Sonic sighed happily, leaning against his favorite tree. "This is the life." Happily he grabbed the picnic basket beside him and dug through it, grinning. Licking his lips, he crammed a chilidog down his gullet in about two seconds.
Amy made a face. "Sonic, that's disgusting." The gang was out for the day, having recently defeated Eggman once again in a pathetic plot for world domination. It had been a couple of months since the whole Black Arms incident, and the city was still being rebuilt. So when Eggman showed up and tried to re-blow up Station Square, Sonic had laid him flat immediately. As a result, today was officially a city-wide day of rest.
Sonic burped loudly. "My compliments to the chef!"
Knuckles rolled his eyes. "Idiot." He helped himself to a BLT, laughing as Sonic swallowed another chilidog whole. "When you choke, I am NOT saving you." Tails grinned and weaved around him to hand Cream and Cheese plates of food. He worked his way back to get his own plate-and tripped over a tree root. "Ayyehhh!"
Strong green arms caught him. "Careful, kid!" Vector set Tails back down, nodding to him. "That could have been a real mess there." Espio nodded behind him, holding Charmy by the base of his stinger as he tried to fly to the food. "Don't wanna spill that on anyone, now, do we?" He sat down. "Thanks for inviting us, Amy. Been a while since we all got together, hasn't it?"
Amy nodded. "Not since the final battle against Devil Doom."
Everyone was silent for a minute, remembering the last horrible battle against the crazed alien. Doom had been manipulating Shadow's memories and trying to convince him to help take over the world. Poor Shadow had been very mixed up for a while, sometimes helping Sonic and co, and sometimes attacking them. Then, Shadow had finally discovered a video that revealed the truth to them all-Black Doom WAS his biological parent, but Gerald wished that Shadow would stop him. So Shadow had battled his "father", and destroyed the Black Comet, effectively saving the world. Again.
"…Where is he, anyway?"
Cream shook her head, smiling sadly at Rouge. "He vanished. We can't find him anywhere." She sighed. "Mr. Shadow was getting so nice, too…"
"Depends on your definition of nice." Sonic grumbled. "Anyways…what're we gonna do tomo-WHAT THE HELL?!"
A huge flash of light shone in the air around Station Square, causing all the Mobians to flinch and cover their faces. It seemed focused around one bridge, burning brightly like a white flame. This feels like…! Oh, damn! Sonic jolted as the memory of power shot through him. He grabbed Tails as he was flung back and pulled the lightweight fox against him to keep him safe. Nothing could be done to save the near-empty picnic basket (the food was spread out and heavy enough that it stayed put), and it was instantly blown away. Through the light he could see that Big had snagged Cream with his fishing line as she flew away, and Amy was held tightly by Omega. Charmy was in Espio's grasp, which was probably the only reason he wasn't over the Mystic Ruins by now.
The light vanished as suddenly as it had appeared. Releasing Tails from his bear-hug, he called "Yo! Everyone here and whole?!" Affirmative cries met his ears, and he sighed in relief. "Thank God. Good job, Big, Espio, Omega. We would have lost our younger ones without you guys." Cream bounced of Big's umbrella and into his arms, hugging the huge cat in fright. Amy bowed to Omega as he set her down, and Charmy just clung to Espio in terror.
Amy bristled at Sonic. "I am NOT a 'younger one'! I'm twelve years old, Sonic!!"
Sonic ignored her, scratching behind his left ear. "Yeah, yeah. Anyway, we need to get up to see what the heck that was. It felt…" he hesitated, then began again. "It felt like Chaos power." Everyone gasped, and he shrugged. "I may be wrong, but I don't think I am. Something just transported there using Chaos power. I think at the-"
A crash and a high pitched scream echoed from the Harbor Bridge.
"-Harbor Bridge," Sonic groaned. He took off, the rest following along behind him. It was easy work to reach the bridge-dodging the cars wasn't. After about the fourth squeal-and-honk, Sonic rolled his eyes and dragged Amy out of the way, yelling, "Why don't YOU look out, buddy?!" He took off again, quickly finding a path into the center of the bridge. Tanks surrounded something, and the Commander himself was yelling at someone, "…two seconds until we shoot, surrender immediately or…" The Mobians climbed on top of the tanks-and froze, shocked.
