob, fries, salad, and having the drink of their choice, a few of them taking alcohol-infused drinks and the others taking fruit drinks, sodas, and ice teas with some ice. "Oh my god, Shadow's grilling and cooking skills are amazing!" Rouge said as she ate. "I agree, I am dating the man!" Sonic laughed along with the others, knowing it was shocking true. Sonic then stood up and smiled at everyone. "I would like to make a toast, to all of us, cheers to our very wonderful relationships we have here, and may we prosper in the LGBTQ+ community, cheers to even us being able to not fight as much anymore, congrats to us! CHEERS TO OUR TIME TO CELEBRATE WHAT MAKES US UNIQUE AND SPECIAL!" Sonic said as he puts his plastic cup near the others and bumped their cups together, the others saying "Cheers" as well.
Everyone then took a sip of their drink and went back to eating. Suddenly, the same mysterious someone that watched Sonic and Shadow that day they went to Flower Park Zone appeared in the sky in a red hazy-like light was watching from above them, just curious about everyone until they saw Sonic, the someone floating down and landing in a tree and just looking at Sonic silently. That someone in the tree accidentally grabbed a tree branch which made the leaves make a rustling sound that caused Shadow's ear to twitch a bit and quickly look up at the tree to see that it was a little girl in a black dress, black tights, black shoes, white short hair, red eyes, and was in a weird red glitchy aura around her.
"Hey, get down from there you can get hurt little girl!" Shadow said as he got up and goes to the tree, Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and Amy noticed who it was. "SAGE?!" Sonic yelled as he got up and went to the tree. "Sonic? Is that really you?" Sage asked and looked at him as she floated down to his level but still floated off the ground, her dress flowing, and her red parts glitching up a lot on her body. "Oh my chaos! It really is you!" Sonic said as he got near her and gave her a hug, catching the A.I. girl by surprise. "According to my study of emotions on the matter, you are hugging me out of affection and confusion at the same time, 95% sure of this being correct" Sage said as the others were curious about her except for Tails, Knuckles, and Amy who already knew her a bit back on Starfall Islands.
"I am so confused, I thought you were gone! The End got detonated because of you, I thought the worse for you! But I am so happy you are okay!" Sonic said as he hugged the A.I. girl close to him. "Father brought me back to a psychical form once again, after you all left, he found my A.I. program and remade me the same way, and here I am" Sage said as Sonic stopped hugging her. "I am so happy to know you are okay! After the battle we both had with the one who annihilated the Ancients, I haven't forgotten about you" Sonic said as he held out a hand for her.
Sage slowly takes his hand and shows a calming smile. "I am so confused" Shadow said as the others who didn't know about her agreed. "Shadow, remember me talking about an A.I. girl at Kronos Island that day you saw the Cyberspace Portal? This IS that girl" Sonic said as he Sage looked at Shadow and Shadow looking at her in a bit of shock. "Wow, I wasn't expecting her to look, not to be offense, but isn't she rather small?" Shadow said. "Well, she is Eggman's A.I. that then became his creation as a somewhat human little girl form who is still an A.I." Sonic said.
Sage gasped and floated around Shadow a bit, to get a better look at him. Shadow was confused as he didn't know what she was doing. "Wait, according to my records that father shared with me, I know who you are" Sage said as Shadow looked more confused at her. "Huh? What are you talking about?" Shadow asked her. "I mean to say, I know we are related in a way, I am so glad to finally meet you, cousin" Sage said as she puts her hands in front of her and bows her head to him, causing everyone to be shocked and gasp loudly by what they just heard. "COUSIN?! SHADOW'S COUSIN?! REALLY?!" Sonic asked in shock, not at first believing it to be true.
