'Sup, people?? *notices eveyone glaring at her* ^_^;; Heh, I guess you're kinda upset about the ending of last chapter. Sorry about that, but it IS a dramatic/angsty fic. I'll have you know, by some of the reviews I got, I almost changed my ending. Almost....
None of the chars belong to me. Don't really care though, 'cuz I still do whatever the heck I want with 'em!! >:D God bless Fanfiction.
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You Never Know What You've Got..... Chapter 6 By Rebecky-mo the ECCHInda
"Boy, Sonic better be thankful for this..." Tails murmured to himself, pressing the elevator buttons. At the same time, he was holding a bag nearly as tall as he was, stocked to the brim with food. "These chili dogs are HEAVY!"
Next to him, Rouge was gripping a tray of drinks for her, her fox friend, and the hedgehog. "I'm sure he will be. Right now, I think he needs all the comfort food he can get. Now if only we can get him to the hospital cafeteria to eat them." The bat sighed, ignoring the horrid elevator music as it jerked into movement. "He really does care for her, doesn't he?" He didn't say anything, but simply nodded. Nothing more was mentioned as the elevator scaled up the hospital floors, finally stoping at the ICU.
When the doors opened, Tails and Rouge saw nothing but chaos in the hallway. Doctors were rushing down with some large equipment, rolling it towards the far corridor, and into....
"Amy's room!" both cried out. They both dropped what they were carrying, and began running full sprint down the hallway, only to be stopped by a nurse blocking thier way.
"Let us through, NOW!" Rouge growled, threatening the assistant. "We need to see Amy Rose!"
"I'm sorry, but there's too many in there right now. The doctor's are trying to revive her..."
Tails' eyes widened. "REVIVE?!?! What happened?!?!?!?!"
".........Her heart has stopped."
****
"Amy! AMY!!!" Sonic was screaming into her ear, partly out of the hope he could get her back, another part of pure panic...pure fear. Within seconds, the door to her room had burst open, and almost a dozen doctors entered, not even bothering with the antibiotic clothing and other precautions to keep the room virus-free.
One of the nurses pulled him away from Amy Rose, so the doctors could get to her. He offered little resistance. Everything was happening so fast...
"I'm not getting a pulse!" one voice called, the urgency obvious in his voice. The squeal of the heart monitor continuing in the background.
....too fast....
"Get the machine, NOW!"
....even for him....
Before the hedgehog could blink, the doctors had opened Amy's gown, placing the electrical paddles on both sides of her chest. Sonic's eyes sqeezed tight as someone called out the warning, not wanting to see her body as the electrical charge shot through it.
"Nothing!"
"Again!" This time, Sonic didn't have time to shut his eyes, and watched as Amy Rose's body jerked on the bed. He sunk down to his knees, shaking badly. It couldn't happen, not like this.
God, please... he prayed, the whining sound pounding through his mind, his heart.
"Again!!"
PLEASE God, don't take her from me!!
The whining stopped, and a small, almost insignificant bleep was heard. It seemed as though time had fully stopped all around the room. Finally, after what seemed like eons to the heroic 'hog, he heard a doctor call out that her heartbeat had returned.
****
Tails and Rouge watched as the doctors filed out of the room, tears flowing down thier cheeks. They had not been able to enter the room, but could hear the doctors speaking all through the attempt to bring Amy back. But they didn't expect to see amyone come out after them all, so they were more than a little surprised to see Sonic slowly walk out into the hall.
"Sonniku!!" The fox and bat raced down the hall towards him. Even from a few feet away, the hedgehog was almost oblivious to the two, until Tails hugged him tightly around the waist.
"Tails.."
"Are you ok, Sonic?" Rouge asked, placing her hand on his shoulder. She noticed how out of it he was, the shock and disbelief on his face..."What happened?"
"I was in there, talking to her. She...she said she loved me...." All of a sudden, Sonic felt exetremely boxed in. The surroundings too tight...he couldn't deal with this, not now. He pulled Tails away from him, surprising the young teen. "I have to go." he muttered to himself, walking towards the stairway.
"Sonic?..." Tails tried to get close to him again, but as soon as he touched his arm, Sonic bolted, top-speed, through the doors, down the steps, and out of sight. "Sonic!" He turned to Rouge, new tears in his eyes. "What's wrong with him?" he asked, his voice no higher than a soft breeze.
"I don't know, Tails...I don't even think he knows....."
****
Sonic the Hedgehog erupted out of the hospital, everything around him a total blur. The colors in buildings, people, plants, and just about everything else smeared into each other, undistinguishable to his eyes. Out of the city, away from the beach, past Tail's workshop-- and still he kept going, fast as he could, forcing himself to concentrate on what he was doing so he wouldn't harm himself.
Not to mention, with worrying about what was ahead of him, he was forced to keep his mind off Amy...he barely had time to register the tears in his eyes, before they were thrown away by the air rushing all around him, being miles away before they wet the ground.