A lavender hedgehog sat on the top of a car. Her face was serene as she studied her surroundings with what appeared to be slight amusement and curiousness. Her slim legs were curled around her body in a childish posture, her hands folded sweetly in her lap. She was clothed in a pink tube top and a blue miniskirt that totally looked like a twelve-year-old's clothes, but fit her a bit too tightly. She smiled happily at the Commander and called, "Why should I surrender? I haven't done anything wrong." Her striking sapphire eyes studied the man intensely, and he squirmed in her gaze. "I'd like to know where exactly I am, please. Where's Christmas Island?"
"Christ-What?! There's no such island on Earth!"
"Urf? Where's 'Urf'? I'm looking for-oh!" She had caught sight of the Mobians on top of the tanks. She stared at them for a full minute, her head cocked like a child's. The pink jewel on her golden necklace swung delicately. She seemed focused on one person in particular…She shook her head slowly, then looked back at him. "S-Sonic?!"
They all looked at Sonic, who seemed stunned silent. Then he choked out one word. "S-Sunni?"
The lilac girl slid off the car and walked forward slowly, looking transfixed. She paid no attention to the warning shouts of GUN soldiers, only studied the blue male of her species with those shining sapphire orbs. Her five long spines blew softly in the wind as she advanced, and she appeared to be walking faster now. "Sonic…" She was suddenly beside them, reaching for him with one gloved hand. He stood stock-still as she patted his face, then his arms. She looked at him. "It's you…"
Then she wrapped her arms around him, hugging him tightly. Amy bristled violently. "SONIC!!" She was grinning, and she giggled and laughed as he stayed frozen in place. "I'm so happy to finally see you again! You are happy to see me, right?" She smiled up at him.
He looked shocked. "No…it can't be you…you're dead!"
Everyone just looked at him.
The girl stood straight, and suddenly they could see her for what she was. She was a young lady, probably about 14 or 15, with a curvy chest and flat tummy. Her lithe arms hugged around her waist as she studied Sonic carefully. She was very beautiful hedgehog, in some of the males' opinions. There was absolutely no possible way she was dead-she was right here! What was Sonic saying?
"Oh, Sonic." Suddenly she was crying, even as she smiled. "You big dummy. I didn't die. That…thing just knocked me out. Did you really think I died? Come on, you KNOW I'm way stronger than that! I always used to run around with you still don't believe me, do you?" Sonic shook his head. "Well, then, I guess I'm gonna have to prove it to you!" She smiled mischievously and hopped on top of another tank, causing the Commander to jump and the GUN soldiers to take aim at her. Then she started dancing, and began to sing;
Staring
at the blank page before you Reaching for
something in the distance
Open up the dirty window
Let the
sun illuminate the words that you could not find
So close you can almost taste it
Release
your inhibitions
Feel the rain on your skin
No one else can
feel it for you
Only you can let it in
No one else, no one
else
Can speak the words on your lips
Drench yourself in words
unspoken
Live your life with arms wide open
Today is where your
book begins
The rest is still unwritten…
She finished and smiled at the awestruck Mobians and soldiers. Then a soldier began clapping and whistling, and soon the whole GUN unit was cheering and clapping. Blushing, the young lady smiled and curtsied, then put a hand behind her head awkwardly-just like Sonic always did!! She looked an awful lot like their hero, just rubbing the back of her head and grinning. She looked at Sonic happily, the tears drying on her face. "Do you believe me now-wayaah!"
Sonic was suddenly beside her, and he wrapped his arms around her tightly. He was openly crying now, smiling at the same time. Amy and the others just kind of stared in shock as he hugged her to him, laugh-sobbing, "Sunni, Sunni, it's really you! 'You're here! You're alive!! Oh, Sunni…" He pulled back, looking her full in the face. "You are really here with me…right?! You are staying, right?"
Sunni blinked. "Well, I don't exactly know where I am…or how to get back to Mobius…so, yeah, I guess I'm staying…" She looked around, then noticed a soldier holding his side. "Oh, sir, are you alright?" She separated from Sonic and ran to him, looking at him with scared eyes.
The man smiled at her. "Oh, no, I'm-aughh…" He grimaced and clutched his side in pain. Sunni pulled his hand away to reveal the man's blood-soaked shirt. Her eyes got huge, and the man noticed this. "This isn't a sight for little girls…" He was interrupted by the hedgehog lifting his shirt and tracing the deep gash with a finger. He watched her warily as she studied the gash, caring reflected in her eyes. As everyone looked on, she gently put both hands over the wound and looked up at him from under her lashes. "I'm sorry if this hurts, mister…" Then she pressed sharply on the gash and, as the man cried out and the Commander leveled his gun at her, cried "ACHAR!!"
