Sonic X: Season 3: Shuffle Edition
Midgame (Prelude)
"...Focus...Focus...Focus..." Amy muttered quietly with a little frown as she concentrated onto the board game while rubbing her hands together.
"What are we doing, Amy?" Cosmo asked calmly in confusion as she rubbed her hands too while also staring down at the board game. She and Amy are sitting on their knees at the Blue Typhoon's bridge.
"We are focusing. That's what we are doing," Amy answered calmly with a little smile as she kept staring at the board game.
"I can see that, but what will that accomplish? You still have to take your turn, Amy. The game won't continue if you're just sitting there focusing," Cosmo replied calmly in confusion as she looked at Amy while frowning a little.
"You don't understand, Cosmo. We're basically channeling our inner good luck!" Amy replied calmly yet brightly with a smile as she looked at Cosmo.
"Wait...Huh?" Cosmo muttered in confusion as she looked bewildered.
"Yeah, you heard me. If we concentrate onto the game, then we'll channel our own good luck and have it surge through our rolls!" Amy explained calmly with a bright smile.
"And...are you sure that it will work?" Cosmo asked calmly in confusion as she looked skeptical.
"Of course, it will work! It happens every time I do this!" Amy exclaimed confidently yet brightly with a proud smile and with a nod.
"Don't lie, Amy. It only works about 15% of the time, and that's only because of coincidence," Tails spoke calmly with an annoyed look on his face as he sat in his seat while staring at Amy and Cosmo.
"No, it's not! It does work! I just keep getting distracted by you guys whenever I do it!" Amy exclaimed back in irritation with a deep frown and with furrowed eyebrows as she looked back at Tails.
"Well, that's because we think it's silly for you to do that before making your move on a game," Tails replied calmly with a little frown and with a shrug.
"Well, Cream doesn't think so! Right, Cream?" Amy replied with a solemn frown as she stared at Tails before at Cream.
"Oh! Uh...That's right, Miss Amy. Tails, you should let Miss Amy do whatever she wants. If she believes that it will work, then we should let her do it. No questions asked," Cream replied calmly yet meekly with a little smile as she stared at Amy before at Tails while sitting in her seat.
"Hey, I'm not going to stop Amy from doing that. I just think that it's silly. There's no scientific evidence that proves that we contain luck within our bodies. It's all circumstantial," Tails replied calmly with a frown and a shrug as he stared at Cream.
"I agree with Tails, Cream. As I recall, Amy believes in clairvoyance more than anyone else here. Just because it's a popular clairvoyant technique, that doesn't mean it's scientific. It's just pseudoscience," Chris spoke calmly with a frown as he stared at Cream while sitting in his seat.
"But I believe in Miss Amy! If she believes that can do it, then she will make it do it!" Cream exclaimed brightly with a determined look on her face as she had her fists up.
"Yeah! Shows what you know, old man! You never tried it! So, you have no say in the matter!" Amy exclaimed with a frown as she looked at Chris and pointed at him.
What did I do to deserve this? Sigh...Chris thought in exhaustion as he sighed and face-palmed himself.
"Amy, aren't you being a little too hard on Chr-?" Tails asked calmly with a frown as he quirked an eyebrow at her.
"Same goes for you, Tails! You hadn't tried it either! Hmph!" Amy exclaimed with a frown as she pointed at Tails before turning around and crossing her arms in frustration.
Sigh...Clairvoyants and scientists...They get along as well as oil and water...Tails thought in exhaustion as well as he sighed and shook his head while frowning. Cosmo smiled sympathetically at Chris and Tails. She understood how frustrating it is to convince someone who believes in one thing to believe in another. She certainly had a hard time convincing her sister that she herself is incapable of protecting the universe. However, every time she says that to her, she'll simply reply with, "But you are capable, Cosmo. Mother had chosen you after all".
Ugh...I still don't think that I am...Why did Galaxina always tell me that I am capable? It's not the truth. How can she see me as a hero? I'm...I'm just not...Cosmo brooded with a frown as she looked down at the board game again.
