AN: In case you haven't noticed, this is kind of late. Yeah, I know. I do what I want. But you see, this story was originally planned to be a One-Shot, and even now I'm sort of half-agreeing with myself. But my sister, Mudeve (Who also co-wrote this story with me, and is very awesome 3) convinced me to put it up in chapters, mainly because of it's extreme length. When I say extreme, I'm not kidding. It's still not completely finished and I'm at almost 25 PAGES. Which, in case you care, is 13,112 words. Yeeeaah. So, I decided to part it at intervals and publish this story in chapters. I already have the next several chapters ready and hopefully by the time I've gotten to the "chapter" at which I'm still writing now I'd have finished it. Yes, it's confusing, but the basic point is this story was supposed to be a one-shot, but it was too long, and just wait for the rest.
Wow, that's long. Okay. So, anyway, pwease R&R, won't you? I'm rather proud of this story, so let's get to it....

--Sonic and all related characters are copyrighted to Sega/Sonic team. I do not own nor pretend to own them, any more then Sonic owns any clothes other than shoes and gloves.

Love Struck

by Furrtwo & Mudeve

Chapter 1

A large portion of the holiday Valentine's Day consists of the giving of gifts, almost like a miniature Christmas, be it chocolates or roses or a little stuffed bear holding a sign that says "I Heart You" or even a lawnmower. Then we have the products guaranteed to create love, or at least infatuation – amulets, necklaces, you name it. Naturally most of these objects are faulty, or at least meant for a joke, and you'd be best off getting a romantic lawnmower to give to your Valentine.

However, what if we assume not all these objects are frauds? What if, say, those Cupid's arrows you saw a ways back really can produce love? Because if you get your paws – or the bee equivalent of paws, as you will soon see – on something like that, you can guarantee yourself something interesting that might change the way you look at a holiday. Much more fun to shoot love arrows at people than to receive cheap cards and expired candy.

They say holidays can bring out the best and worst in people, and Valentine's Day is no exception. The concept of devoting one day entirely to love and amorousness is not a foreign idea, and has found its way into Mobian culture, where it has as many mixed feelings as Earth's holiday....

"Isn't Valentine's Day just your favorite holiday?" Amy said happily. She was hosting a small Valentine's get-together, as grand as a party, though she insisted on simply calling it a "get-together".

"Not exactly," Blaze said, nearly popping one of the balloons she was supposed to be inflating with helium as she accidentally jabbed it with one of her claws. Amy had managed to convince her to come to her "get-together" with a conversation that went something like this:

Amy: Hey Blaze! Do you want to come to my Valentine's Day Get-Together?
Blaze: (sarcastically) "Get-together?"
Amy: Yeah! It's gonna be like a party!
Blaze: No thanks.
Amy: (Gets out Piko Piko Hammer) And why not?
Blaze: I've got things to do. Saving my world, protecting the Sol Emeralds, defeating Eggman Nega for the umpteenth time. I don't have time for a party.
Amy: First off, it's a get-together, not a party. Secondly, it'll be lots of fun! There'll be food, and games, and maybe Silver will be there!
Blaze: Excuse me?
Amy: I said, it's a get-together, not a party.
Blaze: No, after... ugh. Never mind.
Amy: So, like, you're going! Yay!
Blaze: I just said-
Amy: (Raises hammer threateningly) What was that?
Blaze: Nothing. (sighs) Fine, I'll go to your stupid party.
Amy: It's a GET-TOGETHER!

So that was why – instead of doing something with her time that she would have preferred – Blaze was at Amy's get-together, slightly put-off and occasionally muttering about alternate dimensions and glowing emeralds. "I can think of several other holidays I find more enjoyable than Valentine's Day," said Blaze. "For instance, Don't-Let-Pink-Hedgehogs-Pressure-You-Into-Doing-Something-You-Don't-Want-To-Do Day, and-"

"What about you, Cream?" Amy said, cutting Blaze off, to which the cat responded with a menacing glower.

Cream was hanging pink and white streamers over the interior of Amy's house, with the help of Cheese, of course. "I think it's a wonderful holiday, Miss Amy!" the young rabbit said. "And I'm sure Blaze thinks so too!"

"Chao, chao!" Cheese chirped in agreement, and the lavender cat had no choice but to sigh wearily, because if she couldn't bluntly refuse Amy, she certainly couldn't refuse Cream.

"From what I've heard it certainly sounds lovely," Tikal piped up. She was baking cookies and was now in the process of icing them with pink, white, and red hearts. She was taking a vacation from her Master Emerald dwelling to participate in what she called "strange new customs". She hadn't much experience with Valentine's Day but was looking forward to it.

"Miss Amy," Cream asked, "when are Mister Sonic, Mister Knuckles, and Tails going to get here?"

"Soon," Amy said, gazing longingly into space, making it quite clear that "soon" was not soon enough when waiting for a particular blue hedgehog.

"Who else is coming?" asked Tikal.

