Before the Final Rose Petal Falls

Disclaimer: You should know by now.

Chapter 11: Enriched by the Heart

Previously…

"Take my hand."

Sonic obeyed, his hand outstretched toward hers. Yet all would not be well, for mere seconds later, he roared out in agonizing pain.

"Sonic!" Amy cried. "What's wrong!" Managing to grasp onto his flailing hand, she hauled him onto the balcony where he immediately collapsed. A startled yell pulled her attention away for a split second and she saw Scourge tumbling from the roof to his death, apparently he had been knocked off when Sonic had jolted in pain. Moving her attention back to Sonic, she knelt down beside him and gently pulled away his hand. What she revealed, nearly stole her breath away.

It was a stab wound.

"Nooooooooooooo!"

At the sound of Amy's anguished cry, Sonic forced his eyes open albeit with a bit of struggle. "A-Amy…you…you came back…"

"Shh," Amy soothed. "Don't talk. Just rest, you're going to be okay." She pressed a hand against the injury, trying to staunch the blood yet the crimson liquid continued to flow freely, merely staining her glove.

Sonic shook his head, a weak grin making its way across his face. "I don't…think so Ames…think I'm a….hopeless…case…at this point…" Lifting his hand, he gently caressed her cheek. Desperately, she clasped his hand, keeping it trapped against her face. He was so cold. Tears began to swim in her eyes as she watched his own become heavy, his lips struggling to take in breath. He spoke again, "Before I…go…I have to…no…I want to…tell you…I…love you…"

As he spoke those last words, his eyes fell closed, his hand falling limp. Amy bit her lip, her tears now flowing freely. "Please," She whispered. "Don't go. Don't leave me. Please. I love you…" Giving into her grief Amy collapsed onto Sonic's chest, sobbing into his fur. While she cried, the others looked on sadly, mourning the loss of their beloved prince and friend.

Silver caught sight of the final rose petal falling. Their time was up, but it hardly mattered now.

The skies continued to swirl with darkness as a steady rain fell upon everyone. The wind was cold, yet blew softly, almost as if it too, was in mourning for the fallen Mobian, the wind's hushed howls intermingling with the soft sobs of the women present.

What was unnoticed by everyone was a soft and regal female voice speaking, her tones carried by the wind. Well done Prince Sonic. You managed to relearn compassion and find love while finding someone who was willing to return it and all before the rose ran out of petals. I shall now return you and your friends to your former forms.

Amy swore that her heart was beyond broken. It was shattered. To have fallen in love so quickly, only to have him taken away from her. She may as well have died with him. Continuing to cry, Amy was startled into light sobs when she felt a gentle tingling against the back of her hand. Looking up, she saw that the sky had brightened to a gorgeous shade of lavender with swirls of fuchsia. Falling from the now light sky were showers of magic dust, the dust bathing Sonic in a bright light making him seem almost golden.

Wincing from the brilliantness of the aura, Amy leaned away from Sonic. Once she had moved, his body was lifted into the air, undergoing an incredible transformation. His form seemed to shrink, becoming more like that of a hedgehog's size. His fangs disappeared while his quills elongated, becoming smooth. His hands grew smaller, the color of his arms changing to a soft peach matching that of his muzzle and stomach. His overall full color was now a beautiful, rich cobalt. Even his shoes transformed, shrinking down to fit the rest of his body losing the spikes in the process.

Rather than his body floating down to the ground, he was righted into a standing position. Slowly his eyes began to open, opening wide as they took in the sight of his old appearance. I'm back…

Grinning wide, Sonic spun around to look at Amy. His grin faded however, when he took in her shocked expression. "Ames?"

Amy tilted her head, a normal gesture for her confusion. This hedgehog sounded like her Sonic, the cocky tone was there, only not delivered with a growl. His smile was gentle, yet…it couldn't be him, could it be? She had watched him die. She bit her lip before asking, "Sonic?"

The hedgehog grinned while winking. "Aw, c'mon Ames, don'tcha recognize me?"

She peered into his eyes. A bright emerald sparked with mischief and warmth. The same eyes that caused her heart to skip a beat. Her own eyes began to fill with tears, this time with tears of joy. "Sonniku!" She cried out as she launched herself at him.

"Whoa!" Sonic laughed as he caught Amy in his arms, the impact knocking him backwards. "So I take it you now believe me when I say I'm me." He felt Amy nod against his shoulder. He also heard her murmur something, but it was muffled. "What was that Ames?"

"I love you!" She exclaimed, giggling as she felt Sonic wipe her tears away.

His smile was soft. "I love you too, Amy." Sitting them up, he slowly leaned in, finally able to latch his mouth onto hers in the kiss that he had long since wanted. Her lips were soft, as they moved gently, almost shyly against his. Cupping her face with one hand, he wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her in closer while tilting his head to make the kiss deeper.

He was warm and real. Sonic was truly with her, proving it with his loving kiss. Sliding her arms around his neck, she grinned as she felt his hand move from her cheek to her quills, his fingers softly teasing them. Her heart was no longer broken. He loved her and she loved him and for that moment that was all that mattered.

When the need for air came, the two parted, yet remained close, leaning their foreheads against one another's. The grins they wore matched in hugeness and silliness. Sonic opened his mouth to say something when cries of joy and triumph diverted the couple's attention. Standing where a candelabra, clock, teapot, teacup, creamer and garden angel should've been; stood a white-silver hedgehog, a violet furred cat, a scarlet echidna, adult and child rabbit, a fairly small dog (were those wings on his back?) and a young Seedrian.

