A SonAmyShad Story.
Chapter 1.
Please Review.
No Flames.
Shadow is a 22 year old muscular black hedgehog with red stripes on his quills, around the edges of his eyes, and on his arms and legs, has crimson-red eyes, a patch of white fur on his chest, and his muzzle is tan, has six quills on his head, four of which curve upwards and two that curve downwards, two spines on his back, and a small tail. In his usual outfit, Shadow wears white gloves with black cuffs and red tongues, and air shoes which, like his gloves, have black cuffs and orange-red tongues, on each of his wrists and ankles, he wears a single gold rings.
Sonic is a 20 year old muscular hedgehog with blue fur that covers most of his body, peach skin that covers his arms, muzzle and front torso, and emerald-green eyes, has six long quills on the back of his head, two spines protruding from his back behind his shoulders, and a short tail. In his usual outfit, Sonic wears two light-weight, hyper friction resistant red sneakers with white cuffs around the ankles, gray soles, and white straps across the top, the last of which are held down by a golden buckle on each foot. He also wears a pair of white gloves with sock-like cuffs on his hands.
Amy Rose is an 18 curvy pink-furred hedgehog with jade-green eyes and peach skin on her muzzle and arms, quills that reached her knees. For usual outfit that was resting on rocks nearby, a red hairband, and a red one piece top with a white collar, yellow buttons on the her left side and a lavender sarashi around her waist. She also wears white gloves, purple sports tape and golden ring bracelets around her wrists, purple stockings, and red-violet shoes with pink soles and toes, gray straps and pink plate with two yellow buttons on top.
Blaze is a 19 year oldf lavender-furred, anthropomorphic cat with gold eyes, her muzzle is white, her inner ears are peach colored and the tip of her long tail dark purple. Her fur is longer on each side of her head and sweeps slightly upwards. She has four plumes of "hair" done up in a high ponytail with dark purple tips. In her usual outfit, she wears a long, purple, flared, mantle-like coat of sorts with a dark pink hemline, white tights, a gold collar, a red hairband and a similarily red gem on her forehead. She also wears white gloves with fuzzy cuffs and high heeled, dark pink shoes with white stripes and also fuzzy cuffs.
Sticks is an 11 year old badger only slightly shorter than Amy as she has orange fur with long thick fur on the back of her head, which she keeps in two locks with auburn strings, and two brown stripes across each of her eyes and bushy round ears that reach the end of her fur. Additionally, she has a peach muzzle with a small black nose, blue eyes and a medium-long bushy tail. In her usual outfit, a tube top and a skirt with an auburn rope belt, each made of worn-down grey fabric stitched together, and tan fur-skin boots, one which has a fur cuff and the other which has metal bands on it. As accessories, she wears a golden band on her right upper arm, a spiral bracelet on her left wrist and a necklace braided with seashells and a gold rings.
Jebediah is a 39 year old badger, dark brown stripes of fur across each of his eyes, over his head and down his neck. Unlike Sticks though, Jebediah's ears were not fuzzy and his tail was much shorter, also seemingly taller and had a short, yet smooth mustache. In his usual outfit, he wore a high-class suit consisting of a small bowler hat, a highly decorated vest with two buttons, a jacket, a neckerchief, and dark shoes with bright gaiters over them.
Wild Cat is an 14 year old cat of average height with atomic tangerine fur, tan fur on his front torso and short muzzle, dark stripes on his tail, and light brown eyes. He possesses two bangs of fur across his forehead, a spike of fur tufted twice at its tip on both sides of his head and his neck, and a small black nose. His attire consists of white gloves with small cuffs, a red belt with a pocket on one side, large baggy grey socks and red shoes.
Espio is a 25 year old purple chameleon with a yellow horn between his eyes, golden eyes and a ridge of three black scales down his spine and a coiled tail. He wears dark purple and black shoes with elaborate cuffs, white gloves with a purple back, and studded bands around his wrists and ankles.
Zachary is a 67 year old white echidna, purple eyes, wearing white gloves, yellow and purple sneakers.
Ray is 29 years old, has golden yellow fur and dark tan skin on his muzzle, inner ears and front torso, black eyes, a small tapered hair tuft at the top back of his head (making it appear somewhat teardrop-shaped), a furry skin membrane connecting his waist to his lower arms, small, perky triangular ears, a shiny, bulbous black nose and a long club-shaped tail, in his usual outfit, white gloves with large cuffs, red sneakers with a white buckle-strap, and white sock-like tops. These shoes are almost identical to Sonic's shoes, but are a slightly darker shade of red.