Only when the sun was setting low into the horizon, only when he reached his spot did he stop. The golden-red glow of dusk shone on him, his blue quills seeming black in contrast to it's brightness. He looked around slowly from where he stood. This was his place, his sanctuary from the world of a hero. A small clearing in the very center of the evergreen woods, the scent of thickly-branched pine trees calming him. In the grassy opening, a small cabin stood, one Sonic had proudly built himself years ago. Nothing special inside, a bed, some towels and pots 'n pans to use when cooking over an open firepit a good 20 feet away from the door. And, barely a mile from here, a small, clean pond that reflected the dawn each morning, where he'd swim, fish, bathe, or just lay by it, thinking.
No one knew of this place, not even his closest friends. Whenever he found the stress of being Sonic THE Hegdehog, he left Station Square, giving the 'authorities' of the city notice that he wouldn't be there to save their butts, to forget, to be just Sonic, a normal hedgehog. To make sure of privacy, he'd even go as far as to turn off his cell phone so he wouldn't be disturbed by anyone.
He silently walked to the cottage, bleary eyed and legs aching. Once inside, Sonic didn't bother to eat, didn't even take off his gloves and shoes. He merely slumped into the worn in mattress, and fell into a deep, restless slumber.
****
Meanwhile.........
A crimson blur shot up the flight of stairs, breathing heavily, as if he had run a decathalon in mere hours. The short figure passed each floor quickly, sometimes skipping 2 or 3 steps hoping it would get him to his destination sooner, and cursing the slow, filled to the ceiling elevators.
Finally, the creature burst into his destination, and fell back against the wall to regain his breath, knees feeling like rubber as they buckled under his weight.
"Knuckles!!!" The sound of his name made the echinda look up and across the hallway, seeing Tails rushing over towards him. He replaced his worn leather hat atop his head, and stood carefully, walking towards him. The young kitsune's face was one of pure shock. The guardian of the island wasn't supposed to get back for at least 3 more days. "What're you doing back here?!"
His face showed deep worry and concern, frowning slightly, eyebrows knotted up above clear violet eyes. "When I found out what happened this morning with Amy Rose, I couldn't just stick on the island kid. Didn't feel right to me...."
"How'd you find out about that? Did Sonic call you?"
Just then, another voice broke into the conversation. "Actually, it was me Tails." Knuckles' head rose up to see Rouge mere feet away. "I called him while you were trying to calm down. Never figured he'd get here this soon though...." The corner of the guardian's mouth curled up into a smile. A sad one, but a smile nonetheless
"Hey Batgirl. Thanks for giving me the news. I owe ya..." Despite the two treasure hunters resloving thier differences, they still liked to razz each other a bit.
"No problem, 'Creep'." Rouge smirked back.
For a moment the two kept thier gaze on the other, until Knux coughed and tugged his hat down slightly, hiding his blush under it. "So, uhhh....where's Sonic?" He looked around for his old friend, seeing no trace of him.
Tails sighed quietly, "He's--not here."
"WHAT?!?! Why the HELL not?!"
Rouge frowned slightly. "Knuckles, Sonic was in the room when Amy--well, you know. I think the whole thing finally got too much for him, and raced off, saying he needed to be on his own." Immediate guilt washed over the echinda's face, kicking himself for getting pissed at himnot being here right now.
In the room. He was there, watching her stop breathing, watching the doctors try to....Damn. "Have you heard from him yet?"
"Not a word, but I bet he'll call once he's feeling better." Tails was trying to sound optimistic, but even he wasn't sure.
Where are you, Sonic?
****
Emerald greens eyes stared deep into the dark waters of Station Square harbour, filled with pain, regret, self-loathing. A single golden ring in his hands. Rouge had returned it to him once they'd landed back on the planet, saying that it would be more meaningful to him than her. If only I'd been stronger, if only I'd been faster, if only..... the scene played over and over in his head, watching the silvery hedgehog push him out of the way, taking the full brunt himself.
If only I could have saved you....
He didn't hear the footsteps coming down the rickety wood dock, some of the boards cracking and groaning beneath the weight. Didn't feel the presence of another as they stood behind him. Only when he noticed the pink and red relection in the water did he take notice.
"Sonniku?" Amy Rose sat down next to him, making sure to tuck her dress beneath her. "Are you ok?" The hedgehog had to admit, he was surprised. No squealing his name? No glomping him by the waist so tight, his face would change to the shade of his fur? Was this really his Amy? His confusing thoughts ended when he felt her gloved hand over his, and looked over to her, seeing the deep concern etched onto her young face.
"He understood me Amy. I understood him too. We were the same, we realized there was more than one of us. That we weren't the only weirdo that stood out amoung the normal people. And I failed...the one damn thing I can do well is help people, and I couldn't help him." He closed his eyes tightly, sensing the tears that were threatening his image.
