Chapter 10: The Plan
A/N: Sorry in advance for the short chapter. Also, I now realize I never quite explained what Hanna looks like. She has teal fur and violet eyes.
Sorry if it feels sort of anti-climactic, but I've been running out of energy for writing lately. Enjoy.
Meanwhile, back on Mobius...
As the chilly night air blew gently through a certain princess's auburn hair, she sighed. "Sonic...I really hope you know what you're doing."
A small yawn was heard from the bedroll at the foot of her bed, causing her to turn in surprise.
"You say somethin'...milady?" A sleepy blue-haired hedgehog girl asked, rubbing her eyes.
"No...nothing, Emily. You can get back to sleep." Sally laughed softly. "Just talking to myself."
There was a small pause, then a shifting sound. "Alright..."
Sally turned back to the moon, a worried look on her face. "Please...be careful."
"Alright, we need a plan."
"No shit, Sherlock." Shadow scoffed from the side. Rouge nudged him with a disapproving look.
Sonic sighed. "I don't know; I can't really think of anything. It's not like we can just storm the castle and demand my engagement be broken. He'd execute us on the spot!"
Amy shook her head. "No. That would be too...er, destructive. I think we should just use a little persuasion. Call it a 'friendly suggestion' from a neighboring kingdom, perhaps."
"And how would we do that? You can't honestly think he'd be intimidated by us, do you?" Sonic pinched the bridge of his nose.
"Well, call it what you will, but that's my input." Amy crossed her arms.
"No, wait. Amy may be onto something." Knuckles butted in. "Maybe we could do...a swap?"
"With who?"
"Someone from Anti-Mobius, obviously." Knuckles looked to Scourge for confirmation. "You know anyone who'd be willing to switch places?"
Scourge stroked his chin, a frown on his face. "Hmm..."
"Anyone at all?" Knuckles persisted.
"Quiet, I'm thinking." Scourge snapped.
Amy, who sat next to Scourge on the Queen's throne, uncrossed her arms and looked at her lap.
Sonic, noticing her unusual quietness, stepped forward. "Ames, what's wrong?"
She looked up. "What if we fail? What if the king won't budge? What if...what if we die?"
Scourge wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "Don't worry; we will succeed. With your and my armies, we can conquer this."
Amy smiled half-heartedly. "Sorry, Scourge, but I don't think an army would help any."
Sonic stiffened a little at his counterpart's affection, but relaxed as Tails laid a warning hand on his shoulder, sending him a look.
"Well, in any case, I'm sure Sally's worried about you." Amy spoke directly to Sonic, glancing to him.
Sonic frowned. "Yeah, I guess. How can we break it off gently, though? The king might kill us all."
"If we were to trade someone as a spouse, we'd be able to." Cream said quietly.
Everyone looked at her, making her squirm a bit.
"But...who?" Rouge asked.
Just as Amy opened her mouth to say something, another voice butted in. "I'll do it."
Everyone turned towards the voice, but just as the figure stepped into the light, another one, nearly identical, rushed in, sobbing.
"No!" Hanna, the teal squirrel who spent hours playing games with Amy, squeezed him tight. "Don't do it, Wyatt! I can't lose you too!"
"Who's this, Hanna?" Amy asked the girl.
Hanna looked up to Amy with watery eyes. "Wyatt's my older brother. He's the only family I have left. Mom and Dad are dead, and so are our aunts and uncles and cousins."
Wyatt, a handsome near-copy of his sister, stood there in defiance. "I'll do it." He repeated.
Amy's eyes softened. "Wyatt, you don't have to-"
"No." Wyatt shook his head, his violet eyes boring into Amy's emerald ones. "I will do it. I've been to Mobius before, so it's not a problem."
Hanna only clung to him more. "No, Wyatt."
"Hanna, you do know you can come with me, right?" He tried to shake her off. "We won't be separated."
"No! I just-" Hanna paused. "I'm gonna miss Anti-Mobius."
Amy shook her head. "You can visit us. Just contact me when you wanna come back."
Hanna's grip loosened a bit. "But-"
"S'okay, Hanna." Scourge stood up and walked over to her, putting a hand on her shoulder. "You wouldn't be violating the contract if you went." He smirked. "Besides, you work too hard. Gotta take a load off sometimes!"
"Oh, my lord..." Hanna hugged him. "Thanks. But I'll miss you guys."
"Wait, wait, wait." Amy interrupted. "What contract?"
Hanna let go of Scourge and smiled sadly. "During wartime, when our family was wiped out, Wyatt and I had no way to make money. It was either work for the king, or starve to death. He made me promise...my life."
There was a sort of mixed reaction in the room. Some shuffled uncomfortably, some sighed, and some whispered to themselves.
"Not happy to ruin the sentimental moment here, but, uh..." Sonic crossed his arms. "How, exactly, would we go about this?"
"Simple. Miles, could you come here for a minute?" Scourge called.
Miles appeared, bowing. "Yes, sir?"
"Could ya write a letter to the Acorn Kingdom? I got a proposition for them."
"Right away, sir." Miles disappeared through the same door he'd appeared, then came back with paper and a pen.
"Tell them that, because Sonic wants to get out of his engagement with Sally, we're willing to trade them one of my servants in his place." Scourge then added with a wicked grin, "And if the king refuses, tell him my army is waiting."
Miles was silent, scribbling quickly across the page. "And...done."
"Army? Scourge-" Amy began to protest.
"Rose, don't worry." Shadow spoke up. "He's got us, too."
"But that's still not enough! We can't just go to battle! Think of the homes people will lose! And what about our friends and neighbors?" Amy gesticulated wildly with her hands. "I just don't know..."
"Would you rather Sonic be stuck in a loveless marriage?" Scourge said flatly. "I know you still care about him."
"Scourge..." Amy sighed and looked away.
Miles broke the uncomfortable silence by clearing his throat. "So, if I may, my lord...?"
"Yes, please." Scourge nodded.
To be Continued...