Pink ribbons whirled into the air around the two, power pushing the surrounding watchers back. The ribbons were the power, Knuckles realized in shock. The ribbons spun around the human and Mobian, focusing on Sunni's hands in a falsh of pink. There was suddenly a bright white flash, and Sunni's spines all flew out behind her. The whole light faded, and Sunni slowly slid her hands off her in a criss-cross pattern, and everyone gasped.
The gash was gone!
The man felt his side, stretched, lifted his gun. He looked at her. "You…you healed me…how?!"
The hedgehog looked up at him, sweat beading on her forehead, and the soldier realized she was suddenly pale. She shivered, but she smiled at him. "You are completely healed now, sir. Healed…" Her eyes got misty with sudden pain, and she fell forward-into the man's ready arms. As he caught her, Sonic cried out and ran to him. "What happened?! Is she okay?! Sunni, chicky, baby?!" He looked at her as the soldier carried her to the tanks. Everyone was curious-what the heck was goin' on?!
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Sunni blinked as she was tugged into the bright city. "Aww, Sonic, why are you going to fight?"
"I told you, chicky; Eggman's bad, and he's going to kill the whole fucking world if he has the chance!"
"Riiiiiiight…and Eggman is…Robotnik?"
Knuckles ruffled the three short spines between her ears. "You're a quick learner, Sunni. You've been here, what, three days? And you already know all of our names, the way the government works here, who lives where, and also who our enemies are and who fights with what strategies. Not to mention, you're pretty damn fast!" Sunni winced at the curse word, and Knuckles noticed. "What's up, Sunster?"
Sunni shivered. "It's so…weird, how those awful words just…flow from your lips…"
Knuckles looked at her. "Really? You mean when I curse? Why? Everyone does it."
Sunni shrugged. "Not me. I don't like it very much. Just like I don't enjoy fighting. AND just like I am faster than Sonic."
CRASH!!
Tails looked up at the lilac girl, ignoring the glass bottle he'd just dropped and shattered. Cream, Amy, and the rest of the gang stared at her, as she blinked at them all. "You…" Tails faltered, then began again. "You are faster than SONIC?!"
"No fucking WAY!!" Knuckles roared with laughter.
Sonic bristled. "You are NOT faster than me!"
Sunni smiled. "We never raced to find out."
"You mean-"
"So totally! Now!"
They looked at each other and then at a building in the distance. "Once around and back. First to touch Knuckles' hand wins." Sunni turned to the red echidna. "You stand here-and keep your arms out!" She positioned him between herself and Sonic. Straightening, she nodded. "Tails, count to three, would you?"
Tails blinked. "Ooh…kay…one…two…three!"
Sunni and Sonic vanished, the latter kicking up a huge amount of wind. About two seconds later, someone smacked Knuckles' hand, and Knuckles cried out as it nearly dislocated his shoulder. Rotating it, he looked at the hedgehog beside him. Everyone gasped.
Sunni blinked at them and flashed them the peace sign. "Yeah!"
Sonic screeched to a stop beside them. "Damnit, chicky, rematch!"
They took off again, and Sunni reappeared almost instantly beside them. She flashed the peace sign again. This time, though, they heard a screech, the high-pitched squeal of brakes, and a loud yell. Then a loud crash echoed through the city. Everyone froze for a second, then Sunni vanished again, dragging Cream with her on accident. She quickly found the scene of mass chaos.
Sonic had been hit by a car.
He was half trapped under the car, his legs under the car completely. A gash ran across his chest and waist. His face was twisted in pain, and blood matted his blue fur. The car driver was in a daze, and he seemed to be repeating something. Sunni strained her ears, and could barely make out the words "…he wasn't there, he wasn't there, he wasn't there…" over and over. He was unharmed, though.
Sunni went to Sonic, gently pulling him out from under the smashed vehicle. He was conscious, and hurting. She traced the gash, the numerous gashes along his leg. Laying her hand against his chest and murmured "Achar." The pink ribbons exploded again, surrounding the two hedgehogs. Cream just stood in shock, staring. The others ran up, followed by the President, who'd been looking for the blue streak. Amy shrieked as she caught sight of Sonic and Sunni, spines blowing crazily in the ribbons. Knuckles paled at the sight, and Tails trembled. They all knew what the ribbons meant-Sonic was in trouble.
