Gadget stood there for a while, angry that all of his boundaries had been crossed, and that he’d been a mindless puppet for almost three days. Infinite had taken advantage of him the first night, but he’d taken care of him so well afterwards… and chose to let him go when he didn’t have to. The crimson canine’s resentment simmered into a confused heartache, before his tear dam broke and he began bawling. He couldn’t think of a time where he felt more messed up.
 
His little brother walked out the door with a bag, presumably on his way to meet friends, but stopped short upon seeing the red wolf. He ran towards him and squashed him in a hug.
 
“BRO! Why did you ignore all of us?!”
 
Surprised but needing that abrupt affection more than anything, he squished his brother in return. He had to snuffle a few times before he could get his breathing in check and respond.
 
“I’m sorry! I was… struggling with stuff. Infinite and I weren’t getting along so he brought me home. I guess it’s for the better.”
 
Gears broke the embrace and pulled him towards the house, putting aside whatever he’d planned on doing prior to his brother’s appearance. Gadget’s physical baggage was forgotten for the time being. They entered the living room and both of his parents were on him - family dog piles were becoming commonplace for them.
 
“When were you supposed to be coming here?! You message us and then don’t respond to anything for days, where was your phone this whole time?! Did that demonic jackal confiscate it and lock you up?!”
 
Both pups flattened their ears as their father’s voice steadily rose in volume. Gadget would eat a shoe before telling them the truth - they wouldn’t be able to stomach what really happened, and he didn’t want them thinking the worst of Infinite.
 
“We got in a fight, and I said I was gonna take a break from being around him! I sent that text without thinking, I’m sorry for causing you so much stress again. Then we tried to work things out, but it was overwhelming with all the rebuilding going on, so I made the final decision…”
 
Gadget had only just stopped crying a moment ago, but the tears resurfaced with a vengeance. His mom wiped them away and kissed his cheek.
 
“Okay, okay, you’re here for good then sweet cheeks. Don’t shed any more tears over him, it’s over now. We’re glad to have you back.”
 
The crimson canine managed to hold in the waterworks until he entered his room with his belongings. He wasn’t even sure what he was supposed to be thinking or doing now. His parents had told him that just before he’d been brought home, there had been a newscast - it stated that the world was officially fully restored... Gadget hadn’t realized how close Infinite had been to finishing in the last week. He just hoped that authority wouldn’t put an arrest warrant on the dark-furred jackal. While he knew that the former villain was more than capable of evading it, he worried regardless.
 
Opening the suitcases had him admiring how intricately everything had been packed.
 
“I don’t hate you though...”
 
_____________________
 
The crimson wolf spent the next day holed up in his room. Despite wanting to comfort him, his parents and brother agreed to give him space for the day, aside from bringing him food and asking if he wanted company. He cried a lot, and only got up to use the bathroom. Thankfully, the next day he appeared to be in a better mood. He left his room to eat and hang around his family, and they all rejoiced at how quickly he bounced back.
 
They realized they’d celebrated too soon when a week passed and he did a complete 180. He would not eat any meals, and he wouldn’t even respond to his parents or little brother when they tried to coax him out of his room. The only one who could get him to eat was Gears, and he only accepted a snack nudged under his door in the wee hours of the night. On the third night of the second week, Gears sat outside his brother’s door at around 2am, and waited until he was sure Gadget had eaten it.
 
“Hey Gadg… are you still talking to Infinite?”
 
Not expecting a response, he was stunned to hear the demure voice of his older brother a few minutes later.
 
“No. I thought he would have come back for me by now.”
 
The reply baffled him.
 
“Why? Do you want him to come back?”
 
He waited expectantly. After 10 minutes of silence, he knew that he wasn’t going to get anything else out of him.
_____________________
 
A few hours later, Gadget woke up to not-so-hushed whispering downstairs, and stealthily made his way to the top of the staircase. Both of his parents were in the kitchen talking about him.
 