"Amy..." Cosmo muttered quietly with a frown.
"Huh? What is it, Cosmo?" Amy asked curiously with a frown as she stared at Cosmo while uncrossing her arms.
"...Let's just...keep focusing on the game..." Cosmo muttered quietly with a frown as she held her hands together again.
"...Yeah, I agree, Cosmo. Let's..." Amy replied calmly with a sympathetic smile as stared at Cosmo while holding her hands together. Maybe it's best if we focus onto the game for now. I think that Cosmo needs some time to think for herself...Amy pondered in concern and in sympathy as she looked down at the board game while rubbing her hands again. She and Cosmo kept rubbing their hands together while quietly staring onto the board game.
"...Focusing...Focusing...Come to me, good luck...I need you right now..." Amy muttered quietly with a little frown as she concentrated at the board game.
"..." Cosmo was silent while rubbing her hands and frowning a little. ...You know...I could use some good luck too...Focus...Focus...Please give me some good luck...Please...Cosmo pondered calmly with a frown as she kept rubbing her hands together. The girls concentrated onto the board game for a few more minutes until Amy beamed as she exclaimed, "Okay! Now's the time to make my roll!".
Cosmo was slightly startled when Amy exclaimed that so suddenly, but she nodded to her and looked down at the game again. I hope this works...Scientific or not, I'll take anything at this point...I just want my friends to win...Cosmo pondered calmly with a frown as she hoped that Amy will get lucky. As Amy was about to press the red button, Sonic then sped into the bridge and stood beside Amy and Cosmo while looking down at them.
"Amy, are you done yet?" Sonic asked calmly yet tiredly as he looked impatient while having a hand on his hip.
"Ack! Sonic!" Amy exclaimed in shock as she looked startled. Unfortunately for her, she had accidently pushed the red button when Sonic startled her. The roulette wheel started to spin again after Amy pressed the button.
"Hey, look! You've finally made your move! Took you long enough, Amy. But then again, you do love relying on clairvoyance as a way to stall for time," Sonic replied calmly yet brightly with a grin before he looked smug as he lowered his eyelids halfway down.
"I was not stalling! I needed my absolute concentration into doing this technique!" Amy exclaimed in annoyance as she frowned a lot while looking up at Sonic. Cosmo stared up at Sonic too while staying quiet.
"...Amy...It does not work..." Sonic replied calmly in annoyance as he frowned a little at her.
"Says you! You hadn't even tried it!" Amy exclaimed back in annoyance as she crossed her arms and pouted at Sonic.
"Well, yeah, because it takes too long! You and I both know that I'm not the waiting type," Sonic replied in annoyance as he frowned and shrugged at Amy.
Amy lowered her eyelids halfway at Sonic and frowned in annoyance as she cheekily replied, "Yes, I do know that, Sonic. But if that's the case, then how come you don't want to marry me or even date me? Hmmm?".
"What?! Hey! Why are you bringing dating and marriage into this?!" Sonic exclaimed in shock and in embarrassment as flinched a bit back. His eyes went wide, and his mouth gaped widely as he blushed a lot at this. I was NOT prepared to answer this when I had woken up this morning! Why is Amy so persistent with this? Why? Sonic brooded with a frown as he looked shocked and embarrassed.
"Because just like you, Sonic, I'm not the waiting type. So...how come you love to stall for time then when you could've started dating me already? Hmmm? That's what I want to know!" Amy replied in annoyance as she frowned deeply at Sonic.
"Well...Uhh...That's...That's a...different type of waiting...Y-Yeah..." Sonic answered awkwardly with a frown as he blushed a lot while scratching the back of his head. Cosmo stared at Sonic in sympathy while staying quiet. Poor Sonic...It seems that there is one thing that he doesn't go fast for...And that is relationships...And...I don't blame him...I don't want to rush things with Tails either...Although...Cosmo brooded calmly with a frown as she stared at Sonic before looking at Tails. She can see Tails typing into the computer again while ignoring Sonic and Amy bickering. Cosmo frowned a bit further as she last brooded while staring at Tails.
