Better to Give than to Receive



7 o’ clock a.m. approached, and Christmas morning came closer with every second. Young Tails, with dark circles under his eyes due to his lack of sleep, was staring out the window.

“Come on moon! Go down, go down!” he whispered to himself as his blue eyes glowed in the moonlight.

Meanwhile Sonic, Amy, and Knuckles slept in their own bedrooms, Knuckles snoring with incredible volume and Amy sleep-talking about Sonic. Sonic just dreamed quietly, sound asleep, in his usual laid-back pose. Tails left the window, telling himself to get some sleep for the big day. He climbed into bed and ruffled under the covers, and as he saw the peaceful Christmas night light, he slowly fell asleep and slept like a baby… for about one minute until Sonic woke him up!

“Tails, buddy, wake up!”

“Mmmm. . . what?” Tails asked as he rubbed his eyes with the sleeves of his snowman pajamas.

“Wake up dude! It’s Christmas!”

“What?! Really?!” Tails shouted as he jumped up right away and dashed for the Christmas tree. Inside the living room, Amy and Knuckles were sitting on the couch in front of the glowing lights, tons of presents underneath the wonderful tree.

“Wow. . .” Tails gasped in amazement as a wide grin spread across his face. “Can we open presents? Can we? Can we? Can we?”

“Chill out Tails, there’s plenty of time for that?” Amy chuckled.

“Yeah, no need to jump up and down like a little kid.” Knuckles said as he crossed his legs.

“But, technically I am a kid. I’m only 8.”

“Well, you know what I mean!!” Knuckles shouted back.

“Hey, calm down and let’s exchange gifts!” Sonic said impatiently.

“I got this for you Sonic. . .” Amy said as her face flushed into a deep red. She handed to him a gift wrapped in pink wrapping paper with a blue ribbon.

“Well, what is it?”

“OPEN IT!!!”

“Okay, okay… calm down, princess!” Sonic said as he unwrapped it. “…Uh. . . what is it?”

“It’s a romance CD. I heard this artist has some great songs. Maybe we could listen to it together sometime…” she said as she flushed even more red.

“Uh…thanks… well, here’s your gift.” he said as he handed his to Amy.

“Oh. . . thank you. . .” she said as she opened it. “Oh my gosh! It’s the French beret that I’ve always wanted. . . how did you afford this? It’s over $1200!!”

“Well, let’s just say Eggman is very giving.” Sonic chuckled.

*At Eggman’s Base*

“Where the hell did all my money go!!?? Grrr, curse you Sonic!!”

*Back at the house*

“Here Knuckles, I got this for you.” Tails said as he handed him his gift.

“Cool, thanks.” He said as he ripped it open. “Wow. . . good choice in gloves. Thanks, Tails!” he said as he saw a new pair of black gloves.

“Sure, anytime! It’s better to give than to receive.” Tails said cheerfully.

“Uh. . . sure. . . here’s your present.” Knuckles said as he handed Tails an orange-wrapped present.

“Wow, thanks!” he said as he unwrapped his gift. “Wow, it’s the exact toy plane I wanted! How did you know!?”

“I heard you praying to Santa.”

“Wow, thank you!!”

“Here, Sonic and Amy.” Knuckles said as he threw them a very small wrapped gift.

“What kind of gift is this?” Amy asked seriously.

“Hold it above your head and open it.”

“Uh. . . ookayyy.” Sonic said as he raised an eyebrow and opened it above his head.

As he opened it, he saw green leaves and he and Amy gasped in unison.

“A mistletoe!?” Sonic screamed as Knuckles snickered.

“Nice choice, Knuckles.” Tails said with a chuckle.

“I guess you know what this means, Sonic. . .” Amy said quietly.

“Oh, no! No, no, no, no no!” he said as he got up, but tripped and Amy caught him. But, their lips were already touching. They didn’t say another word.


“Uh. . . here’s your gift Tails. . .” Sonic said to break the silence. “Your’s too Knuckles…”

“Thanks. . .” Knuckles mumbled as he opened it. “Oh, real nice, Sonic!” he said sarcastically as he unwrapped a gallon of egg nog.

“Hey, it’s still fresh!” Sonic said as he tried to suppress laughing. Knuckles just ignored him. “Go ahead, Tails! Open your’s.”

“Oh, okay. . . Oh my gosh! Sonic, thank you!” he said gleefully as he unwrapped brand-new parts for the Tornado. “How did you get these?”

“Let’s just say Eggman is a great provider of parts.” He said with another chuckle.

“Oh. . . okay. . . Here’s your gift Sonic! Merry Christmas!”

“Thanks, bud. . . Awesome, a new pair of running shoes, and just my style! Thanks, buddy!”

“No problem! Here’s your present Amy.”

“Thank you. . . awww, this is so sweet.” Amy said as she unwrapped a photo of the four of them with an engraving saying Best Friends Forever. “Thank you Tails! You’re so thoughtful. Here’s your gift.”

She handed him a gift that had the outline of a figure of a person. As he opened it, tears began to flow down his eyes. “It’s. . . it’s. . . a statue of Cosmo. . .”

“Oh my gosh, you don’t like it? I’m so sorry Tails!” Amy said sincerely.

“No, I love it. I’ll always treasure it. Thanks Amy!” Tails said as he embraced her.

“Uh. . . sure anytime. . .”

“Merry Christmas everyone!” Tails said happily.

“MERRY CHRISTMAS!!”


*At Eggman’s base*

Eggman got coal. . . “Bah humbug. . .” he mumbled under his breath.


The End