"Silver," Amy counted off on her fingers, "and Jet and Wave and Storm, and Big, and Rouge, and Shadow."

Blaze perked her ears in interest. "Shadow? He's coming?" She was curious, as the black hedgehog she had met briefly on her travels didn't seem like the type to come to a Valentine's Day party... er, get-together.

"Yeah, Shadow," said Amy. "I think Rouge pressured him into going or something." She smirked slightly. "Why? Do you like Shadow?"

"Um-ah-uh, um, of course not!" Blaze sputtered as Cream and Cheese giggled.

"Whatever...." Amy said mysteriously. "Oh yeah, I think Team Chaotix is coming. That just leaves the five of us here...." She trailed off and looked into the corner of the room, where the fifth person sat, pasting pom-poms onto pieces of construction paper.

"How's it going there, Marine?" Amy asked weakly.

"It's awright, mate!" she said. "Crikey! 'dese pom-poms are a beaut! Where d'ya get pom-poms like 'dis, mate?"

Amy looked confused and didn't answer Marine's odd question. Indeed, the Australian-accented raccoon had come all the way from Southern Island, simply to come to Amy's get-together... in a rowboat. No one exactly understood her intentions.

Their thoughts were shattered by the strident ring of the doorbell.

Amy jumped up and bolted to the door. "Sonic! Sonic! Sonic!"

But it wasn't Sonic.

Amy seemed a little disheartened to open the door and find Rouge and Shadow, the latter of whom was looking slightly irritated and uncomfortable.

"Hey," said the white bat, gliding past Amy and into the living room. "Are we late?"

"Um... no, you're the first ones here, actually." Amy paused. "Everyone else just got here earlier to help put stuff together."

Shadow walked in without a word and scowled at the flashy pink decorations.

Rouge's bat wings silently beat the air as she flew up to examine the streamers Cream and Cheese had put up. "Mmm hmm. A bit too loose. Of course, with the kind of help you have to put up with...." She trailed off and looked at Cheese, who was glaring at her indignantly.

Cream looked tearful. "What's wrong with them?"

"Oh, nothing," Rouge said, alarmed. "They're... fine."

And she flew off to investigate Tikal's cooking.

Shadow walked over to a cabinet situated near a window and paused, examining the photographs on it. The clone felt a pang of longing for something he had never felt, something he had never known.... It'd been hard for Rouge to simply convince him to go; Shadow stubbornly backing up that he was very busy, though in fact, with no news from Eggman and the Chaos Emeralds safe, his life was nothing more than lonely repetition.

"How are the cookies coming along?" Amy asked Tikal, coming into the kitchen.

"They're coming along fine," said Tikal, glaring at Rouge, who was criticizing her frosting.

"Good," said Amy. "Son- I mean, the rest of the guests, should be arriving shortly." She opened her refrigerator and pulled out a plate of chili dogs, which were obviously for Sonic. "Tikal, could you please put these out on the coffee table?"

"Of course," said Tikal, taking the plate and leaving the kitchen as Blaze entered, carrying the helium cylinder she had been using to inflate the balloons.

"Here," she said, looking a little disgruntled and thrusting the cylinder toward the pink hedgehog. "I'm finished with the balloons."

"Thanks," said Amy, but then she giggled. "Your voice sounds all squeaky from breathing in some of the helium you were using!"

"It does?" Blaze asked, surprised. Then she smiled a little. "It does."

"That's so cool!" Amy quickly took the helium container and inhaled some. "Haha! Oh, this is awesome!" she said in a squeaky voice.

Amy and Blaze started laughing like maniacs, and it came out squeaky so they laughed even more, and it came out squeaky so they laughed even more, and it came out squeaky so they laughed even more. Rouge – who was still in the kitchen during all this – rolled her eyes at such immaturity and left the kitchen to attack the snacks Tikal had put out.

Just then Tikal came in. "What's with all the laughing?" she asked.

"Helium!" chorused the cat and the hedgehog, who by this time were feeling slightly dizzy from the combined effects of too much laughing and a light, nonflammable gaseous chemical element occurring naturally within other noble gases.

"What?" said Tikal quizzically.

"You know, helium," Amy said, obviously still high-pitched, as she began to walk into the living room.

"It makes your voice become high-pitched," Blaze explained matter-of-factly, and high-pitched as well, as she followed Amy.

"Ooh!" said Tikal, whose voice was not high-pitched yet, but she did follow Blaze who was following Amy into the living room. "That sounds fun!" She took the nearest balloon out of the air, untied it, and breathed in some helium. "How do I sound guys?" she squeaked.

Amy and Blaze started laughing again, but with Tikal laughing too this time.

"Can I try?" said Cream, who'd been watching them. She took a balloon as well, untied it, and took a gulp of helium.

Cream tried to talk, and at first it appeared that she had lost her voice entirely, but then Amy, Blaze, and Tikal realized that apparently, Cream's voice was so high-pitched before that now it was too high-pitched to hear.

