Sonic, Gwen and Amy stepped off the little boat. Sonic stepped off to the side, rather unsteady on his feet after the journey. Gwen followed after spying his unsteady state, very cautiously patting the flat side of his spines.
"Aha... there, there. It's over now. Until we go back, I guess." Gwen said.
Sonic just groaned in response. He felt sick after having to travel over liquid death and Gwen's words weren't what he needed to hear.
Amy waltzed ahead, shading her eyes from the sun as she looked at the city before them. She looked back at the hedgehog and rabbit, motioning them over with a simple wave. "Come on guys. What are you waiting for? Let's get going!"
Sonic took a breath. He shook his arms and jogged on the spot before straightening himself out. "Right..!" He called, heading over.
Gwen watched him pass, then caught up and walked with him to catch up to Amy.
Gwen could not help but stare at the buildings in the city. It was awfully familiar to cities on Earth! Though they seemed more like the typical American buildings than English ones. She pressed her fingers to her chin as she thought, stopping in her tracks to stare up at the heights. I guess it could also be like Dubai. Not as hot, but Dubai-ish. Tourist areas tend to build high like this in some areas... I wonder if this place attracts a lot of tourists? She was snapped from her thoughts by a forced, fake cough. She looked over at Sonic.
"We'll lose you if you stop in the middle of crowds like this." He pointed out, folding his arms. He looked up at the skyscraper that had been Gwen's centre of attention. "Never seen one before?"
"No, I've seen plenty. Enough, at least. Well, actually... not as tall as these. I've seen ones like this on TV but not face-to-face. They're more foreboding in real life, ha." She turned and the two caught up to Amy again. "In my world I live in the countryside. And the country I live in does have skyscrapers, but they aren't super impressive ones. There's other countries and places known for being built up high. My country kind of took the, uh, 'sprawling mess' approach to creating cities."
Amy reached over and took Sonic's arm as Gwen spoke. "What are the shops like?" She asked.
Sonic looked at Amy. His ears twitched and he shook his head slightly.
"Eh." Gwen droned, "Probably the same as here."
Amy pouted slightly, "You're sure?"
"No, Amy, I'm not sure. I'm saying 'probably' because I haven't seen a comparison yet." Gwen pointed out.
Amy hummed, then bounced slightly. "We best find one fast, then!" She squealed and rushed off with Sonic.
Gwen reached after them, "Ah! Wait! Wait happened to me getting lost? Amy? Amy!" Gwen chased after the hedgehog duo with clunky but coordinated steps.
By the time they stopped, Amy was stood in front of two gigantic glass doors. Sonic seemed to have zoned out somewhat and looked like he would rather be anywhere else. Gwen slowly trotted up behind them, metal clanks sounding every time her feet hit the pavement. She looked over the doors. She took a deep breath before heading inside ahead of the other two.
Looking around, Gwen noted that it was just like a regular shopping mall. "Huh. Well." She turned back to the other two. "Nothing special."
Amy frowned, "So it's the same as your world?"
"Pretty much... the items will be different but there's nothing that makes this place any different than what I know. That said, it is quite a nice mall. They've actually made an effort to make the place look welcoming and clean." Gwen hummed, a little impressed. "Alright. Lead the way, Amy."
Amy grinned, grabbing both Sonic and Gwen before running off deeper into the mall.
As the hours passed, Amy commanded the trip. They went to make-up, jewellery and clothes outlets – though it was mostly just browsing. The place where Amy took most of the time was, of course, the clothing stores. She would go in, sift through every rack to find all the clothes she liked and had Gwen try them on.
With each new set of clothes Gwen tried, Amy would judge and Sonic would progressively look more bored. He rarely showed interest in anything the trip was offering so far. Though there were instances where he would pay attention to the outfit, especially if it was blue.
Gwen came out in yet another outfit and sighed. "Amy, do I really have to keep doing this? Can't people in this world, like, not wear clothes?"
Amy gasped, "No! Well, yes. But not a woman! That's completely unlady-like... and it's just not a norm."
Sonic snorted. "I dunno, I wouldn't mind her wandering around without clothes." Amy turned to Sonic. Gwen did not see the face she made, but Sonic shot up and zipped off, hiding behind a clothes rack. "O-of course, I wasn't thinking or saying that in a way that would be rude." He grinned nervously.
Gwen looked at herself. She was not sure how to react to someone saying something like that. She was not at all offended. In a way, it was really quite flattering, if also rude and completely out of line.
Amy turned back to Gwen, steam practically pouring from her ears. "You. Have. To. Wear. Clothes."
Gwen held her hands up, "Okay, okay, I get it. Just... thought I could get away with that seen as most of the guys walk around with... next to nothing on." She took a breath. "Can I at least wear something that isn't a dress, Amy? I'm not a big fan of them..." She put her fingers to her chin. "But I also need something that won't catch in my joints I guess... maybe tight leggings and a jacket? If it's taut, there's no reason for it to get stuck... and I don't have and sharp points... except my fingers..." Gwen waggled the claws of her right hand to emphasise her point.