Simon is a 72 year old echidna that has red fur, blue eyes, peach skin and cybernetic left arm, wearing a grey jacket and brown shoes.
Charles is a 48 mobian middle-aged hedgehog who bares many physical similarities to Sonic, such as blue fur (although Chuck's is a few shades lighter than Sonic's), has a thick, grey mustache that obscures his mouth, as well as similarly thick, grey eyebrows, arching over his blue eyes. In his usual outfit, a maroon colored, slightly pointed shoes with two dark yellow straps and and white cuffs, and, like most other of his species, white gloves.
...
Mobian.
Day Time.
"Did Sonic give you this?" Blaze asked, eagerly.
"No." Amy said.
Amy watched Blaze as she tilted the brooch with both hands so that it glimmered in the candlelight.
"That was from Shadow." Amy said.
"From Shadow?" Sticks asked, goggling at her curiously. "Is he courting you too?"
"No." Amy said, not able to hide her shock at the question.
...
11 months after The War and Amy is still banished from Hill Top Village and living in Chaos City, helping with the rebuilding and learning more of the world outside of the boarders of the Mobius Realm.
Of course, the close proximity to Mount Splatterhorn means that Amy can spend a lot of time with Sonic.
It didn't occur to Amy at first to wonder why she was spending almost as much time with Shadow.
...
Amy slowly came back to consciousness, blinking once in surprise to see Blaze leaning over her.
"I didn't mean to wake you." Blaze said, whispering. "I can never tell if you are asleep or not."
Amy smiled at Blaze, remembering the consternation it had caused the first time she had drifted into the Little Planet waking dreams in front of Jebediah's children.
"That's alright, Blaze." Amy said.
"Breakfast is ready." Blaze told Amy briefly, before running off into the basic but functional kitchen. Her first few mornings with Jebediah's family, all the children (and Jebediah, a little bit) had been shy of her, but she had been staying with them long enough now for that to wear off.
It had been nearly 11 months since The War, 11 months since Amy had found Shadow and Sonic on the battlefield and kept them alive long enough for help to come. 11 months since Amy's refusal to leave them had caused a rift between her and Scourge and 11 months since her banishment from Hill Top Village.
Once Jebediah had found out about that, he had been invited her to stay with his family for a while. "You saved my children when the dragon came." he said to her, his gratitude clear. "The least I can do in return is let you stay with us for a while, even if it is just a place on the floor to lay out your blanket."
Amy had agreed thankfully as she hadn't wanted to be too far from Mount Splatterhorn, from Sonic, but she struggled with constantly being under stone and away from the sky, and being around friendly faces after the horror of the battle and the separation from everyone she had ever known was a kindness she had not looked for.
Now of course, everything had changed. All of the Mobius Hedgehogs had survived, Charles had been crowned King of Mount Splatterhorn and had taken the Mobian animal, Espio the Chameleon, as his consort. Jebediah was regarded as King of Chaos City by everyone but himself and the rebuilding of the city was going well, something that Amy was helping with.
As for Sonic, he came to Chaos City to see her as often as he could, sometimes alone and sometimes with Shadow; with Charles's, if not full approval, at least without his disapproval. But she was not expecting Sonic today, so she ate some of the porridge Blaze had made (less than Blaze would have liked, not because she didn't like it, but because she didn't need as much as they did), helped Sticks plait her fur and headed out into the city to see what needed to be done that day.
Chaos City looked far more like a city than an empty shell these days. The men and women of Chaos City were bustling about in the street, clearing rubble, hammering and sawing and dozens of other never-ending tasks that the rebuilding of the city required. Every now and then she would walk by one of the Mobius teams of builders and engineers than Charles had sent down from Mount Splatterhorn to aid with the rebuilding.
Some of them eyed Amy a bit strangely, either because she was the lone Little Planet animal female in a city of Mobian animal men, or perhaps even because they had heard of her connection to their youngest prince, but Amy wasn't concerned. Amy had worked alongside them long enough now to know that they cared far more about whether she was willing to work hard with them than that she was a Little Planet Hedgehog.
While Amy wasn't an engineer or an architect, there was always work for someone able to climb and balance as well as she could.
