Do You Believe in Ghosts? (Triple S x Reader)

Hiss

"Really?" Sonic said, a small purr in his voice. His ears flicked and he tilted his head. "I'm just that alluring, huh? Can't stop thinking about me?"

"Nope." She reached up and put her hands on his shoulders, seemingly unafraid of the cold. Sonic blinked twice, confusion spreading through him. The ghost didn't know what to do. Threatening? She was always supposed to be considered a threat. But then she was leaning closer to his face and-

The ice around his body shattered again and with a sort of tearing feeling throughout his whole being, Sonic was ripped straight out of his body again, the ghost shrieking furiously, the sound deafening in his ears for a split second before (Y/n) grabbed him by the arm and pulled him away from his body. He gasped, shaking his head and looking up at her. Tikal stood behind the (a/t), glowing a bright orange and staring at Sonic with an unreadable expression. 

The former hero had no idea what to do. Last time, he'd been so curious, so surprised, and he couldn't stop himself from bouncing around. Then Tikal had snapped at him, which is something he'd never expected her to do. This was serious. He needed to really be serious about it.

"Alright, hi," he said, lifting his hand. (Y/n) gave him a tight smile and returned the gesture, her form shaking slightly. Sonic, in the moment, stepped forward and put his hands on her shoulders. "Are you good? Do I need to talk less?" He quieted at that notion and her smile eased slightly, becoming slightly lighter. 

"No, Sonic, it's okay. Just sit with me for a little bit. Tikal, just keep tabs on the ghost." The orange echidna nodded, taking up a post beside Sonic's crumpled body. (Y/n) sat down with her legs neatly crossed and Sonic did the same, resting his elbows on his knees. 

"Okay, can I ask a few questions?" he asked. She nodded once. "So...what's happening? How am I here?" 

"I pulled you out of your body. I learned how to identify your spirit from the ghost's and pull you away from it. Powerful as they may be, they don't know everything, so I've just learned how to mess it up a little bit," she said. 

"You're smart. Should I be quiet?" He glanced at his body then back at her and earned himself another smile. 

"It's alright. The ghost can't hear you while you're in this form. It can feel both my and your spiritual presence, but that's it. While it's in your body, it's entirely limited to what you see right now." She gestured at his frozen form. "Without you inside, anyway. Ghosts use you, or the host, to finish what they couldn't, and for most of them, that's bringing pain to those who didn't help them." Sonic's ears lowered. He still remembered the first time he'd encountered his new spirit companion. They had been desperate, cold, broken. 

And now he was too.

(Y/n) placed her hand over his, drawing his attention back to her. "What other questions do you have?" 

"What is this place? How long can you hold me? How do I have my speed in here?" She explained everything she knew about the 'secondary realm' and told him that she could hold him as long as their activities and movement remained small. She was working up to longer periods of time and hopefully, would one day be able to take Sonic down to the bunker as a spirit so he could spend some time with Tails and the others, even if they couldn't see him. 

"On that note," she said, "maybe, if I am strong enough, I could pull one of the others out of their body along with you and you could talk to them." Sonic stared at her, then let out a sound between a sob and a laugh. 

"Somehow, you're just the miracle I was looking for," he said, gathering her hand up in his and bringing it to his face. He pressed his lips to it without really thinking about it. "Anyway. How is Tails?" He looked up at her. 

"He's fine. He's obviously been better, but I've noticed a bit of a change from the time that I arrived here," she said. She took a shuddering breath and Sonic squeezed her hand lightly. He didn't want to go back to the ghost. When there was silence between them, the only sound he could hear was a soft ringing in the air around them. There was no screaming, there was no snarling. He was warm. He felt hopeful. He felt relatively filled with something. 

But he could tell (Y/n) was getting tired, even though they hadn't done anything but talk to each other. He knew from what she'd told him that she wasn't experienced enough, she hadn't had enough practice, she couldn't hold him for long. 

"I...I know I have to go back," he said, standing up and pulling her with him, still holding her hand. "I know you need to rest. There'll be no saving the world if you're too tired to do it." He slowly and carefully pulled her into a soft embrace, her head landing on his shoulder. "(Y/n)...thank you. This hope, it's what I needed this whole time." 

"Hold on to it," she breathed, her arms coming to rest loosely around his waist. "Please. Because I'm going to need as much of it as you do." He gave a small nod, pulling back. She led him back over to his body and he stepped towards it reluctantly, bracing himself. The ghost practically leaped at him, dragging him back into the primary realm. His limbs shifted back into place and he forced himself onto all fours, coughing and snarling. The ghost shrieked in his head, clawing at his spirit and making him groan. He stumbled onto his feet, limping over to his cot and thudding onto it, curling up in a ball. 

(Y/n) was on the floor, on her knees, looking up at him. He lifted his head slightly to look at her, opening his mouth and letting out a hiss. "You may be able to draw him out in spirit," the hedgehog's voice said, though it was most certainly not him speaking. Each word was coated with venom and it sounded somewhat twisted and very different from his actual voice. "But there will be no freeing him from his torment. From the torment. Enjoy that immunity while it lasts. Soon, your spirit will be darkened. Soon, we will feast. For me to live, you must die." He let out a dark, low chuckle, tucking his head back in his arms. 

"I know you're in there, Sonic. Stay in there, stay in control." Then the door opened and she was gone. Sonic peeked out at where she had gone, where she had been sitting. The screaming in the back of his head quieted for a moment. This wasn't entirely uncommon. The ghost liked to make sure Sonic knew who was really in control. 

"It won't last. It never does. Heroes are forged. A hero doesn't just come out of someone like her." Sonic shook his head, ears twitching. "Once the greatest hero of Mobius, now you're nothing." 

"I have hope," he snapped aloud. "You do not own me! I will not let you own me! I never let fear own me before, why should I start? Why did I start? I believed there was no way out, but there has to be! I won't let you or fear win!" 

The screaming came rushing back and Sonic buried his face in his arm, ears flattening as if that would help. 

He would help (Y/n) succeed. He would fight this ghost inhabiting him and he would fight it with every last fiber of his being. 

This was the only way out.