“That Chaos-damned Infinite broke our son! He’s obviously lied to us about what that masked monster did to him. Gadget is a wreck, and the state of his mental health is above our paygrade, even as his parents! We’re taking him in for therapy tomorrow.”
 
His mom’s face was puffy from prolonged crying. Her voice cracked.
 
“He’s shedding so much fur… I’m scared for him.”
 
“I am too.”
 
He scowled. Being treated like a wild animal about to be taken into captivity did not sound appealing. Somehow, he knew that he wouldn’t get a choice in the matter. He returned to his room and packed a bag. He wasn’t a damn wreck, he just wanted resolution. That was it. He never really wanted to even leave Infinite’s side, he was just mad at being spied on. It had been over a week and Infinite hadn’t returned for him. Now that he was faced with the possibility of never being with him again, he was stressing subconsciously. Climbing out the window and dropping into a crouch, he headed off into what he hoped was the right direction of the fortress. He knew the long-maned mobian well enough to be certain that he would catch his scent eventually, and investigate.
 
_______________________
 
To Gadget’s luck, he was found even quicker than he’d expected. Infinite must have still been doing small side projects to improve everything beyond initial condition. Hearing the deep voice soothed his frayed nerves a bit.
 
“Gadget… what are you doing out here?”
 
The crimson wolf gazed at him with betrayed doe eyes.
 
“You left me.”
 
“I’ve wronged you too many times - I don’t deserve to have you with me. I am astonished that you’ve been wandering around with the intent to seek me out…”
 
“I need you though. And I was worried that the police or the resistance would be after you.”
 
Infinite balked. Why in Chaos was the red canine so concerned for him? He should be cursing his name and hoping for a public execution. He observed the wolf that he loved so dearly. His fur was dull and even more thinned out than when he’d taken him captive all those months ago. He’d lost weight. He had only found the wolf so quickly due to the smell of anxiety and stress rolling off of him in waves. Despite telling himself that he was not allowed to touch the wolf anymore, he drew him into a hug. His stomach dropped when his gloved hands could feel how much smaller the other canine’s frame felt in his embrace.
 
“Chaos, Gadget… I did this. I’m so sorry… did you tell your family where you went?”
 
“No! I heard them talking about sending me to therapy, so I left. They don’t get it. They don’t know you.”
 
Infinite exhaled sharply. Gadget shouldn’t be abandoning his family to find him of all people.
 
“Love… I did unspeakable things to you. They know me as well as they need to. I am bringing you back to them. They will find out you’ve left again - I’ve caused them to suffer by hurting you this severely.”
 
Gadget clung to the fur on Infinite’s back, who winced in turn.
 
“You have to stay if you do that!”
 
Infinite didn’t respond, and used the ruby to transport them onto the porch of Gadget’s house. He pried the panicked wolf from his person, and held his hand to comfort him. The jackal’s stomach kept doing flips. When the crimson canine dragged him to the door, he knew there was going to be a pandemonium. Inside, the dark cyan wolf he assumed to be Gadget’s father was on his phone. He looked up and it dropped out of his hand. He scrambled backward and reached for a baseball bat beside the closet, and wielded it with as much menace as he could display.
 
“Son, get away from him! He’s got you in an illusion!”
 
Gadget glowered at his father.
 
“No, he doesn’t. I went looking for him, and he made me come back here. I heard you and mom this morning!”
 
His dad ogled both of them in disbelief.
 
“The fact that you left to find this psychopath only enforces how badly you need help! Your mom and brother are out there looking for you. We’re bursting at the seams with worry, damn it!”
 
In a split second, Infinite had let go of the crimson wolf’s hand and vanished in a rush of red cubes. Gadget stared at the empty space in horror. Recognizing his posture as a preparation to bolt, his father lunged forward and tackled him to the ground. Despite howling, screeching and flailing, his dad had the upper hand on him, and he eventually passed out from exhaustion. He was relocated to the couch, and the phone was plucked off the kitchen floor. The dark cyan wolf called his wife, who promptly returned with their younger pup. He held his head in his hands as he slouched on the floor and rested against the couch.
 