After several hours helping the workers assemble a pulley system for lowering beams into open husks of some of the old houses, the Mobius workers started talking excitedly in Japanese. Amy looked down from where she was perched on top of the open edge of the building, ensuring that her clothes didn't get tangled on the way down.
Shadow was smiling up at Amy and she returned it, genuinely pleased to see him, before jumping down from the roof, earning a few murmurs of admiration and some good-natured grumbling from her Mobius audience.
"I didn't mean to interrupt, Rose." Shadow said, looking at Amy but directing his comment at all of the workers. "I was hoping that you would have some time to spare, but if you are needed here…"
"I'm sure we can spare you for a bit." the leader of this particular team of Mobians told her, with a sincere smile.
One of the others made a comment in Japanese that had all the workers laughing, and Shadow looking faintly embarrassed as she followed him away. "Don't worry." he said to Amy. "They were laughing at me, not you."
From left to right, Amy and Shadow walked together in a comfortable silence, one that they had developed during Shadow and Sonic's time in the healing tents. Shadow had regained consciousness first, and as terrible as his injuries had been, the damage to his head from the fall he had taken had been far more serious than his stab-wound, and he had woken to find that his younger brother and uncle were still critically ill and that he might never regain his sight.
Shadow and Amy had become friends then, in their shared concern for Sonic and because she had acted as his ruby red eyes while they had been bandaged over for their own protection. But Amy had assisted Oin to reduce the swelling in Shadow's head, and he had regained his sight back in time to see both his younger brother and uncle awaken.
Amy hadn't been able to spend much time with Shadow since he had left the healing tents, unfortunately. As soon as Shadow had been well enough to walk with a cane to aid him, he had launched himself into his duties as heir. Amy was glad that Shadow had made the journey into Chaos City today.
Shadow and Amy reached the little patch of dirt where Espio the Chameleon had planted his oak tree, and Shadow leaned against the fence that Jebediah had obligingly put up so that it was not trampled while it grew. Shadow didn't need a cane any longer, but Amy knew he still tired more easily than he would like.
"You can't see anything there yet." Shadow said.
Amy came to rest against the fence on the right side of Shadow.
"It will be some time." Amy said. "Decades until it reaches its full growth."
Shadow nodded, staring at the patch of bare earth for a moment before seeming to steal himself. "I'm sorry I haven't come to see you recently." he said, apologizing.
Amy didn't know how to reply, she wasn't sure why the idea seemed to be upsetting Shadow, and when she noticed that Shadow seemed to be waiting for an answer managed. "I understand." she said.
Shadow smiled then, his troubled frown fading away.
"Sonic told me all about the collapse in the living area. Was anyone hurt?" Amy asked.
"A few broken bones and bumped heads. Nothing fatal, thank Goodness, as no one was living in there yet, but it was a mess for a while." Shadow said.
"That's good." Amy said, relieved for their sake.
"Thank you, Rose." Shadow said. "But I still meant to give you this earlier."
Shadow handed Amy a velvet pouch to her left hand with his right hand, the fabric slightly worn but still very fine, and when she shook the contents out on to her right palm, she couldn't contain her small gasp of surprise. It was a golden brooch, made of three leaves overlapping each other, each leaf a gemstone of slightly different shades of green.
"Shadow, this is beautiful." Amy said to Shadow.
Whatever Shadow saw in Amy's face made him relax as she hadn't realized how tense he was until then.
Amy knew from what she had witnessed and overheard during her time in Mount Splatterhorn that jewelery was important to Mobians, that they exchanged special pieces between friends and family as signs of favor and friendship.
Amy wondered if Sonic had been pestering Shadow to hand it over to her. The thought made Amy smile.
"Do you accept it?" Shadow asked Amy carefully.
"I'd be honored." Amy said to Shadow.
Shadow positively beamed as Amy attached it to her upper top on the left side with both hands.
For the rest of his visit, Shadow kept glancing at it and smiling.
Later, when Amy returned to her work with the Mobius teams, she noticed them all eyeing her new brooch with interest.
"I'd heard the prince has a deft hand with jewelery." the team leader told Amy, nodding approvingly.
"He made it himself?" Amy asked in surprise, reaching up to touch it again with her right hand.
"Of course he did!" the Mobian exclaimed. "It wouldn't be proper otherwise!"