Amy set her hands on her hips. First Sonic goes and starts flapping his mouth, then Gwen wants to take over the trip. Amy growled in her own mind, but she took a breath before saying anything. "Okay. We'll find you something fitting closer to your description." She went back to the racks after giving a brief glance to Sonic to check he hadn't fled the scene.
After some time, Gwen eventually got settled in an outfit she was comfortable with: tight, white leggings, black boots and a brown leather jacket. Though, Amy insisted that the jacket could only be vegan leather. Sonic suggested that Gwen got gloves, to match the rest of the team.
"But Sticks doesn't wear gloves." Gwen pointed out, not wanting to have her hands feel sweaty all the time. "Plus, I have white socks on my arms- I mean... arm. It'll look weird having white on white. That is... if you were thinking of white gloves. And my other hand has pointy bits on, so I'd only end up wearing one glove." Gwen paused for a moment, then shrugged slightly. "Or fingerless ones."
"Fine, pass on the gloves." He waved his hand dismissively. "Felt like it gave a sense of team identity myself, but the fashion police don't seem to agree."
Having found a comfortable set of clothes at long last, Amy took Gwen to get pampered. Sonic settled for having a massage in the meantime. Walking out of the shop, Gwen fiddled with the now-curled patch of fur on the top of her head, letting out a growl. This is getting ridiculous. I'm bending over backwards for this. I get Amy's being nice and all, but this just isn't my thing. Sonic looked over Gwen, having taking notice of her irritation.
"Hey, c'mon, at least you look nice!" He winked.
"I'm starting to think any winks from you all have undertones." Gwen grumbled. "And what's that supposed to mean, like I wasn't looking nice before?" She set her hands on her hip, turning to the hedgehog.
Sonic jumped, caught off-guard by the sudden aggression. He held his hands up in defence, he did not want to face anymore wrath from women. "No, no, you look nice all the time!" He slid his eyes over to Amy, noting her shift to look at him in his peripheral vision. She was fuming, too. Sonic stepped back, thinking he had dug himself a deep, deep grave.
Gwen folded her arms, glancing passed him as neon lights caught her eye. She gasped and ran off. Sonic tilted an ear down, looking behind himself.
"Gwen! Where are you going? We aren't done!" Amy whined.
Gwen stopped, pointing up at the sign of the venue. "Arcade!"
Sonic zipped over to Gwen's side at the distraction from the situation and the shopping part of this trip. "Now, I like this idea way more." He declared, strolling in.
Gwen beckoned Amy over eagerly, a grin covering her face, before bolting in herself. Amy folded her arms and huffed. They're ruining my carefully planned out day! Despite her disappointment and mild anger, she sighed and let it go. She figured if they both wanted to go to the arcade, that was where they should go. "Two against one..." She mumbled before following after the pair.
Sonic shot over to one of the racing booths as imagery of cars racing whizzed by on the screen. Gwen stepped over and leant around Sonic to get a good look at the booths and what they were about. He glanced back at her. "I bet I can beat you." He smirked, already getting into the seat.
Gwen took a moment to register the challenge before leaping into the seat beside him and wrapped her hands around the wheel. "You're on."
Amy hung back, watching as Sonic passed Gwen some coins so that they could play. She left them alone for the time being, though she could not help but start to feel angry at Gwen. No, anger wasn't the right word. Jealous of Gwen. She frowned, but her expression melted away when she saw a fuzzy puppy set claw machine. A welcome distraction.
Gwen folded her arms, sitting back as Sonic leapt from his seat, cheering.
"Who's the fastest hedgehog around?" He pointed both of his thumbs at himself. "Me, of course!"
"Okay, okay, you won!" Gwen huffed and got up, then shoved him by the shoulder gently. "Good job." She smiled.
Sonic looked at her and lowered his hands. After a moment, he smiled back and snatched her hand. "I'm gonna beat you on the shooting games next!" His smile morphed into a confident grin as he pulled Gwen off to another set of games. He twisted his ears slightly as Gwen's laughter caught his attention.
Sonic and Gwen and Amy spent the rest of the day in the arcade. After Amy had managed to get a new fuzzy puppy for her collection, she joined Gwen and Sonic at the booths. Most of the games were only two player, so Gwen swapped out with Amy regularly so that everyone got to play. Sonic refused to budge from playing. He was having a blast beating Amy and Gwen at every game.
It was not quite the end to the day Amy had planned, but as the group returned to the docks, she was happy it went the way it did. Maybe she was angry that Sonic had made some remarks that pushed her buttons and maybe she began to realise Gwen was a rival as well as her friend, but ultimately, everyone got to do a bit of what they wanted and they all managed to end the day happy.
Sonic groaned as he looked at the ship. "Not this again. It'll make me puke up that chilli dog I had..."
Amy scrunched her face up at the commentary. "Ew." She sighed. "It'll be fine, Sonic. Come on." She hopped on to the boat.
Gwen stepped on and glanced back at Sonic, "Ah, if you do toss, please do it over the side of the S.S. Dumpster."
Sonic groaned louder. A practical response was not what he was seeking. He hopped onto the boat and planted himself roughly where he was before. Gwen went to sit beside him, but Amy grabbed her attention and brought her to sit in the cabin instead, leaving Sonic the only one on deck.