again, don't lose important objects
also thank you once again for all the lovely reviews

Tails was the first to react. The fox charged forwards, shrieking a war cry in the hopes to frighten the thing off. The closer he got, the more he realised it wasn't a monster.

Before he could even lay a finger on the shiny black fur of the other, a metal shoe kicked him hard in the abdomen, sending him flying backwards. Knuckles was next to see the rest of its body fade into view. It was clearly a hedgehog.

What happened next was a blur to everyone involved. The hedgehog let go of the girl, leaving both his arms free. Fingers jabbing at lightning speed, he struck her in seven places on her body, knocking an obscured blue object out of her clothes. As she fell towards the ground, a red-rimmed shoe spun around and kicked her towards the three children. She flew through the air and her whole body knocked all of them to the pavement. The hedgehog caught the object as Sonic, who was shaken off by all the sudden movements, hit the floor. The blue blur shot upright and opened his mouth to speak.

"Guys! Wait! This isn-"

The gloved hand of the unidentified adult wrapped around the young hedgehog's mouth, cutting off his words and rendering him speechless. Knuckles stood up from the unexpected attack as the other hedgehog backed further into the alleyway, taking a muffled, screaming Sonic with him. The blue blur flailed, pulled, and fought against the elder's touch, but the black furred arms wrapped around him, immobilizing him.

"Sonic!" Amy shouted, untangling herself from the mass of bodies on the ground.

That's when it happened.

A bright green light erupted from the two, making the rest shield their eyes against the painful illuminance. Beams of light shot through the environment, bringing other things not yet noticed into full view. Amy dashed towards the two, hoping to get to Sonic before it was too late. The light dissipated, and Sonic was gone, taking the adult with him. Amy fell to her knees. She was too late.

The girl laid on the ground, coughing and gasping for air. She curled tight around her abdomen, wincing in pain. Her wings folded tight against her body in an attempt to make herself seem small. She wheezed, clawing at her neck for air. Tails picked himself up and Knuckles crawled out from underneath him. The fox stepped to the bat girl's side and shook her. Bright cyan eyes snapped open, peering up at the fox for help.

"Take it easy! Just calm down! All you need to do is breathe." The fox soothed, placing his tiny paws on her shoulders. Knuckles appeared next to him. After a painfully long minute, the girl started to breathe relatively normally.

"Are you okay?" Knuckles asked, helping her sit upright. The girl coughed slightly.

"Yeah… I think I'm good for now." She managed to say, a slight bruise forming on her neck.

Amy sat on the pavement dumbfounded. She pulled out her hammer and in a cry of rage, struck the ground. Lines formed on the pavement as the hammer swung again and again, cracking the concrete further and further until Knuckles stepped in. He jogged over and softly took her arm, stopping her from swinging any more. Amy shrieked indecipherable words, turning to look at the worried echidna with flaming eyes. She raised her fist to hit him, only for it to fall harmlessly onto his chest. The girl burst into tears, in turn making Knuckles take her other arm. He led her over to the other two and sat her down, never speaking a word.

After a few silent minutes, Amy's weeping slowed and eventually stopped. With a sigh, Tails pulled out his cake. He took the fork out of the box and sunk it into the moist mint frosting. Knuckles retrieved his muffin. The two sat there, softly munching on their goods before a voice broke the solemn silence.

"I'm sorry for all this."

Amy sniffed and looked up. Knuckles and Tails stopped chewing.

"It's my fault this all happened, I never should have tried to take his gold rings."

The bat's ears flattened. She scooted closer to the trio with a sincerely apologetic look in her eyes. Knuckles frowned.

"Who said it was your fault?" He grumbled, slightly muffled by the muffin. The girl opened her mouth to speak.

"It all started way before you became involved, I think." Amy sniffed. She stood up from her place on the ground.

"I'm Amy, by the way." She smiled and extended her hand. The girl looked at it for a moment before taking it.

"Those two are Knuckles and Tails." Amy smiled, pointing at the two boys respectively. Knuckles grunted and Tails choked slightly on his cake.

"What's your name?" The hedgehog asked, looking deep into the bat's cyan eyes. She stared back for a brief moment before replying.

"I'm Rouge." She smiled, standing up herself. Rouge brushed some dust off of her overalls. Amy noticed a cute heart embroidered on the chest.

"Expert pickpocket and thief I suppose." She smiled. The bat extended her hand and held out Amy's headband.

"Woah! You're good!" Amy remarked, hands flying up to her head. She hadn't even noticed her headband was gone.

"Well, you have to be if you do it to survive." Rouge shrugged. She looked over at the two boys and noted their dejected looks.

"I should thank you for saving my life." She sighed. "Goodness knows what would have happened if you showed up a minute later."

"Well, that's what we do!" Amy giggled.

"Say… You're not Knuckles, Guardian of the Master Emerald are you?" Rouge squinted, stepping her way over to the echidna. Knuckles grew visibly uncomfortable.

"Uh...Yeah...I am…" He stammered.

"Don't mind him, he's a bit nervous around pretty girls." Amy giggled. Knuckles flinched and grew quite red in the face. Rouge smirked. She fanned her wings slightly and sashayed her way over to the pink hedgehog, making sure the Guardian saw how nicely the overalls draped around her developing form.

"That would make you guys the group that travels with Sonic the Hedgehog, right?" She asked, turning back around. Tails nodded.

"Yeah, that was Sonic with the other guy." He sighed. " We've been looking for him for a bit, he got himself in a bit of a pickle."

"Oh dear." She gasped. "Well, as part of my thanks, I will give you guys this." Rouge reached into her overalls. She reached around for a bit before a look of worry crossed her face. She patted herself, searching for an object she lost.

"Lose something?" Knuckles asked, eye ridge raising in concern.

"I had a Chaos Emerald." She huffed, patting herself down once again. After a few more seconds, her face grew solemn.

"Uh oh."

"What?" The younger three asked, standing up from their spots. Chaos Emeralds were no small potatoes.

"I think I know what happened to it."