"Cream, at first it appeared that you had lost your voice entirely, but than I realized that apparently, your voice was so high-pitched before that no it's too high-pitched to hear!" said Amy, whose voice, of course, was still filled with helium, and so since I am tired of saying that you will have to remember that Amy, Blaze, Tikal, Cream, and whoever else might inhale some will have squeaky and high-pitched voices until I state they do not.

"Your voice has become so high-pitched only bats can hear it!" said Blaze.

Cream looked slightly alarmed and tried to say something, but all that anyone heard was a faint whistling sound.

"She asked if it's permanent," said Rouge, who was raiding the pretzel sticks and could naturally hear Cream for obvious reasons.

"It's not permanent, Cream," assured Tikal. "It'll wear off after a little while."

Cream now looked relieved, and just then the doorbell rang, and there was a kerfuffle as everyone tried to get to it first.

Blaze - who had beaten everyone in Rock, Paper, Scissors – got to open the door, and was surprised to see it was....

"Silver!" Blaze said, and then blushed; because I do not need to remind you her voice was still high-pitched and squeaky.

"Hi, Blaze," Silver said, blushing as well. It had been a simple matter of time travel for the white hedgehog to come to their time, as he wouldn't pass an opportunity to visit his old friends.

"Yes… hi." Blaze suddenly wished - despite how friggin' cool it was – that her voice wasn't high-pitched. She was happy to see her best friend, of course, but she wished it could be more secluded and just the two of them, and without Rouge snickering and making amorous faces at them.

After several uncomfortable seconds, Blaze said, "Um… have you seen anyone else who's supposed to be coming?"

"What? ...Oh yeah!" Silver said. "I think Sonic and Knuckles and Tails are on their way. By the way, er... what's with-"

But Silver couldn't finish his sentence, because Amy gave a shrill cry of "Sonic?!" which sounded very strange because of the helium, and bolted to the door.

"Hi Silver!" mouthed Cream, who couldn't speak, in case you forgot.

Silver stepped inside. "As I was saying," he said, "what's with your voice?"

"Helium," Blaze said, nodding toward the balloons. "We sort of... inhaled some. You know how it makes your voice high-pitched?"

"Oh. So Cream had some?"

"Yes, apparently her voice was so high before, now we can't even hear it."

"Really?" said Silver. "I don't hear a difference."

Suddenly, Amy ran back into the room, dragging Sonic behind her, with Tails and Knuckles trailing after them.

"...and so, I made you these chili dogs, and I put up these decorations...." Amy was babbling on and on to poor Sonic, who was looking thoroughly exasperated. He pulled himself out of Amy's iron grip.

"Alright, alright! I get it! Just be glad I came to this par- get-together," he corrected himself, not wanting to incur Amy's wrath. He wondered briefly about the pitch of her voice, which was even higher than usual, questioned if he should ask her about it, decided against it. "Why don't you go turn on some music?" he asked, desperate to escape the dynamic pink hedgehog for just a minute.

"Whatever you say, Sonikku!" she squeaked, winking at the blue hedgehog before running off.

Sonic smiled to himself. Now, where are those chili dogs Amy was talking about...?

Meanwhile, Tikal had gone over to Knuckles.

"Hello, Knuckles the Guardian," she said.

"Hey, Tikal," the red echidna replied. "Uh, I'm just wondering, but what's with-"

"My voice?" she finished. "Helium. You should see Cream!" Tikal pulled Cream out of nowhere, and the bunny smiled and tried to say hello.

"Her voice was so high before that now we can't even hear it!" said Tikal.

"Really?" said Knuckles. "I don't hear a difference."

All of a sudden the doorbell rang, and everyone started arriving; it kept Amy busy. Soon, everyone was there – except Team Chaotix.

"I wonder why they haven't shown up yet?" Tails asked Sonic, who was busy scarfing down chili dogs.

Sonic shrugged. "No idea. I mean, of course they don't have the speed capabilities of yours truly-" Sonic gestured to himself proudly, "-and Vector has to drive them in... that car of his."

"That car," Tails said doubtfully. "I'm always telling Vector he should get it checked up by a mechanic or let me take a look at it, but he keeps insisting it was fine."

Sonic was about to answer, but was interrupted by a pounding on the door. Amy quickly scurried over to open it, and sighed with relief to see it was Team Chaotix.

"Come inside!" she said, her voice starting to fade back to normal a little. Vector and Espio stepped inside, while Charmy fluttered above them, his hands hidden behind his back.

"Sorry we're late," said Vector. "Dang car wouldn't start."

Espio sighed wearily. Vector's "car", as everyone knew, was a rusted old pickup truck that was originally blue but now the color of a burnt cookie. Its engine shorted out, and the gas pedal would malfunction, and the horn would sometimes suddenly go off, but – as Tails had said – Vector refused to get it looked at and insisted he drive the team everywhere in it.

"What's that you got, Charmy?" asked Amy curiously.

"Nothing!" Charmy yelled quickly. "Don't look at it!"

Amy looked questioningly at Charmy, but didn't pressure him any more.

Big mistake.