The young girl sighed, then spoke, quietly. "You're right Sonic, he did understand you. Which is exactly why he protected you. He saw the goodness inside of you, knew how important you were, to Tails, Knux, the city.....and me." she whispered the last words, barely audible. "The only thing different about you is how big your heart is, and that you choose to act, to change things. You love everything, everyone, so much, far too much to try and give it all to one person. I understand you now too, Sonic Hedgehog....."
Sonic's eyes blinked open after that, looking at her in disbelief. "Amy...I...." She placed a finger over his lips, and wiped away the tears that he had lost the battle against.
"Shhh..." She hugged him tightly, not even registering the akward angle needed to do so from where they were sitting, and smiled slightly as Sonic pulled her tighter to him, eyes closed again. "Saving your life was Shadows gift to us, to our home. Don't let his final act be in vain Sonic. Please...."
"Amy Rose....thank you." Sonic opened his eyes again, expecting to see boats on water, the sun setting ahead. But none of it was there, no dock, no ocean, no Amy. Now, he was in space, surrounded in a blanket of stars, planets, clusters, and inky blackness. His planet was down below him, larger than anything he'd seen before. Rather than his look of years past, he now sported his new look of ringed gloves, and dark blue streaks running through his hair. What....?
"Interesting new look, Sonic. It works on you."
No way. Can't be...! The cobalt hedgehog's emerald eyes went wide, and he spun around in his place, towards the voice. His jaw dropped slighty at just what, or WHO, he saw there. Midnight black fur, only lightened by the streaks of red through his quills, the blood-red eyes, and white tuft of fur just above his chest........
"SHADOW?!?!?!"
****
Rouge leaned up against a pillar near the hospitals entrance, taking another drag of her cigarette. The doctor's had cleared them out again, albeit they let them stay longer than the other guests. Tails, after alot of arguing (that kitsune can be so stubborn at times!) had left to go home and get some rest. She watched Knuckles come out of the main doors of the centre, trying to get ahold of Sonic through his cell phone, and at home. "Any luck?" A sigh.
"Not a damn thing. Must've turned the cell off when he left, and I let it ring at his place at LEAST 13 times...You know those things are gonna kill you, right?" The echinda frowned slightly, eyeing the smoke in her hand.
The bat chuckled slightly. "Red, considering our line of work, if I live long enough to get killed by these things, I'll be pretty damn lucky." He smirked at her.
"Good point. So, heading back to that mansion you call an apartment?"
"Nah, after today, I need a drink....or three. You?"
"Hmm, think I'll head over and hang out at Sonic's, who.....doesn't have an extra key to the place! God Dammit...." Knux rubbed the bridge of his nose, cursing himself for not remembering this sooner. Could always rent a room at that motel...
Rouge snuffed out her cigarette. "Stay with me at my place."
"Say WHAT?!" Knuckles violet eyes widened, cheeks flaring at her proposal, despite his attempt to stop it. He HATED how he got around women, especially Rouge, because he KNEW she did stuff to make him blush on purpose. "You mean sleep, in your apartment?" His voice was a bit higher than he'd liked it to be, and went redder as he saw the bat smirk.
"Relax, creep. I didn't mean it like that." At least, not unless you wanted it to mean that. We'll have to see later she mused, chuckling evilly to herself. "I have an extra guest room you can use. All the comforts of a hotel, none of the price." The guardian frowned, torn between using all the cash he'd brought for a private room, or having a free stay, and having to deal with, with HER, in the next room, on a bed......Dammit Knux, knock it off! That's NOT helping!!!
Finally, he muttered "Fine. I guess it wouldn't kill me to hang out with a jewel psycho like you for a night." At least, I hope not.
"Sounds good to me. Though I still wanna hit the bar, and I think you're gonna need a few drinks too." Might make you forget about your damn girl phobia
"Why not?" Might make me forget about my damn girl phobia
The two furries walked down the street towards the clubs and bars, not speaking much, thoughts wrapped around later on more than the present.....
TO BE CONTINUED....
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I AM SO SORRY!! I never imagined college life would take THIS much out of my writing. Thankfully, I managed to get all assignments done before today, so I was able to do this chapter. I learned my lesson, but from now on, I make no promises on how soon or late I'll be getting the chapters up, cuz my schedule is totally psycho at the moment. If it makes you feel better, I missed having time to write....I'm getting rather emotionally attached to this story.
How didja like the little Knuckles/Rouge moments in this chapter? I'm not a big Rouge fan, but I couldn't resist putting Knux through a little torture with her. >:D
Also, I'd like to thank all the people who have taken thier time to review my story, especially Sonic writers whose work I've admired, and give such great compliments about my work. They mean a great deal to me. *sniffs* I so happy.....^_^
Until next chapter,
L-8-R!!
Rebecky-mo
PS---- CENSORSHIP SUCKS! Bring back NC-17 fiction to FF.net!!! (Sorry, had to say my piece) :P