"C-Cousin? I won't believe it" Shadow said as Sage then started to speak the truth. "Shadow the Hedgehog, born on the ARK, had a scientist named Gerald Robotnik bring him to the world, who happened to be my father's grandfather, and alongside him, was a girl named Maria Robotnik, who was the cousin of Eggman and the granddaughter of Gerald, making me by default, your cousin since my father created me, and his grandfather created you, that means we are 100% related from what I calculated and researched from you" Sage said as all of them were lost for words.
"Shads, I think Sage might be right, think about it, both Gerald and Eggman are related, and made you both, so, it actually makes you both related, the facts are right there with her" Sonic said as he looked at Sage and could see somewhat of a resemblance of them being cousins. Shadow for a few seconds actually was now convinced they are really related to each other. "So, we are really cousins?" Shadow asked the girl. "Affirmative, that is correct" Sage said as she hugged her cousin's arm, wanting to let him know it was going to be okay and that he will accept the facts in due time.
"I have a cousin now? This is actually, very weird for me to swallow" Shadow said as he slowly looked at her and hugged her close. "But Sage, are you alright yourself?" Sonic asked as he rubbed Sage's back. "Yes, I am alright, I think in a way, my psychical form was brought back to me and I feel so good to be back" Sage said as she looked up at Sonic. "Good, that is what I like to hear, you are welcomed to stay with us, I know you don't eat or drink anything, but, at least stay, I really would like to know you a little better, since we only got to know each other a bit, me personally knowing YOUR name after what seemed like forever for me since Ouranos Island that you finally told me who you were, but, still, I would like to bond with you, if you would let me" Sonic said in a kind caring voice.
"Alright, I will stay since I found you again, and someone who is actually family to me, so yes, I would love to stay for a while, thank you Sonic" Sage said as she floated to the picnic tables and looked at everyone. "Who is she?" Silver asked. "Guys, I would like you to meet Sage, she is the girl who helped save our world from destruction by a bad horrible entity known as The End, but in the final moment, Sage blew up herself with the Supreme Titan inside of the entity, making her lost to us, but now she is back and better than ever! Sage, I would like you to meet my friends! I hope you all get along, she is so sweet, I promise!" Sonic said as he sat down with Shadow at the picnic table.
Sage was confused about where she would sit, but Shadow scooched a bit over and patted the spot next to him so his new cousin can sit down. Sage saw this and floated to the spot, sitting down and looking at everyone who was fascinated by the little A.I. girl. "Sage, this is Silver, Mephiles, Fleetway, Scourge, Rookie, Infinite, Espio, Mighty, Vector, Blaze, Rouge, Whisper, Tangle, Sonia, Manic, and Tikal, don't be afraid, they are our friends, they are just confused about where you came from, they never met you before, but me, Tails, Knuckles, and Amy have known about you" Sonic said as he smiled at the little girl.
"Well, it is nice to meet all of you, pleased to make your acquaintance, I am Dr. Eggman's A.I. program, but he called me Sage, I identify as a female since my design is a child and the gender looks like a female, but I try my hardest at protecting those I find important to me, and so, Shadow, I will protect you, at all costs if I have to" Sage said as she looked at her cousin. "Sage, you don't have to do that, besides, the doctor would kill us if something happened to you again" Shadow said. "But I live to serve, that is all I have really known since I was first programmed" Sage said as she looked down a bit since she thought going out on her own would be a bad idea.
"Why not do things for yourself?" Shadow asked. "Things for myself?. . . I never thought of anything like that, father needs me" Sage said as she looked up at Shadow for a bit. "But Sage, I lived to serve someone once, and it ended horribly, you have to at least go on your own one day, and see the world for yourself in how you want to view it, just think about it okay" Shadow said as he went back to eating. Sage looked down at her hands and was silently pondering his words, wondering if she would do it or not, not wanting to displease her father and creator if she goes through with her decision.
