Chapter 5

"Oh, you got a fire and it's burning in the rain

Thought that it went out, but it's burning just the same

And you don't look back, not for anything

Cause if you love someone, you love them all the same

If you love someone, you love them all the same" -The Fray; Heartbeat

Inhale through the nose, exhale through the mouth. In through the nose, out through the mouth. Amy repeated that mantra in her head as she continued to take deep, lung filling breaths. She sat with her legs crossed on the floor in front of her bed, eyes closed, focused on her breathing. It was eight in the morning. She had already done her morning jog and workout routine, and eaten breakfast. Now, it was time for meditation. The meditation though, was highly needed this morning because today was the day of her welcome home party that Cream was throwing her. Today, she would see her friends again. Because today, she would finally see Sonic the Hedgehog face to face after fours years. Amy breathed in deeply and exhaled.

These last four years had passed so slowly for Amy. They should have flown by, really. She had been busy for all of them- training, learning, meditating. She had finally found herself; found the Amy Rose without Sonic. The one who could take care of herself. The one who could actually stand her own in a battle and not be labeled as the weak link. Amy smiled to herself. She wouldn't be getting captured anymore; no one would have to save her. Instead, she could return the favor. Finally. Amy finished her daily meditation, stood up and stretched, then walked to her bathroom to start the shower.

No rescue would be needed by Sonic anymore. Sonic... His name brought tingles to her spine and her lips started a slow smile. Amy stepped into the shower and began washing herself. She had missed him. Missed him terribly. And she still loved him. He had given her the time, the space she had wanted. He hadn't come after her. For that she was forever grateful and it made her love him even more. Amy felt horrible that she had only made one phone call to him three years ago. Everything else had just taken up her time. At least he knew that she had been alright. But now she could make up for it. Amy rinsed herself off, turned off the shower, got out and began to dry herself. How would Sonic deal with her being back? She certainly wasn't the same girl she had been when she left.

He was probably just the same old Sonic though, she thought. As free as the wind and just as un-tameable. Maybe he hadn't even missed her...She kept thinking back to that day, the day she told him she was leaving. There had been emotion there hidden in his eyes. No, he had missed her, or at least she would dare to think that, to hope. Well, she was about to find out anyway. Amy dressed in dark wash jeans, strapping her throwing knives on her calves over her jeans before putting on her knee high black boots. She stuck her pistol on her left side hip, hidden underneath the waist band of her jeans and then threw on her loose fitting dark green blouse. She grabbed her G.U.N. badge and put it in her purse.

Amy looked at herself in the mirror. Physically, she was very different. She had grown a few inches taller and her quills were much longer- layered and almost midway down her back. And she had switched her hair up even more with side swept bangs. Training at G.U.N. academy had strengthened her up; she was now very lean and fit. When she moved, you could see her muscles move subtly underneath her skin. The only thing that anyone would really recognize her by were her eyes. They were still a vibrant jade green and sparkled with a glint that said anything was possible. And anything was possible. Amy was an independent woman who could definitely take care of herself now, and others if needed. And now that she had found who she could be without Sonic, she was ready to have Sonic back in her life.

"Now what would Amy like?" Sonic said aloud to himself while browsing the shops by the street. He would see Amy Rose for the first time today in four years and he wanted to make the best impression he could muster. He wanted to show her in a way she would understand that he loved her. That he had always loved her. Even in the times he hadn't understood it himself. He already planned on asking her on a date. It was funny, she had been the one chasing him and now he was the one chasing her. She deserved being the mouse and not the cat for once. And he would gladly switch her roles. But, Sonic was going to do this the right way and court her, for as long as she wanted. One hundred dates and then she'd be his girlfriend? Fine. One million dates til she agreed? He'd do it. Whatever it took; whatever she wanted. She deserved that. The only thing that could ruin today would be if her feelings towards him had changed. He was hoping like mad that they hadn't. That would be just the thing though, wouldn't it? He becomes interested in her finally after all this time and she doesn't love him anymore. He frowned. 'Think positive!' he scolded himself. It was no use to worry about what would or wouldn't happen. What will be, will be and if it doesn't, well... Sonic started to pass a store when something glinting from the sun in the window caught his eye. He leaned in for a closer look and smiled. This would be perfect. He went into the shop.

"Well hello there! Welcome to Timeless Moments! What can I help you with today?" a white mouse with glasses on his nose cheerfully asked Sonic as he walked in.