...I think that we are going a bit too fast...
"Sonic! You're just imposs-!" Amy yelled in irritation as she gritted her teeth at Sonic.
KACHING!
"Ah! Oh! My turn ended!" Amy exclaimed in surprise as she stared back at the board game. Cosmo was also surprised as she stopped looking at Tails and looked at the board game as well.
Oh, thank goodness! A miracle had arrived! Sonic thought in relief as he sighed a bit while wiping his head. However, he soon cringed again when he heard Amy yelling again.
"What?! 'A three'?! How did I roll 'a three'?! I had focused hard onto the game! Unless...Sonic! You distracted me again when you had showed up! This is all your fault!" Amy yelled in frustration as she frowned a lot at the board game before glaring at Sonic and pointed at him.
"Hey! How's this my fault?! It's just an unlucky roll! Besides, a three is better than a one and a two! Why are you upset at this?!" Sonic exclaimed in exasperation as he frowned a lot and shrugged again in annoyance.
"Oh...I don't know...Maybe it's because somebody around here gets high rolls more frequently than others! ...And I wonder who that might be..." Amy replied sarcastically as she frowned deeply while lowering her eyelids at Sonic in annoyance.
"...Yeah, I do get high rolls, but I wasn't the one who had his turn skipped. And look! Because of that, you had caught up to me. See?" Sonic replied calmly with a frown while rolling his eyes a little before he pointed at the board game for emphasis.
"Sonic is right, Amy. You're on space 39 right now. You're right behind Sonic," Cosmo added gently with a little frown and a nod as she stared at Amy before at the board game again.
"Huh?! Really?! So, I'm not that far behind then?!" Amy exclaimed in shock as she stared at the board game and saw that her pink spaceship is right behind Sonic's blue spaceship.
"That's right, Amy. You're in second place now," Cosmo replied calmly with a little smile and a nod.
"Yeah! See? It's not all that bad. Sometimes, you just need to look at the bright side of things once in a while. Even when it's bad, there are some good things within it," Sonic added calmly yet brightly with a smile and a nod. Cosmo smiled warmly at Sonic as she agreed with his statement. Especially since Tails was the one who had taught it to me...Cosmo thought calmly yet fondly with a warm smile as she stared at Sonic before at Amy again.
"Well...I guess that's true...But it still stinks that I got a low roll when I could have gotten a higher roll...You know...like the ones that you-" Amy replied calmly with a smile as she stared at Sonic before she frowned again in disappointment and in annoyance.
"Yeah, yeah. I know. Just like the ones that I get frequently. Look, Amy. Should you really complain that I'm getting high rolls even though it's helping us get closer into finishing the game? Should you?" Sonic replied calmly in annoyance as frowned a bit while waving his hand a bit before putting his hands on his hips.
Amy was about to say something before she closed her mouth when she realized that Sonic was right. She then frowned sadly as she replied calmly," You're...You're right, Sonic. I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I yelled at you and blamed you for messing up my turn. I guess that even when we're cooperating as a team, I still feel a little competitive at times".
"Hey, it's alright, Amy. I forgive you. I understand how you feel as well. I also get competitive when working together as a team. You should know that by now on how I compete with Knuckles occasionally," Sonic replied calmly with a gentle smile and a nod.
"Yeah, I figured. I guess that we're not too different after all, huh? Hehehe!" Amy replied calmly yet brightly with a smile and a giggle.
"Heh...I...I guess not..." Sonic replied calmly yet awkwardly with a sheepish smile and a blush as he looked away from Amy while scratching his cheek. I suppose that we do have some things in common. We're both impatient, competitive, optimistic, and adventurous...And that's about it...Everything else about us is like night and day...Sonic pondered calmly with a sheepish smile as he blushed a bit.
