CHAPTER THREE
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Cream leaned on a tall wooden crate, catching her breath. Amy collasped on the floor beside her.

"Think we lost him?" Cream peered around.

"I don't know," Amy threw her arms up, "What are we gonna do?"

"You're gonna give yourselves up to us!" A voice squawked.

They looked up and found none other than the S.S.S.S.S. Squad staring them down.

"No way!" Cream grabbed Amy and they continued running.

Grounder started to pursue them, "Hey, come back her-"

"Wait a minute," Scratch held him back, "I've got an idea on how to trap them!"

Scratch grabbed a fishing net and stepped up on a box of crates. Cream and Amy seemed confused.

Cream asked, "Where did they go?" as she picked up the chao egg that contained Cheese.

Amy yelled, "Let's try to get the boys."

Cream said, "But, won't we get caught?"

Amy reminded, "That's why we came here!" When Scratch tossed the net, the girls had already ran away.

Scratch yelled, "Drat!"

Grounder asked, "Hey, where are the kids in the playpen?" The playpen was broken, and empty. Amy and Cream had already broken in and taken them.

Scratch moaned, "They were taken away. We have to follow them!"

***

Meanwhile, on a dirt road on a cool evening, Amy and Cream were trekking on the lonely path with the now-baby Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles inside their cloaks, along with the Chao Egg that was Cheese.

Amy said, "I'm hungry. And I guess they are too."

Cream asked, "What's this place?" The two women eyed a classical-Japanese-style house. The door to the genkan was wide open. A young woman in a yukata was inside of the genkan, reading a book. Her geta were against the step to the house proper, while the woman was wearing slippers.

Amy suggested, "Maybe we should shelter in here for the night. It's prolly a ryokan."

Cream yelled, "An inn!"

Amy yelled, "Hello there!"

The woman turned around and asked, "You guys need to stay here?"

"Yes, Miss," Cream started, "But unfortunately I don't think we have enough money, you see we have-" Baby Tails suddenly wiggled his head out of her cloak and gawked at his new surroundings. He knocked Cheese's egg out of her hands. Amy rushed to catch it, keeping hold of Sonic and Knuckles with one arm. Luckily, she saved it just in time, and then handed it carefully back to Cream.

"Oh! Your children are so cute!" the young woman exclaimed as she set down her book and came to the doorway, "I could never turn away such sweet angels. I'm sure we can work something out."

Amy and Cream looked at each other and smiled. They bowed to her, "Thank you very much!"

"Well, c'mon inside now!" she ushered them through the doorway, "We don't want them to catch a cold."

The lady took hold of the babies, as the girls deposited their shoes on the small wooden rack by the door, and donned some warm house slippers. She then handed the babies back to them, "My name is Shoko," she bowed, "And I would like to welcome you to my humble ryokan. I know it's not much, but I'm proud of it."

Amy and Cream returned the bow, "Oh, I love it!" Amy said, gawking at the beautiful pieces of pottery and tapestry in the hallway.

Shoko led them into the main room, and the girls sat down at a short table. Shoko brought in a couple of blankets. Amy and Cream wrapped the babies up and set them on their laps, trying to get them to fall asleep.

"So, tell me," Shoko asked, "What are you city dwellers doing way out here at night with your children?"

Amy said, "We are on the run from someone. Would it be nice if I watched guard in the genkan?"

Shoko asked, "From whom?"

"Eggman."

"Eggman... Yea, sure!" Amy walked out of the room and sat down in the genkan.

Outside of the Inn, Scratch and Grounder were pouring out a can of soda.

Grounder said, "So this is where you tracked them down!" Scratch threw the binoculars back into Grounder's compartment.

Scratch said, "I think we should smoke 'em out!"

Grounder yelled, "Yea, good idea!" Scratch filled the can with petroleum, before he stuck a wick inside. He proceeded to light the wick and toss it into the foyer (the english name for a Genkan).

Grounder yelled, "Wooohooooo!" However, the can was tossed back out, and it fell into a puddle, where it ebbed out. Amy proceeded to waltz out of the genkan in her shoes.

Amy yelled, "You two were trying to set this place on fire so we would get hurt, werent you? Now let's play a game of janken to see if you two can proceed inside!"
Grounder asked, "What's janken?"

Amy yelled, "Rock-Paper-Scissors! Let's play!" Scratch and Amy held their hands out, playing the game that is the equivalent of a coin toss.
They both yelled, "Jan... ken... Bon!" Amy came out with paper and Scratch came out with a rock.

Amy yelled, "Paper wins! I win!"

Scratch yelled, "Why you!" Amy proceeded to knock them down with her mallet, before knocking them away from view. Amy slid the door shut, and proceeded back inside.

Once inside, Shoko presented the girls with a platter of nigrimeshi, those rice balls rapped in a sheet of nori.

Shoko asked, "What happened out there?"

Amy replied, "Nothing really did, other than that I owned them."

"So, why is Eggman after you?"

"I happen to be a friend of Sonic the Hedgehog. Eggman hates me."

"Isn't that nice knowing you have a hero you can rely on?"