“He ran off to find that monster… who was here briefly. He said he only came back because Infinite made him. He disappeared, and I knew Gadget was going to make a break for it, so I had to hold him down. I just don’t know what to think or believe anymore. He fell asleep after kicking and screaming for almost 10 minutes.”
 
His wife wept as she crouched down and petted her son’s thin pelt. She was too afflicted to even respond.
 
______________________
 
They had decided to start with barring Gadget’s window from the outside, and supervising his door until they could figure out the best thing to do for him. They had tried hiring a therapist for a house visit, but the upset wolf would not let anyone in his room. Each time they tried to get Gadget help, the wolf would only punish himself even more, refusing to even eat what Gears would present him in the night. They were at a standstill.
________________________
 
Gears lay sprawled out on his bed as he fiddled with the controller in his hands. His room suddenly emanated a red hue, and he flipped over in alarm to see the monster that had wolf-napped his older brother.
 
“AAAAH! Why are you here?!?! I’m not as pretty as my bro, don’t take me too!”
 
Infinite laughed, and then felt guilty a moment later.
 
“Relax, child. You are the most approachable of his family members - are you willing to relay a proposition I have to your parents?”
 
Gears got up and sat properly on his bed.
 
“What kind of proposition? I’m scared to hear it.”
 
“Gadget would benefit from speaking to his allies - one in particular. Her name is Amy. I will take him to her with your parent’s permission.”
 
“Um… ok. Do I go ask now?”
 
Infinite sighed quietly at his anxious tone, but it was better than the reaction he’d expected.
 
“Preferably, yes. I have already insinuated that I would be stopping by her office today regardless. I will wait outside for their response.”
 
Gears nervously padded out of his room and down the stairs, where his parents were sitting on the couch holding each other.
 
“Mom, dad. Can we take him to his friend Amy? She isn’t a therapist but I think she could help him, even just a little bit.”
 
His parents both turned to him, and he sat down in between.
 
“He kicks and screams the second anyone touches him, and that’s on the days where we can even manage to get his door open. Is she near here?”
 
Gears cursed internally. He had no idea - his plan to keep Infinite’s name out of the question wasn’t gonna work. He winced in preparation for dual outbursts.
 
“Uh, no. She’s at the resistance base in some other city. Infinite said he would take Gadget to her though…”
 
The female red wolf eyed him suspiciously.
 
“Infinite said that? To you?”
 
“Yeah. Come on, please don’t make a big deal. Don’t you want Gadget to be happy again?”
 
His father stood up and also scrutinized him.
 
“Just when did you and that demon even meet one on one?”
 
“He just showed up in my room to get me to be the middleman.”
 
The shift in his parent’s stances alarmed him.
 
“Woah, he’s not there anymore! Ugh, just say yes. There’s nothing we can do for Gadget, we gotta admit that it’s out of our control.”
 
To his relief, both adult wolves sat back down without another word. He stayed rigid between them, as if any sudden movement would incite the wrong response.
 
“Fine - BUT, he takes us too. We won’t intrude on Amy, we’ll just be making sure that Infinite isn’t lying.”
___________________________
 
The trio exited their house to see Infinite standing nearby.
 
“We’re only agreeing to this because we can’t see another choice.”
 
The jackal gave a low nod in understanding. He disappeared, and one moment later reappeared next to them with a frazzled wolf in his arms. It was only another moment and the wolf pack and masked jackal were in Amy’s office. She flinched, drenching herself in the water she had tilted to her lips. Opening her mouth to berate the group, and closing it a second later when she saw just who they were, she sat back down again.
 
“I don’t know what’s going on. But I will speak with Gadget first, if the rest of you can step out.”
 
Gadget, who had been hyperventilating in the last few seconds, flinched at hearing his name. Infinite hesitantly rubbed his ear in reassurance, which eased him enough for his family to exit the room.
 
