Amy was sitting at her desk in her office, finishing the paperwork for the day for the Restoration. Having to deal with all the damage and casualties was both physically and mentally exhausting, but she finished her day with a smile, having managed to squeeze a day of rest for tomorrow into her busy schedule. She was looking forward to just laying around reading, eating good meals on regular intervals, and sleeping. Chaos, she was tired.

Once Amy had packed up her satchel, she turned towards the door of her office, ready to head home, but something stopped her. On the floor was an envelope, one that looked like it had been slid under the door. Amy sighed, thinking it was another request that would add onto an already long day, but to her surprise and delight, it wasn't.

Hey Ames,

Tails has been doing some sciency stuff lately, and he said that Little Planet is

going to appear over Never Lake again. So I was thinking that maybe the three of us could go down there and check it out? The last time you and I met there it didn't go so hot and we couldn't enjoy it. I know that was ten years ago, but uh, maybe, it can be like a celebration or sorts? For being friends for that long? I dunno. Tails and I are gonna be there all day long. Show up whenever you want if you come.

Sonic

P.S. We appreciate everything you've done, but stop working yourself to death.

Amy smiled. After she had gotten over her obsession with the blue blur, they had become really good friends. Yes, she still loved him, but now he was willing to spend more time with her by choice. Besides, between him being the world's hero and her running the Restoration, the two of them had enough on their hands without trying to work through complicated feelings. Maybe someday they would, but for now they'd stay good friends; nothing more, nothing less. But she was happy to see her friend's concern for her well-being, even if he wasn't exaggerating. Amy decided that she would be at Never Lake bright and early tomorrow morning in order to see her two friends. Amy stifled yawn as she walked out of HQ. Scratch that. She'd sleep in, then go meet her friends.

The next day was a hot one. The sun bore down on the city, reminding all of its inhabitants of how intense the heat could get during the summer. The streets were rather quiet, with most people choosing to stay indoors with air conditioning unless they had to brave the scorching outdoors. Amy knew that it would probably be cooler at the lake, so she didn't let the heat stop her. She took a late morning train to the stop closest to Never Lake, then trekked through the hills and forest. Amy noticed that the path and the forest were the exact same as when she had taken it years before, even though she was nowhere near the same person. Just as she had thought, the temperature cooled off away from the city, and Amy found that she no longer felt like she was being boiled alive. As she crested over the final hill and came into view of the lake, she finally saw Little Planet too. Although such a big satellite should be easily seen for miles, Little Planet could only be viewed from Never Lake when it was in orbit. At least, on the surface, that is. Amy didn't know if it was viewable from space. Just another odd quirk to an already mysterious planetoid.

But now that she was close to the lake, Amy could see the planetoid. And unfortunately, she could also see the chains between it and the surface, and a lack of Sonic and Tails. Amy immediately frowned, recalling how this happened ten years ago in the same way, the last time that Little Planet had been in orbit. And if she and Sonic remembered that about Little Planet, then Eggman had remembered too, and by the looks of it, sought to control the planetoid's strange powers again.

Amy ran up to the edge of the lake, squinting at a huge mass of metal across the water. She was too far away to make out any details, but she knew one thing for certain: whatever technology that was, it was either Tail's or Eggman's. If it was Tail's, she could meet up with him and Sonic to help free Little Planet. If it was Eggman's, then she'd smash it to pieces. She also guessed that if the tech was indeed Eggman's, then Sonic and Tails would probably already be on the planetoid, and she'd have to catch up. Whoever's it was, she still didn't know where to find the hedgehog and fox. It was at times like these where Amy really, really wished those two would just keep a communicator with them. She couldn't count the number of times they would run straight into danger, and she'd have no way of hearing from them until they showed up the next day in the city, joking about how Eggman failed yet again. She would stand there and yell at them, Tail's ears would droop guiltily, and Sonic would give her his trademark smirk, evidently not caring. She would give him another reprimand after today, even though Amy knew he wouldn't listen.

Amy ran around the lake to the other side, grateful for how much cooler it was than in the city. It took her a couple minutes to get across to where the tech was. Whereas Sonic and Tails would've been able to go straight across the lake because of their speed, Amy wasn't that fast, but by no means slow, either. Spending time with Sonic and Tails had inadvertently upped her skills in the speed department. She reached the mass of tech, which she now realized was smoking in some places and badly damaged. Amy took note of the lack of a logo of the egotistical doctor, but also the lack of a stamp by either Tails or the Resistance. She gingerly stepped into the main room of the tech.

Was it a spaceship?

Amy wasn't so certain. Sure, it had jets and an engine and an airlock, but there also seemed to be a pile of charred pillows and an empty vault that looked like it had been knocked over roughly. It looked more like a kid's room than anything. Then, Amy heard soft sobs coming from an adjacent room to the main one. She quietly followed the noise, not wanting to startle whoever was there. Glancing into the room, she saw a young girl wiping away her last tears and squeezing a singed pillow.

Though she knew she needed to find Sonic and Tails, Amy decided that it could wait. Maybe this had something to do with Eggman and Little Planet too. Maybe it didn't. But Amy knew from her experience in the Resistance that it was important to help the people she could. She took a deep breath, and stepped into view.

"Hey kid," Amy called softly, "are you alright?"