"Sage, wanna know something I tell everyone?" Sonic asked her. Sage got out of her thoughts a bit and looked at Sonic. "Well, if you want to say it, then sure" Sage said. "Live life, do what you want, go where you want, and feel full and happy, that is what I tell people, life is very beautiful if you open yourself up to it Sage, if you close yourself off like a butterfly in a cacoon, you won't be able to break open your way out and fly away freely to see the wonders the world has to offer, remember that Sage, we only want what we feel is best for you, that is all sweetie" Sonic said as he also went back to eating.
Sage looked at Sonic still but slowly looked down at her hands once again, thinking maybe it wouldn't be so bad to do things that she would want to do, as her cousin does. "She is such a sweetheart, I like her already" Silver said. "I am not really into A.I. but I actually think she is not so bad" Mephiles said. "She is a cool little girl, great for getting sources of info if we ever needed it" Scourge said. "I like her looks, looks nice, like the black and red look, makes her look so adorable" Fleetway said. "Why does she almost resemble Infinite in a way, the colors are so similar and even her glitchy look is rather interesting to say the least" Rookie said.
"She is not related to me, but I totally get why he said that, we both have powers that are red and superior, so I get why he compared me to her" Infinite said. "I bet she has been through a lot with Eggman, not as his artificial intelligence, but as a daughter? That is way deep" Espio said. "Yeah, she is like if evil and kindness made a baby, but the kindness showing through even though she looks evil, I like that" Mighty said. "Bet she really packed a good fight with the entity you mentioned, she really seems a strong asset in battle" Vector said. "I love her determination to help, even though she is not really real, her emotions and feelings are real, I find that truly inspiring and a beautiful gift" Blaze said.
"This little girl, I love her, just something about her personality and voice really drew me to her the moment she arrived, it is like, a nice feeling to meet an A.I. that isn't really evil, this girl proved me wrong on my assumptions, nice work" Rouge said. "S-She even helped Sonic? W-Well that is someone I can truly trust now, those who help others, Sonic once said "If a fight is worth fighting for, then go for it" as he would tell that in his own way" Whisper said. "I agree, the fact this girl has come so far, she really is friend material, I would definitely love to see her more often if she ever goes out to explore the world with us" Tangle said.
"Her dress is so pretty, and her hair, very nice, we gotta hand it to Eggman, he really made her look so cute, I can't even tell that she is an A.I. program, very impressive" Sonia said. "That girl got style, white hair, black dress, red eyes, I dig that look, that dudette is so cool" Manic said. "I sense her aura, a calming yet wonderful soul inside her who just wants everything to be better for the world, I actually like that she is caring even though most A.I. are not capable of emotion at all, it is a beautiful thing to see this girl have emotions for those she found that she can truly trust to help her, what a nice girl she is, Eggman didn't teach her about anything related to emotions but she managed to learn about it herself I hope, that is very amazing" Tikal said.
Sage was shocked by the comments she got from all of them. "They are right Sage, you are a bright A.I. who actually we thought was evil, but in the end, you were only trying to protect your creator, that is something no one would ever think about you, but we see that, and that is very inspirational" Tails said. "Even though you attacked Sonic, you were still worried about Egghead, and his safety, I now see why you were trying to not let us leave, you protected us in a way too, you have my respect" Knuckles said. "Even though Sonic was lost to us when the Corruption stuck him in between realities, you still somewhat wished for a miracle, as if you believed something might happen, and when we gave up our psychical forms, you saw a wonderful opportunity to help Sonic, that is really thoughtful of you Sage, I wished Eggman didn't have to be so rude though, you are to total opposite of him, kind and sweet" Amy said.
"I-I don't know what to say" Sage said as she then felt a hand wrap around her shoulder and Shadow holding her close. "You don't have to say anything, praise is something that we would hear, but being praised feels nice, trust me cousin, I have been praised for saving the world from Black Doom's horrible wrath, and everyone saw me as a hero, and I had nothing to say too, so I understand the feeling Sage" Shadow said as Sage blinked but closed her eyes and nuzzled on her cousin. All of them awe at the bond that they are acknowledging that they were really family.