"I'm glad that you two had made up and stopped fighting. I was...honestly worried for a while there," Cosmo commented calmly with a gentle smile as she stared at Sonic and Amy with her hands together.
"Huh? ...Oh...Uh, sorry, Cosmo. We didn't mean to make you worry," Sonic replied calmly yet awkwardly with a sheepish smile while staring at Cosmo as a sweat drop fell from his head.
"Yeah, I'm sorry, Cosmo. We just got into a little spat. You know...Hehehe...Just like a married couple would do," Amy replied calmly with a smile and a giggle as she looked a bit guilty before looking adoring when she looked at Sonic again. Sonic just bit his lip to stop himself from making Amy angry again with his comments. Just...Just take the comment, Sonic. Don't say anything that will tick Amy off. You don't want to get bonked today. Sonic pondered calmly with a frown as he looked at Amy sheepishly.
"R-Really? That's...That's what married couples do? They get into...fights?" Cosmo asked calmly yet slowly as she frowned a lot and looked down in disappointment. Amy frowned sadly when she saw that her comment had made Cosmo sad. Sonic also stared at Cosmo while looking sad and concerned.
Amy then smiled a little in sympathy as she consoled gently, "Cosmo...It's not always about fighting. Sure, couples do get into a lot of arguments, but in the end, they do want to get along because they care about each other. They just want things to work out".
"But what if...what if things don't work out? What if...they'll never get along and make peace with each other again? What will happen then?" Cosmo asked worriedly in sadness as she frowned deeper.
"Ah...Oh...Oh, Cosmo...It's...umm..." Amy muttered awkwardly yet quietly with a sad frown as she looked sympathetic towards Cosmo. Sonic also shared Amy's sentiments as he looked sad as well.
"...I've...I've been told many times by my people that my mother...She...Ummm..." Cosmo muttered softly yet slowly with a sad frown on her face as she stared at the board game.
"Huh? What about your mother?" Sonic asked in concern as his eyebrows were raised in surprise. Amy looked surprised as well as she stared curiously at Cosmo. Cosmo did try to utter some words, but she closed her mouth instead and closed her eyes.
"...N-Never mind...I...I changed my mind...I...I don't want to talk about it..." Cosmo muttered quietly in sadness as she grimaced while having her eyes closed. Sonic and Amy looked surprised at this reaction but soon frowned in sympathy for Cosmo as they realized that it was a more sensitive topic than they thought.
Poor Cosmo. I wish that I can lift her spirits up with some optimistic, encouraging words, but...it seems that this isn't one of those times. Even I can't deny the sad reality of what marriages could end up in. It's hard to cheer someone up and help them to be positive if they believe that marriages could go horribly wrong in the end, and it seems that...Cosmo is one of those people who believe that...Sonic and Amy brooded at the same time with sad, solemn looks on their faces as they stared at Cosmo.
"...Hmmm...Maybe it would be best if I...read my card now..." Amy muttered awkwardly yet slowly with a sad frown as she looked down at the board game and took out the card from its slot.
"...Yeah...Good idea, Amy..." Sonic muttered awkwardly yet slowly too with a sad frown as he looked away from Cosmo and Amy while having his arms behind his head.
"..." Cosmo was silent as she still looked sad as she grimaced while opening her eyes halfway. ...Sigh...Maybe...Maybe I should talk to Tails about this...Cosmo brooded sadly with a grimace. Speaking of Tails, he just stared sadly at Cosmo since he had overheard what she, Sonic, and Amy were talking about. He can't help but feel sympathetic for Cosmo since he didn't know that she feels pessimistic about marriage in general.
...You know...I don't think I even know what Cosmo's family was like...Then again...she doesn't talk about her past that much. The Metarex ship we've destroyed a while ago is evidence that her past is rather horrible and heartbreaking...Hmm...Maybe it would be best if we did talk about that at some point in the future...It would probably help her...express herself some more and let herself be vulnerable towards me...If she does that, then she'll be able to trust me even more and feel more comfortable with me...And...we'll be even closer than before...Tails pondered calmly with a sympathetic frown before he smiled a little at the end as he looked hopeful.