Suddenly Sunni cut the ribbons. They all vanished, and her spines settled back into place. She slumped over by Sonic, shoulders heaving. Yet even as Knuckles moved towards her, she stood, lifting Sonic as well. Carrying him to the group, she smiled serenely, eyes half-lidded. "He'll wake up in a minute. I knocked him out so he wouldn't feel the pain while I healed him."
As Knuckles took the limp hero from her arms, she shivered. Her pink tube top, they realized, was streaked with Sonic's blood. She shook her head slowly, then swayed. Rouge came over and put and arm around her to support her, and Sunni weakly smiled thanks. "Sunni, what was that? What were those ribbons?" Knuckles asked, voice a bit rough with worry.
Sunni sighed. "Let's get somewhere safe. Then I will explain it all to you guys." GUN soldiers came over to the group, motioning for them to follow. When they saw Sunni struggling to walk, though, one soldier knelt beside them and outstretched his arms to her. It was the same soldier she had healed the day she arrived. Her eyes widened, and she stumbled into his arms, much to Rouge's amazement. The man softly hugged her and lifted her bridal style carefully. All the way to GUN, the young soldier, whose name was Kenny, chatted about different stuff. Kenny was very gentle with her, making the Mobians relax with him a little more than most soldiers. It was funny.
When they'd all been settled in, Sonic loudly asking "why the hell" Knuckles was carrying him and unceremoniously being dumped on the bed in the GUN room, Sunni took a deep breath. "You asked me what those ribbons were, friends. Well…do you see the jewel I wear around my neck?" Everyone nodded-it was hard to miss the pink gem about the length and width of a (Mobian) finger. "Well, this jewel is called the Mini Emerald. It's a very powerful gem. It leeches power from the planet itself. No, it doesn't kill anything! Actually, it promotes growth and healthiness in plants. No, its powers can be used in many different ways-but only by one person. Its guardian. I am the guardian of the Mini Emerald, and have been as long as I can remember…that's why I can heal people. I can access the power within the Mini Emerald and use it to heal others. You see, the Emerald doesn't truly have a power of it's own. It finds the powers everyone has locked inside them and sets them free for use-with it's help. The powers I have are many, but they all seem to be pink. Go figure."
Everyone's jaws were touching the floor, especially Sonic's. Suddenly he jumped. "Aw, man, if Eggman gets his hands on one, we're-"
"Relax, Sonic." Sunni smiled at him, her legs curling under her chair. "There's only one in existence. Since ti uses the planet's energy to supplement it and my magic, it would have been too dangerous to create more than one."
Sonic sighed in relief. Knuckles now leaned forward, amethyst eyes glinting mischievously. "Hey, Sunster, is healing all you can do?"
Sunni shook her head. "No, it's just all I normally do. I can also attack people, blast, and create shields. But it took so much power to transport here, and then I healed Mr. Kenny right afterwards, so I'm still regaining my powers. They'll be fully functional soon. I-eeeeeeyyyyyaaaaaaaaaahhhhh!" She leapt into the air as an ugly man's face appeared on the machine behind her. His orange mustache barely fit onscreen.
"Hello, Sonic!"
"Eggman!" Sonic growled. Sunni, hanging from the light, studied the ugly human. "So you're Eggman…"
"Heehee!" His laugh was nasally. "You have made me a very happy man, hedgehog. I am going to enact my best scheme ever-I'm going to re-activate ARK! And you can't do anything to stop me this time-you're injured! I saw get hit by that car."
Sonic stood-and collapsed. Amy shrieked and ran to him as Eggman laughed. "See! You cannot stop me! I will rule the world, and no one can do anything. No one can stand against the almighty Doctor Robotnik!"
"Is that what you truly believe? 'Cause you're dead wrong." Sunni dropped into a crouching position in front of Sonic and Amy, who both started and stared at her.
Eggman stared at her. "…who the hell are you, brat?"
Sunni stood and glared at Eggman. "I am Sunni the Hedgehog. I will stand against you, you…you…terrible man!" She stepped forward. "You won't get away with this!"