“Please talk to her, sweet one…”
__________________________
 
While the pink hedgehog had managed to coax Gadget into sitting down, that was about as far as she got. He was sitting in a position that was very obviously the quickest way for him to get up and sprint. She was under the impression that he didn’t trust her, which was a total 180 from the last time she’d spoken with him. That jackal had done a number on him, and she was struggling not to get angry over it - she had to focus on her friend first.
 
“Gadget… Infinite brought you here because he wants you to talk to me. We just want to understand your feelings.”
 
The crimson wolf stared at his bare hands - by the look of his claws, or complete lack of, she figured that he had forgone them on purpose. She could see a thin layer of red fur surrounding the chair in the short time he had been in her office. He shook like a leaf, and her heart broke. The telltale signs of an anxiety attack were only getting worse every time she tried a different approach on him. Amy was at a loss. She got up and opened the door to her office, to see the red canine’s parents fidgeting in their chairs.
 
“I’d like to bring Infinite in… is he around?”
 
Stern looks crossed both older wolves’ faces for reasons she didn’t care to ponder on. The masked jackal came into view amongst clusters of cubes, and they both wordlessly entered her office. He took his mask off immediately. He sat in the second chair, only for Gadget to scoot his closer and grasp Infinite’s tail. He curled up on his seat and appeared to want to doze off. The jackal and hedgehog both held identical troubled gazes, which led Amy to believe that there was something more going on than she had initially assumed.
 
“This degree of change is just way too sudden and extreme. It was questionable that he decided to stay with you when you gave him the option to leave, but I’d spoken to him and he was very level headed about it. He’s the furthest thing from that now, and it’s only been a few weeks since I last spoke with him. Infinite, did you withhold details?”
 
He pointedly looked away from her. She sighed.
 
“Look… I know you did something to him. I’m not going to lose my temper - you brought him here for me to help him, but now you’re just making it hard for everyone. What happened?”    
 
“I said I didn’t have him under an illusion the previous time we spoke, and I was not lying. But back when he hadn’t been answering anyone’s messages, it was because I broke my word and cast one on him… I still regret that just as much as the moment I did it. I canceled it around three days later… but I know I should have done so immediately.”
 
Amy exhaled quietly.
 
“How was he when you finally did? What did you trap him in?”
 
“I don’t know the answer to either of those questions. What I cast on him was nothing like what I’d ever done on anyone… I may have directly altered his cognitive ability, instead of just trapping him in a false reality. I’d brought him to his home just before undoing the illusion, and under two weeks later I found him in the vicinity of my fortress looking for me. His family will be able to provide more details on that...”
 
Amy was horrified, but she didn’t let it show on her face. She instead picked up her radio, and waited for the other end to respond.
 
“Hiya there Amy! Do you need something? I was actually just about to head down your way so we could get some lunch.”
 
“Lunch will have to wait, unfortunately. Can you come here with your Miles Electric? Thanks, Tails.”
 
Gadget was still dozing, curled up on his chair with the jackal’s tail in his grip; he likely had not been sleeping much. The other two waited in awkward silence, until Tails was knocking on the door 5 minutes later. He stared at the scene, mildly confused, until he identified Infinite by the ruby on his chest.
 
After calming the two tailed kitsune and briefly explaining the situation, Tails did a full body scan on the sleeping wolf.
 
“There are high amounts of energy with the same signature as the phantom ruby. It’s not the same level that I’ve picked up on illusions though. It’s got to be a power differential that is still affecting Gadget at a conscious level. The nature of the illusions you used during the war weren’t meant to affect anyone’s psyche long term, right? This is the consequence of manipulating him that acutely. Do you really need it still? I don’t know if destroying that thing or getting rid of it will even be a solution, but with its power still active, I know for sure that any therapy, medication, or alternative treatments will have no effect on him…”
 
To both Amy and Tails’ surprise, the jackal didn’t even hesitate.
 
“I’ll get rid of it.”