"I see." Amy said slowly, wondering what the Mobian meant by 'proper.' "Thank you for informing me."
The Mobian nodded at Amy, before sending her to climb back the building to support the pulley.
...
Evening.
The Mobians weren't the only ones who noticed her new jewelery. Blaze and Sticks noticed it as soon as she returned to Jebediah's house that evening and cooed over it.
Amy smiled, taking it off with both hands so Blaze and Sticks could have a better look as she knew that she didn't need to ask them to be careful with it.
"Did Sonic give you this?" Blaze asked, eagerly.
Amy had made no secret that Blaze thought that their relationship was adorable.
"No." Amy said to Blaze, watching as Blaze tilted it with her right hand so that it glimmered in the candlelight. "That was from Shadow."
"From Shadow?" Sticks asked, goggling at Amy curiously. "Is he courting you too?"
"No." Amy said, not able to hide her shock at the question. "It's a token of friendship."
"It's beautiful." Blaze said as she handed it back with her right hand.
For the rest of the evening, as Amy helped with the cooking and clearing away (she had been living with them for long enough that they treated her like family, not like a guest, and allowed her to help), and then told the children (and Jebediah) stories before bed, Amy couldn't get Sticks's question out of her head.
It would never have occurred to Amy before Sticks had spoken, but now she couldn't get Shadow's expression as she fastened the brooch to her shirt, or the comments from the Mobius worker out of her mind.
But Shadow couldn't be courting Amy, surely. Shadow would never do that to Sonic.
It had been a gift of friendship, nothing more, and Amy had accepted it as such. Amy resolved to put it out of her mind.
...
The Next Morning.
When Amy sat down at the breakfast table, Jebediah asked.
"Instead of helping with the building today, do you think that you could go hunting instead? We are running short of supplies and I am still struggling to persuade people to take up fishing." Jebediah asked.
"Of course." Amy said. "Though I can't blame people for thinking that the lake is haunted."
Jebediah smiled at Amy tiredly as helping him was different from serving Jules. Jebediah didn't order Amy, and she was not sworn to him, but there were a lot of burdens on him, and she would do her best to help lighten them, because after everything they had been through, they had become friends, and she respected that he had his people's best interests at heart.
In truth, as much as Amy was enjoying seeing what was beyond the borders of Hill Top Village, she missed the freedom of the woods, of being able to explore wherever she wanted, and the hunting request came just as she was starting to feel restless.
Amy wondered if Jebediah knew that when he asked her.
Amy couldn't risk crossing into Hill Top Village's territory, her banishment was still upheld, even though she knew that both Jebediah and Espio had spoken to Jules on her behalf. But Amy still managed to catch a brace of partridges, a few squirrels and set out some snares for rabbits when she heard from behind her the tread of shoes trying to be silent.
Amy smiled to herself as she would know the sound of those quick footsteps anywhere.
Amy waited with giving any sign that she had heard Sonic until he was close behind her before speaking. "Hello Sonic." she said, without turning.
Sonic groaned loudly. "One day I'll manage to sneak up on you!" he said.
Amy laughed as she faced Sonic. Aside from the scar across the bridge of his nose, Sonic appeared largely unchanged from the first time they had met.
"Maybe one day." Amy said, standing on her tippy toes as her head a little for the smacking kiss Sonic gave her. "How did you find me?" she stopped using her tippy toes.
"Jebediah sent me after you." Sonic said with a laugh. "Said something about young love. Then I saw the snares so I knew you'd be around here somewhere."
Sonic knelt down beside Amy to help her prepare the game, catching her up with all of Mount Splatterhorn's gossip. Eventually Sonic's story trailed off, and when Amy looked up he was eyeing the brooch Shadow had given her with a smile on his face.
"It suits you." Sonic said with a shrug when he realized that Amy had noticed him looking. "Shadow was worried that you wouldn't like it."
"It's beautiful." Amy said honestly.
Sonic beamed as proudly as if he had made it himself.
Uncertainty clawed at Amy again. "May I ask you something, Sonic?" she asked.
"Of course you can." Sonic said. "Anything you like."
"Did Shadow… did he intend this as a courting gift?" Amy asked, hesitantly.
Amy expected Sonic to laugh, but instead he looked at her with wide-eyed sadness.
"Of course he did!" Sonic said, shocked.
End of Chapter 1.
Please Review.
No Flames.