Eggman lauged. "Another hedgehog, hmm? Oh well, like a little girl can do anything about this plan! It's foolproof!!"
"Meaning you can't do it, right?" Sunni shot back, grinning. All the Mobians burst into laughter, Knuckles yelling, "Ohh, burn!" Rouge laughed. "You got burned, Eggboy!" Tails and Cream were rolling with laughter, while the Chaotix all guwaffed at the evil man getting told off by a small girl. Even the President and the Commander laughed, along with the soldiers in the room. Sunni just glared at the man, a mischievous smile playing on her lips.
Eggman growled. "You little bitch!" Sunni's smile vanished, and suddenly the room was silent, the males bristling in anger at the name he called her. "You are as bad as that blue hedgehog. But you look weak. So bring it. I'm waiting, bitch, for you to challenge me so I can see your pathetic face when I beat you!"
"Do you EVER shut up?!" Sunni crossed her arms. "Somebody take him off the screen, please." The Commander shut off the screen, and Sunni shivered. "What an evil man." She went outside, calling back, "I'm getting some fresh air." As she went, though, Knuckles saw a shine on her cheek. Hmm? He went quietly after her as the others began plotting how to thwart Eggman.
She was sitting on a rock, staring up at the now starry sky. As he came up behind her, he could hear her singing, singing in some language he'd never heard. Her voice seemed to caress his ears, making him feel…home. Loved. What the-LOVED?! Where did you get that, Knuckles, old boy? Then again, he felt a certain kinship to the lavender girl. They both guarded something all their lives. She was a bit like him. Then he swore he saw her shoulders jump slightly, as if…as if she were crying. He immediately walked over, his mind screaming at him to help somehow. "Hey, Sunni." He said softly.
Sunni looked at him. Her face was dry, but her eyes were wide. She nodded, then looked up at the sky. "The sky is so pretty here. So many new constellations here. It's nice to see different pictures in the sky." She sighed, and Knuckles sat beside her, studying the sky as well. I never noticed, but she's right. The sky is beautiful. "I…" Sunni was talking again, and Knuckles listened again. "I always felt…safe, looking at the sky." Knuckles glanced at the smaller girl beside him sharply. "Whenever I was hurting, or I was running away, or when I was just lonely, I could look at the sky and feel home. Like I belonged." She sighed, and tears began to stream down her face. "I'm so tired of being judged before people know me. No matter where I am, people have always called me a…a…"
"Bitch?" Knuckles asked sharply.
"Yes. That. They had no reason, they didn't know me. They just hated me, hated what I was." She sighed again. "Sonic doesn't realize it, but hedgehogs are largely hated on Mobius. We are considered bad luck to have around, just because we are such a rare species." She shrugged. "I…just want a place…to feel I belong…"
Knuckles looked at her. He understood a little more about her now. Why she hated cursing, why she was distant and friendly at the same time. He understood why she just smiled when they asked about Mobius and how life there was. He looked at her. "You belong here."
She turned to him, eyes wide, tearstreaks on her face shining in the moonlight. Knuckles, encouraged by her acknowledgement, continued. "You are here with friends, us, Sonic and me and Rouge and Tails…we all think you belong here. Sonic's so happy to see you. I haven't seen him this crazy since he got on a sugar high at Cream's New Year's Party." Sunni giggled softly, and Knuckles smiled. "You see? We won't hurt you, I swear it."
Sunni looked into his eyes, sapphires meeting amethysts. "I just want to be cared about…"
Knuckles smiled and took her hand. "We care about you, Sunni. We really do."
Sunni looked at him. Then her eyes teared up and she buried her face in her hands, sobbing outright. Knuckles put his arms around her and pulled her close, mentally screaming, please don't cry! They stayed like that for a while, him holding her, just letting her know he cared. Finally she sat up, scrubbing her face, smoothing her fur until it was impossible to tell she'd cried. She went back to the group, Knuckles following. As she entered, it went quiet. She looked right at "Sonic.
"Where is this ARK, Sonic? I'm going to go kick Eggman's butt."
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Pure Heart: WHEE!! Sunni's pissed off now! What is in store for the newly arrived heroine? And what is awaiting her on ARK? Read and review, and I'll tell you!
Disclaimer:I only own Sunni and the Mini Emerald in this fic. Everything else belongs to Sega.
This is dedicated to HikariAngel. Hope you like it so far!