"That heart locket in the window, how much?" Sonic asked.

"The silver one? Three hundred rings, for the base price."

"The base price?" Sonic questioned. "What do you mean?"

"We can do customizations to certain items if one wishes, but that costs more," the mouse smiled at him.

"Customizations such as... what, exactly?" Sonic looked at the mouse, interested.

"Mostly we do engravings. If you wanted a name or a picture, we could engrave that on for you. Depending on what is engraved and the level of difficulty the price varies," answered the mouse. "Or," he continued, pushing his glasses back up on his nose from where they had slid, "we can add gems and charms for decoration."

"If I wanted something engraved, how long would it take?" Sonic was on a tight schedule. He had searched these last couple of days for a gift for Amy and it was just his luck to stumble upon the perfect gift a mere hour or so before the party.

"Well...," the mouse pulled out a piece of paper with a heart outline the size of the locket and a book full of the gems and charms the shop offered. "What do you want on it?" He motioned for Sonic to come to the counter.

Sonic looked at the charms and gems available. What should he put on it? The locket was already in the shape of a heart so... He needed a rose... and a hammer. He smirked to himself. "Got it!" Sonic exclaimed and snapped his fingers. "I need a name, a rose, and a hammer engraved. Can you do that?" He looked at the mouse.

"Certainly! Where for each one and any particular colors?"

"Yes. I want the name Amy in red cursive a little below center." Sonic picked up a pencil off the counter and scribbled the name on the heart outline where he wanted it. "And a blooming red rose here, to the right of the loop of the 'y'." He drew a circle and lightly shaded the middle. "And a hammer in the upper left corner, above the 'a', with the head of the hammer by the tip of the 'a'. Oh, and the hammer has to be like this." Sonic drew Amy's hammer as best as he could remember, telling the mouse to color it red in the head of the hammer, yellow on the edges, the length of the handle yellow, and the actual handle red. "Oh, and put a red gem here to the left of the rose underneath the name and another red gem here, above and to the right of the 'y'." Sonic drew smaller circles for where he wanted the gems to be.

Sonic put the pencil down and smiled at his work. He was by no means an artist, but he was hopeful the mouse knew what he wanted. The mouse picked up the paper with the heart outline and looked everything over. "This will be one beautiful locket," he said. The mouse wrote a few words on the paper and some arrows pointing to the specific shapes. "Everything together will total 550 rings."

"How long until it can be done?" Sonic asked the mouse.

"I can have it ready for you a week from today, so next Saturday," the mouse answered, pushing his glasses back up his nose once again.

"Sounds great." Sonic smiled at the mouse. He left his name and his cell number with the mouse, paid for the locket and then left. It wouldn't be ready for a week, so that meant that he would have to go with his plan 'B' for today. Technically, it was his plan 'A', but Sonic hadn't expected to actually find a gift for Amy. That was alright with him though because it gave him a chance to gauge Amy's feelings for him, if she still had any. And if she didn't, well, then Amy was getting a locket from him that let her know how he felt, even if she didn't feel the same way.

Sonic checked his cell phone for the time. It was quarter til four. He had only 15 minutes to get to the party before it started. That would be no problem for the fastest thing alive. He smirked to himself and walked into the nearest flower shop. He walked out moments later with a white box as long as his arm and as wide and tall as his forearm, sealed with red ribbon and a bow on the middle. Sonic once again looked at his cell. It was 3:54. Time to prove his namesake.

He arrived at Cream's doorstep at 3:56. Sonic raised his hand to knock on the door and froze, his mind going into overdrive. What if, what if she didn't love him anymore? What if she wasn't the Amy that he remembered? He had been waiting for four agonizing, relentless years. Years that made him realized what he had lost. Years that made him come to terms with his feelings. Years that he could never get back if Amy decided she no longer wanted him. And yet, he wouldn't trade those years for anything. Amy had always had hope that he would one day love her back. She had even told him 'I love you' on the day that she left. If anything, maybe Sonic deserved it- deserved for her to say no. He had broken her heart too many times to count. But, she always came back.

Sonic squared his shoulders and knocked on the door. He was no quitter. If she could love him through everything he had done to her, then he would return the favor. And he would love her, whether she still loved him or not.

He heard the lock on the door turn and the handle move. Cream's front door opened.