It was a very stormy night, the wind blowing hard and the rain thrashing down. The lightning flashed and the thunder clashed. A young, orange hedgehog with a red top and light blue pants on, wearing two earrings in one ear and one in the other, made her way through the empty streets of station square.

'I can't believe the rain came down so hard' She sighed and splashed right into a puddle. She could feel the water drenching her sock. 'Perfect. Exactly what I wanted'

She took cover in a telephone box. She took off her trainer and sock, and then rang it out, hopefully, to dry it a bit. She muttered and cursed under her breath. A flash of lighting made her jump. She held her wet sock close to her. She gasped, putting her sock back on along with her trainer, and then raced out into the pouring rain.

A few blocks later she came to her friend's house.

'I hope she's in. If she's not, I'll have to go somewhere else till the storm stops'

She rapped lightly on the door. It opened and a very gothic hedgehog stood before her.

"Gem! What brings you here in the middle of this storm?"

"I need a place to crash. At least till the storm dies down." Gem explained

"Uhm, ok. You better come in and dry off. You look like a drowned rat"

"Thanks a lot Gothika"

"No problem"

Gothika, Gem's best friend, was a darkish red hedgehog with a lighter red pattern top on, black pants with flame pattern on the bottom of the legs and slightly heeled boots. She always wore black eye shadow and two dog collars, one on the neck and one on her tail. Her appearance to some was slightly startling, but Gem looked past that.

"Here use this towel to dry off. If you look in my cupboard there's some spare clothes. Put them on and I'll make you a cup of hot chocolate"

"Thank you. I think I'd better get changed in the bathroom. Don't you? "

"Well, of course. I don't expect you to get changed in the doorway!"

Gem entered the bathroom. She dried her quills with the towel, taking off her soggy clothes and putting on the spare ones Gothika had lent her. She pulled slightly at the top, realising it was a bit big, and baggy, on her. Her orange and brown quills dripped on the pink tiled floor. 'God. She calls herself a Goth with a pink bathroom.'

"Gem! Are you ok?!"

"Uhm.... yeah fine"

"Well your cocoa is down here"

"Right, thanks." Gem unlocked the bathroom door and laid the towel on the banister. She made her way down the stairs, taking everything in around her. It was a fair darkish house with very many devilish looking ornaments. As she looked into the front room something caught her eye. It was a green looking gem on a chain. It was beautiful. As Gem stared at it, she could have sworn it had glimmered at her. Before she knew what she was doing she was holding it delicately; fearing if she held it too hard it would shatter. Gothika popped her head around the corner

"Uhm, Gem"

She jumped "Aagghh" She screamed, dropping the gem on the floor, causing it to break into thousands of small pieces.

"Oh no! I'm so sorry." She picked up the tiny pieces; making sure she didn't miss any.

"Look what you've done!"

"I am just so...so sorry it just slipped out of my hand. You scared me and...and I'm so sorry!"

"Relax. It's fine. I know you didn't mean too"

"Let me try and fix it"

"If you want too. But it was for you any way"

"Really?" Gem looked at the pieces of gem in her hands. Her bracelets dangled, two on each arm, as she put the shards into a small leather bag and pocketed it.

As they drank their cocoa, watching TV, a bulletin came on

"This is a special announcement from the headquarters of G.U.N"

"G.U.N" Gem and Gothika said together

"What are they whinging about now?" Gothika exclaimed, sipping the last of her cocoa.

Gem held her cup close to her chest; feeling the heat from it. She was more worried about this than Gothika was.

"Ladies and gentlemen, this is an important announcement"

Gem looked upon the screen to see a photo of a midnight hedgehog with crimson markings and a splash of white fur just below the chin, He seemed very cute to Gem, but according to the broadcast he was very dangerous and he was on the loose. She wasn't listening to it fully. The orange hedgehog was gazing into his crimson eyes 'Look at them so pained and angry' She thought.

"God. He must have done something very bad to have G.U.N after him, eh?" She flicked the TV off, bringing Gem back to her senses

"Eh? What was that?"

"Never mind. Whoa, look at the time. You'd better get going before it gets dark"

"Yeah I'd better. I'll get my clothes from upstairs, get changed and I'll be gone" Gem re-entered the bathroom, changed back into her semi-dry clothes and, with a good bye from Gothika, was gone, heading home. It was still raining slightly. Gem made her way down a dark alley. The hedgehog rubbed her arms, unable to stop the chill that ran up her spine. She kept looking behind her, feeling as if she was being followed, but whenever she looked back she saw nothing but an empty alley. With a sigh Gem kept walking. All the time she continued to feel as if she was being watched. A loud noise from behind made Gem break into a run, wanting nothing more than to get home. She ran as fast as her legs would carry her, sapphire eyes closed. She could hear the sound of footsteps. Heart leaping in to her throat, she tried to run faster, but the sound of the footsteps were close behind her. She'd never be able to outrun it. Spinning herself around the corner of another alley, she stood flat against the wall. She held her chest, trying to ease her pounding heart, gasping for breath. She looked around the corner, in hope to see if she had lost her pursuer. Nothing. Gem stood there looking down the dark alley, when she felt an odd sensation. One she didn't like. Without warning a hand wrapped around her mouth. A scream escaped Gem's lips, but was muffled. No-one heard it; someone grabbed her torso and dragged her into the empty alley, the one she had just hidden in and slammed her into the wall, hard. Gem had closed her eyes when the hand wrapped around her mouth. She opened them and looked into a hedgehog's face. It was the same one she had seen on the news announcement. Her eyes widened in shock, as she struggled in the hedgehog's grip, unable to break free. Gem tried everything; kicking, struggling and yelling, but all came to no effect. Tired, she stopped, looking up into those crimson eyes seeing nothing, but pain and anger

