Part 26

Amy's POV

Imagine the mall at 3 PM on Christmas Eve. Now multiply that by 10. That would probably be equal to what I was seeing right now.

The roads were a mess. A two year old could probably walk faster than the average speed of these cars.

People were panicking; they were all running around like the world was going to end; but who could blame them? We all thought that our biggest threat was dead. And now he came out of nowhere on a killing spree.

Again.

It seemed like there were more new faces recently. People new to this city didn't know what to do now. I saw a homeless man steal a bike from a very confused dog in abusiness suit. Obviously he was one of those said people.

Although I'm sure some of them have heard of us, not everyone could have known who we were. A crying bird tried to pull me away as I was running- screaming that it was too dangerous.

And...Here's another one.

Trying to be as gentle as I could (when yanking someone off you) I struggled free and followed Sonic. Who was still probably mad that I let go of his hand since I could no longer see him. The only thing indicating he was ever there was his trail of dust. I tried to hurry and follow him.

I have to admit; Even with all the drama circling over my head like an angry vulture, I was sort of excited to finally be of use. My hammer was not exactly a scythe of death or anything. It was going to be fun to show off to Eggman.

Or the fact that Sonic has a little competition now? Other than Shadow?A small voice whispered in my head

At that thought; I couldn't help grinning.

-

Finally, I caught up to him.

The square was deserted, except for us and the giant shadow of the ship.

"So has he not shown up yet?" I asked, winded. Unfortunately for me, my training hadn't done anything to how long I could run. Running around multiple city blocks was not an easy thing for me.

He seemed to be scanning the area, "No, he's firing at fairly empty buildings to deter people, but so far, I haven't actually seen him."

"Mmm." I replied, since I couldn't think of anything else to say. I continued looking around. Fighting or not, the awkward feeling was still there between us, and I was determined to ignore it.

I decided to stare at a pine tree with a vacant gaze. There, can't go wrong with that can you? People don't usually say something when you look lost in thought.

Apparently Sonic was an exception.

At first, he was just shooting quick glances in my direction, but slowly, those glances turned into looks, and the looks into stares.

I slowly felt my concentration and sanity draining away.

When he began waving his arm in a seizure-like motion in front of my face I gave up.

Why can't you just sense the mood?

Sighing, I stopped having a staring contest with the tree, and turned back to him

"Do you need something?" I said exasperatedly.

There was a long silence before he spoke.

"It's just that, you never hug or chase me anymore." He said quietly. "And it's been ages since you last tried to get me to take you out somewhere. What happened?"

"I dunno," I shrugged, trying to feign interest. "I suppose I just grew out of it."

"We both know that's not it." His voice grew steadily louder, laced with accusation. "What is it really? Are you hiding something from me?"

"Sonic, I'm not obsessed with you anymore ok? I'm not the same stupid girl. " I said as icily. "Shouldn't you be glad? I mean, let's face it. You weren't exactly that happy with what I was doing.

His eyes narrowed, "Well you're obviously not, the Amy I knew would have forgiven me. And she most certainly wouldn't be in love with SHADOW of all freaking people."

My mind was reeling. How did he know that?"What the hell are you talking about? I don't like him." I answered, trying to keep my voice as steady as possible.

"Oh, don't act like you don't remember. We all heard you're confession this morning." He spat bitterly.

Whatever was left of my poker face came crashing down. "W-What?"

"This morning, you were talking in your sleep. We both heard you say you loved him." His eyes burned into mine.

Unbidden, my hand came up to my mouth; my stomach was tied in a giant knot. "N-no…..this is bad…I have to-"

"I told you! It was true!" Sonic interrupted me again. His face changed to one of anger to one of pain. "Why do you lie to me so much Ames? It hurts more when you don't tell me the truth…..We used to be so close…"

Well now that he knows, no use holding back.

"Because, SONIC. When I needed you the most, you were off moping. About Eggman. Someone who was trying to kill you 'dies', and you have to run away and hide for 3 months…? You know who was there for us? SHADOW. He may seem cold to you, Sonic, but you barely know him. In fact, he's one of the nicest hedgehogs I've ever met. Have you ever thought about what I wanted?" I waved my hand around dismissively.

"What we wanted? Everyone was a mess after you left, but no, you couldn't stay. Not even to keep us together. I guess you really can't stand us or something, since we can't even help you get over someone's death. But who can? Sally. How long had it been since you'd seen her? We must be terrific friends, if you'd rather grieve with someone you haven't seen for 5 years than people you see every day. This is why I lie to you Sonic, because I can't trust you anymore. And honestly? I don't think I'm the only one."

Suddenly, his anger, his pain, everything, was all gone. He looked at me with empty, eyes.

"Ok...I really need to stop going on these rants..." I thought to myself

"That's what you really think is it….?" He said sadly.

I faltered. I know I shouldn't have, but somewhere inside of him was the Hedgehog I used to love. Just as somewhere inside of me, there was an innocent girl, who was desperately in love with him.

But we weren't the same people anymore. Everything had changed. I struggled to regain my composure.

For once, I did something I wasn't used to. I hugged him.

"Sonic…I'm sorry. But I just don't see you that way anymore. Look, we've both said some bad things to each other, and we need to move on. Time heals every wound. I…..really like S-Shadow…and…you… you're a popular guy. You'll find someone else. I promise. But for now, we have more important things to concentrate on. Let's deal with this later, kay?" Stepping back I forced a smile.

He looked at me, a broken smile upon his face.

". . . Okay."

A familiar robotic humming noise interrupted us.

"Why hello there~ I hate to break up such a meaningful conversation, but I believe we have some business to attend to."

Eggman. "No problem," I replied curtly, "we were just wrapping up."

He broke into a wide grin. "Then let me allow me to properly introduce you."

Waving his hand behind him, he gestured at a rapidly approaching figure.

"This is Mephiles."

-

Shadow's POV

I had underestimated her once again.

Struggling, I tried to wiggle out of the invisible bonds that she had placed on me.
Damn it…why does she have to be so…thorough?

There was almost no slack in the ropes, and for some reason, the more I moved, the tighter I seemed to be squeezed.

Think…. I willed myself. How can I get out of this.

Suddenly, I had it. Smirking triumphantly, I strained my hand to touch the chaos emerald I had hidden beneath the pillow.

"Chaos Absorb."

Sorry for not updating for so long! Unfortunately I have some good news and some bad news.

Bad news first: I won't be updating for a long time…probably more than last time.

The good news is that the next chapter I do will be much longer and will be the end to the story. Probably reaaaallly long. I just need some time to figure out how to end it and what to wrap up. And then I need to actually write it. So see you then. :D

Review please? :3