Amy tilted her head once again. "Uh…?"

Sonic grinned and took her hand, leading her toward the group. "Ames, I want you to meet my friends…my family." Everyone smiled at the pair. Sonic winked at Amy. "I think you know them. Silver, Blaze, Knuckles, Vanilla, Cream, Chip and Cosmo." Amy's mouth dropped open at the sight of her friends completely restored to their normal selves. The enchantment was lifted!

She turned to look at Sonic, confusion etched in her eyes. "How…?"

He gently squeezed her hand. "I promise to explain later." He turned back to his friends. "I am so sorry for the way I behaved over the past five years. I was cold and demanding, selfish and I didn't treat you with the kindness and respect I used to. I treated my family like staff and it was wrong. I'm so sorry. Can you find it in you to forgive me?"

Blaze laughed. "Sonic, you're just as hopelessly adorable as Silv here. Of course we'll forgive you." The others nodded.

Knuckles and Silver both swung an arm around the hedgehog prince. "We never gave up on you, Sonic," Silver informed him.

"And we'll always be there for you, no matter what," Knuckles reassured. He looked as he wanted to say more, but an excited yell cut him off.

"Knuckie!" A beautiful white bat flew out of the castle, straight into Knuckles' arms who proceeded to spin her around once before dipping her and planting a kiss on her lips. Her aqua eyes widened in surprise before closing as she slumped in his embrace.

Sonic turned to bury his face in Amy's shoulder, hugging her tightly as he laughed at his friend's daring public display of affection. As he laughed, a sudden realization dawned on him. He partially annoyed at himself for not realizing it before. Raising his head, he looked at Amy, mischief and joy twinkling in his emerald eyes. "Ames," He began in an excited whisper. "There's something I want to show you."

She looked intrigued. "Wha-whoa!" Sonic had suddenly lifted her in his arms so he was carrying her bridal style. He winked at her. "Hold on, okay?" He took off, racing across acres of land, through forests and meadows, once passing under a waterfall. The scenery became a colorful blur, shades of green, brown, red, yellow and blue blending together in one beautiful mixture.

Amy smiled the whole way, loving the thrill that Sonic's speed gave her. She was truly seeing the world, sure it was at a pace she would've never imagined, yet it was no longer part of one of her dreams and she was seeing it with the one she loved. Even better, she saw the world while being in the arms of her true love. It seemed to end all too soon, for Sonic had stopped in a large field of gorgeous flowers surrounding a pretty lake.

Placing Amy on her feet, Sonic darted off toward the lake and came zipping back within three seconds. Brushing his hand through her quills, he slipped a lavender rose into them. "Love at first sight," He whispered before placing a sweet kiss on her lips which she eagerly returned.

Giggling when they pulled apart, Amy asked, "Are you sure it was truly love at first sight."

Sonic considered this for a moment. "Okay, more like love at first fight," he admitted with a grin. "But I don't think they make a rose color for that." Amy shook her head in agreement. Looking back at the flowers, Sonic asked, "Do you wanna help me pick some flowers for Cream? I owe her a bouquet or two, it used to be something I'd do for her."

Clutching his hand, Amy eagerly lead Sonic toward the flowers closer toward the lake. In the midst of picking flowers, Sonic spun around slowly once, his arms stretched toward the sky as if reaching for an embrace while he took in deep, refreshing breaths of air. Seeing Amy's intrigued look, he smiled and said, "It just feels so good to be out in the open and enjoying freedom. Not with fear, but with confidence and love. I'm not a monster anymore."

Amy wrinkled her nose and stuck out her tongue playfully. "You never were."

Sonic pulled her into a hug, "Thank you, Amy."

"For what?"

"For saying that…and for rescuing me from the darkness."

Amy returned the embrace, wrapping her arms around him tightly. "I'll save you, no matter what."

"As will I."

The two hedgehogs held each other in that tight embrace for a long while, neither one appeared to be willing to let go. Finally, when the sun began to slip past the mountains did Sonic lift Amy into his arms and race back to the castle. There, Sonic presented the flowers to a very happy Cream who hopped up to give the prince a hug before darting off, leaving mentions of flower crowns in her wake. As Cream took off, Amy spotted a light blue chao happily following the bunny and knew the chao to be Cheese.

Sonic took Amy's hand as was about to head off toward the library with her when they were stopped by a bright light, Tikal the Enchantress shimmering into view. Upon sighting the magical echidna, Sonic panicked, holding Amy close to him. "I-I-I didn't do anything wrong, your Ladyship!" Sonic blurted. He didn't want to be a werehog again.

Tikal's laugh rang throughout the parlor. "That's not why I'm here, Prince Sonic," She said kindly. "I merely have a gift to bestow upon your beloved." She handed Amy a fully bloomed rose that glimmered and shone with the colors of the legendary chaos emeralds. "To a wonderful future filled with days of happiness for you both. Never forget this, chaos is enriched by the heart."

With those final words, she vanished, undoubtedly returning to her home with the Master Emerald.

Sonic turned to Amy, another large grin etched upon his muzzle. Clasping the hand that held the rose, he leaned her back and kissed her once more, conveying all of his love for her and more. He never wanted to let her go, never wanted to stop loving her. And from the way her lips curved under his and her free arm wrapped around him, pulling him closer, Sonic knew she felt the same way.

. Tale as old as time…

Song as old as rhyme…

Beauty and the Beast.

No, this is not where our story ends! I repeat, this is not where the story ends! There's a bit more that you're going to have to wait for!