"Are you going to shut up if I let go?" The hedgehog asked.

Gem was startled to hear the hedgehog's voice so deep and soothing. She nodded her head.

"Fine, but if you scream. I will kill you, you know that?" He removed his hand slowly from Gem's lips. She tried hard to keep the scream from welling up inside of her. A small whimper escaped. The hedgehog may have removed his hand from her mouth, but his grip on the rest of her was unwavering. Gripping tightly at her arms the black hedgehog spoke again in his cool, deep, soothing voice.

"Now what do we have here. A young, pretty, orange hedgehog. What's your name?"

"...Gem." She whispered, so quietly, that there was no way he'd have heard it

"What was that?"

"Gem. My names Gem and you're hurting my arms"

The hedgehog gripped tighter on her arms. She gasped in pain.

"Ow! Let go please!" Gem began to kick again, getting no reaction at all from the black hedgehog. She couldn't help it, she began to scream.

"I did warn you!" The hedgehog pulled a blade out and held it very close to Gem's throat. She gulped shutting up. The frightened orange hedgehog peered up at the black one and from the corner of her eye she saw a van come to a halt.

"Oh no! How did they find me?" Shadow exclaimed. Gem was confused. He seemed frightened. Who were they? She then realised the hedgehog's grip on her had lessened. She broke free from him, but he wasn't paying attention to her. The hedgehog was focused on the approaching men in uniform. On the arm of one of the men Gem made out the letters "G.U.N"

"He's over here!" She heard one of them say

'Should I just stand here? Shouldn't I help him?' She turned to the frightened hedgehog, who was backing away slowly from the approaching officers. "Who are you?" Gem asked. All of a sudden, from behind the midnight hedgehog, another van appeared. He was trapped, with no where to go.

"What am I going to do?" She could hear him mutter. Officers approached from all sides of him, carrying guns with them. None of them seemed to notice Gem standing there, looking completely bewildered. One of the G.U.N men raised his gun, took aim and fired. It hit the midnight hedgehog. A small dart hung out of Shadow's arm. He pulled it out, but Gem knew it was too late. Moments later, after pulling the dart out of his arm, he fell over, half conscious. Gem had to know who he was. As they dragged his limp body away, she stepped forward.

"STOP!" Gem cried running in front of them "I can't let you take him!"

"Get out of the way kid!" Commanded one of the G.U.N officers. The black hedgehog opened his crimson eyes half way, to see that the girl he'd just threatened to kill was actually trying to help him.

"I'm sorry but I must insist you let him go!"

"Get her out of here!" Two men walked forward grabbing her sore arms and pulled her out of the way

"LET ME GO!" She screamed. Everything went quiet. The G.U.N officers all looked at Gem, her pocket was glowing. The little bag with the shards of gem in rose from her pocket and was floating in mid air in front of her. The two men who were holding her let go and backed away. Gem peered at the bag as it ripped open before her eyes and a bright light illuminated from it. She shielded her sapphire eyes and when she looked again the gem was whole, glowing brightly in front of her. Everyone was backing away from her. She closed her eyes, but when she opened them again they were blank. Sapphire orbs, not touched with the blackness. The orange hedgehog reached out slowly, as if hypnotised, and touched the gem. The chain from the gem rose up and looped over her head. She let go of it, but it still remained suspended in mid-air. She then spoke, in a voice not at all like her own. It was deeper and echoed, seeming as if it was coming from everywhere.

"Release him at once!" Many of the men looked around. Thinking that there was more than one person speaking.

"Release him or I shall take him with force." They raised their guns and aimed them at her

"So be it!" Gem lifted her hand and many of the men began to levitate. They kicked and yelled, at the people on the ground, to get them down. She pointed at the wall and they were smashed into it. They lay crumpled up in a heap, not one of them moved, or shall move again. Gem peered at the remaining men. Her sapphire eyes glittered. As a smile appeared across her face, making her look truly insane. Disposing the rest of the officers was an easy task. She then turned her attention to the black hedgehog, who was fully unconscious now. She bent down, lifted him up and his head fell backwards. Gem carried him all the way to her house, which she should never have been able to do. She gently laid him on the sofa and collapsed to the floor. Never sure of exactly what had happened, but she was going to wake up to a bit of a shock in the morning. The gem around her neck shone dimly in the light of the setting moon. It's control wearing off.