"Sage, no matter what happens, you will always have a family, me, Shadow, and our friends" Sonic said as he smiled softly. "Thank you everyone, I feel much better that my efforts were noticed" Sage said as she still nuzzled on Shadow and looked up at him, seeing something she never thought she would witness. Sonic took Shadow's face and planted a kiss on his soft tender lips, Shadow kissing back lovingly. "Is this a form of love I don't know about?" Sage asked, Sonic stopping the kiss just to answer her question. "Well, this is a loving kiss between males Sage" Sonic said to her.
"Males? Kissing? That's a thing? I don't understand. . . my internal programming doesn't have any data of this whatsoever" Sage said. "That's alright, let me educate you a bit, well, when two males or those who identify with he/him, they/them, or he/them pronouns love each other, and are together, it means they are gay, it can mean they are both gay, or maybe bisexual, but either way, if two males date, that makes them gay, and if they kiss, it is like a regular kiss, but between the same-sex gender, does that help you understand Sage?" Sonic asked her. "A little, I am trying to understand all I can" Sage answered him. "Gay means two males romantically into each other, that is what me and your cousin are, gays" Sonic said. "Hmm. . . I understand a bit now" Sage said.
"It is also the other way round, when two females or those who go by she/her, they/them, or she/them pronouns are in love, it means they are lesbians, it means either they are both lesbian, or one of them or both might be bisexual, if two females date, lesbian is the term we use, same-sex gender relationship by default without question" Amy said. "Lesbian? Sounds interesting, I guess I am learning more about love and how it can be shared" Sage said. "Lesbian is the same as the gay version, but with two females romantically interested in one another" Amy said. "Yeah, and as Gays and Lesbians here, we love to not deny who we are, we are still equal and wonderful all the same" Sonic said with a smile as everyone agreed with his statement.
"But we have those in the community that are not part of our group, known as the straight ones, but if they support the LGBTQ+ community, that makes them a Straight Ally, meaning they support all those in the non-straight community. "Straight Ally? They support you? That is a wonderful way to spread the love? That is actually so beautiful, I don't see anything wrong with Gays or Lesbians, or are there more that I don't know about?" Sage asked. "There are more, but it is so nice to know you see nothing wrong with our relationships" Sonic said with a smile.
"Why would I? Love is a sacred thing, everyone deserves to feel happy and loved, even if they are same-gender, I don't mind seeing them happy, they deserve happiness, everyone does" Sage said. "Guys, that is the most beautiful thing I have ever heard, give a round of applause for her wonderful little speech!" Sonic said as he clapped his hands, the others clapping for her, Sage smiling a bit knowing that she now understands a bit more about what love can consist of. "She is now a supporter of us, you know what that means! Straight Ally all the way!" Sonic said as he was smiling at her.
The others cheered for Sage, knowing she was a straight ally from her speech, making them happy they have her on their side. "Sage, welcome as a supporter of our humble and amazing community, we hope you support more people like us in the future" Shadow said with a smile. "Thank you cousin, I won't let you all down, you have my support, and my word for it to all of you" Sage said as she puts a hand on her chest and looked at them with a soft smile. "That is such a nice thing for you to do, sometimes, support goes a long way, just like you supporting me when we were working together to save the islands and the world from devastation" Sonic said.
Sage nodded and smiled. "I look forward to supporting you all on your journeys of happiness and love" Sage said as she giggled a tiny bit. The others awe at her and were very happy she is different from Eggman, a caring A.I. who just hopes for happiness to prosper and worries for everyone's safety like Sonic does. "Now, who wants some yummy cupcakes?!" Sonic said as he pulled out a tray of rainbow, gay, and lesbian color-themed frosted vanilla-flavored cupcakes he made in advance for the barbecue. The others cheered and started to take the cupcake they wanted, enjoying their afternoon with the sweet and supportive girl that came into their lives, Shadow smiling at the fact he has someone to call family from now on from this day forth.