Meanwhile, Amy just started reading her card.
"Okay then...Here we go...'Come one, come all. A race for the treasure. Will you all work together? Or is greed your only measure?'" Amy said calmly with a frown before she read the card.
"Huh? 'A treasure'? You don't think that it's referring to the Chaos Emeralds, do you?" Sonic asked curiously in surprise as he looked back at Amy with an intrigued look on his face.
"Well, it might be. I mean. What other treasure would it be referring to? Gold? Diamonds? I'm sure that the Metarex knows that we won't seek after those kinds of treasures since the Chaos Emeralds are our number one priority right now. We need to find the other two so that we can force Dr. Eggman to give up his emeralds," Amy replied calmly yet solemnly with a frown as she looked up at Sonic.
"Yeah, that's very true. But...there is one thing that bothers me..." Sonic replied calmly with a frown as he scratched his chin in thought.
"What's that?" Amy asked curiously with a surprised look on her face.
"Yeah...What is it, Sonic? What's on your mind?" Cosmo asked curiously with a concerned look on her face as she stared at Sonic too.
"Ah! O-Oh...Cosmo...I..." Sonic and Amy muttered awkwardly at the same time as they looked at Cosmo with surprised faces.
"It's okay, guys. I'm feeling a bit better. Just...please continue," Cosmo replied calmly with a little frown as she stared at Sonic and Amy and had nodded to them. Sonic and Amy stared at Cosmo awkwardly for a few moments before looking at each other. They looked a bit concerned at first, but they nodded their heads in understanding since they realized that Cosmo wants to move on from that touchy subject.
"Uhh...Okay, Cosmo. I'll continue. Anyways, I'm just wondering what that card means when it says, 'Will you all work together?'. Why would that card say that? We are going to work together and finish playing the board game together as a team. It just feels pointless that the game would try to make us doubt our cooperative abilities when we're this far into the game. So...why would the game try to get us to doubt each other like this?" Sonic replied calmly with a frown as he looked at Cosmo before looking at Amy while being confused.
"I don't know. Maybe it's a test of trust. We're certainly not going to be greedy here and betray each other. That's something only Eggman would do...W-Wait a moment...'Will you all work together?'...'All'?...Oh, please no...Tell me that I'm wrong about this..." Amy replied calmly with a frown and a shrug before she looked worried as she gripped her head with her left hand.
"Huh? What's wrong, Amy? Is something the matter?" Sonic asked curiously as he looked concerned when he saw Amy looking worried.
"Sonic...I think that we're not going to be the only ones racing for the treasure. We're missing a competitor here...Or should I say...competitors..." Amy muttered calmly yet tiredly with a worried frown on her face as she stared at Sonic with lowered eyelids.
"...'Competitors'? What are you...Oh...Oh nooo! Please! No! You can't be serious!" Sonic muttered in confusion before he looked shocked and annoyed as he exclaimed in exasperation. He clutched his head with his hands and cringed as he looked annoyed.
"What? What's wrong, guys? What are you two thinking about?" Cosmo asked in concern as she stared at Sonic and Amy in worry. Sonic and Amy looked at each other with annoyed looks on their faces before looking at Cosmo as they muttered tiredly in unison.
"...Eggman...".
And I'm going to stop here. Sorry for making this chapter too short. Let's just say I have a bit of a writer's block for writing this episode and it's probably going to be that way for the other chapters. Don't worry. I still know what I want to write about. It's just the journey into getting there is more difficult than the destination. Which is why I kind of made more progress into writing my other story instead of this one despite my earlier promises. Sorry about that. I didn't really plan that. Also, it might take just a little more time into writing future chapters since I'm finishing my final college classes. Hey, schoolwork won't finish itself, you know. Hopefully, you guys will understand and still support this story despite its delays. I do thank you so much for supporting this story and for being patient. With that out of the way, let's finally get into part one of the Midgame! See you all next chapter!