"You'll regret this!" Threatened the giant talking egg as he was carried off by the damaged Metal Sonic into the moonlight.

Sonic and Blaze observed, both of them boasting a strong and confident front...until Eggman went out of view and the two collapsed to their knees panting heavily.

"Jeez," Sonic said between breaths "Metal sure gave us a good run for our money, eh?"

Blaze simply nodded, still focusing on regaining her breath.

The two were beaten and battered, bruises and torn clothes aplenty. The blue hero seemed to have taken the most damage however as slight blood stains all over his face and body sullied his vibrant fur.

Blaze finally got back up, taking in the view of her partner besides her. He still hadn't gotten up and worry creeped up on her face.

"Sonic, can you stand?" She asked

He waved his hand dismissively.

"Sure, sure, piece of cake."

An attempt was made before Sonic fell back to the ground with a thud.

" I might need another five minutes." He chuckled exhaustedly. Blaze merely rolled her eyes and walked on over.

"Come on, hedgehog. I'm taking you back to the palace to get fixed up."

Before he could protest, Sonic was scooped up in Blaze's arms. He seethed a little as his body was moved but soon became more comfortable. His face however, was flushed and filled with child like annoyance.

"I'm not a damsel in distress, ya know?" He complained looking away.

"Yes, yes" the purple pyrokenetic said looking forward with a hunt of smugness in her voice. "The great Knight of the Wind is no damsel, he's a big strong hedgehog."

Sonic squinted his eyes. "You're patronising me."

Blaze glanced at him with a knowing smile. "And if you complain again I'm dropping you."

Sonic sank into Blaze's arms in defeat. "Yes ma'am..."

The two eventually got to the palace, Sonic thanking Chaos that very few people saw him in such a position.

"It's about time for my usual bath that Borden has drawn for me. "Blaze said still looking forward. "But I suppose you need to get cleaned up more."

Sonic sighed in pleasure at the thought of that. A bath was just what he needed right now.

"Yeah that sounds absolutely perfect, your highness, thank you".

Blaze glanced down at him. "You're in no position to clean yourself, Sonic."

Sonic looked confusedly at her, before he realised the implication.

"A-aha there's no need for that Blaze, honest! I can clean myself!"

The princess rose a brow at this. "What seems to be the problem, Sonic? Tails has told me of all the times he's had to clean you after a hard fought victory. You should be used to it, right?"

Emerald looked down in embarrassment.

"Tails is different...he-"

"Oh! It's because he's a guy?" Blaze cut in, a coy smile on her face.

"Well yes, but-"

"You're having a bath and I'm cleaning you up. No ifs, ands or buts." She stated, more stern this time.

Sonic decided to let it go, once again defeated.

Warm water swished around as Sonic was gently placed into the large royal bath. Blaze had removed her gloves as to not get them wet as she combed through his fur, examining each cut.

"If you need any more heat just let me know." She offered, rooting through Sonic's spines.

"Th-thanks Blaze." He responded, attempting to get more comfortable.

Every couple of minutes seemed to be on repeat. An accidental touch followed by a pained hiss and an apology.

Blaze studied Sonic as she rooted through his fur. A lot of his cuts seemed to have healed up very quickly.

'i guess it's not just his legs that are fast.' She thought to herself.

Soon it just started to become unbelievable. Almost every part of his body seemed to have a scar, some long, some short. Concern grew on the felines face.

She stroked a particularly long one by the side of his face.

"Silver Metal Sonic. On the Death Egg."

Sonic's voice woke her from her trance. "W-what?"

"You've been looking at all the cuts I've had over the years. I remember each one. That one was the first Metal Sonic."

Blaze raised an eyebrow. "He must've been one of the stronger ones..."

Sonic gave a slight chuckle. "Nah, not at all. I just went in head first. I was angry. I thought that Eggman managed to...hurt Tails. I wanted revenge and just went in charging and screaming."

A soft smile came upon Blazes face. Sonic had always been a good brother to Tails. It was a bitter sweet way of showing how much he cares. But then her smile became a confused frown.

"You said a few years ago. Your covered in these cuts. How long have you been doing the hero schtick?"

Sonic looked up for a brief moment in thought.

"Hm...since I was ten I think."

"Ten!?" Blaze raised her voice. "You've been fighting Eggman since you were a child!?"

A sigh escaped Sonic's mouth.

"I knew you'd get worried." He said in a low, almost apologetic voice.

Blaze was at a loss of words. She didn't know what to think of the whole situation. "It's just that...I didn't...I'm sorry Sonic."

Sonic merely shrugged. "It's alright, just the life I've been given. Doesn't mean it's been a bad one" he reassured her with his trademark toothy grin.

Sonic sat in silence until it was time to get out of the bath, his new cuts having been sewn up. He spent a lot of time looking at his hands.

"You know, some of the scars have good memories."

Blaze raised a brow. "Explain."

Sonic looked over his body and meekly pointed to his left knee. "Well that's when I got my first pair of sneakers that didn't end up in burnt soles! I ended up tripping and cutting myself on a rock." He chuckled.

A slight smile escaped Blaze.

"Oh and this one! When I first met Shadow and he got me with his Chaos Spear! It sounds bad, but it serves as one of the most fun battles I ever had."

Sonic's ears were pointed in excitement. Blaze could tell that he was having fun with some of these.

"And then there's these ones." Sonic cupped his hands in front of Blaze. They had slight burn marks on them.

She smiled. "What were these ones?" She asked in near anticipation.

"You actually." Her smile dropped.

"Wha..."

"It was my fault really. It was when our dimensions first started to fix themselves. I just...didn't want to let you go I suppose. You'd be surprised how powerful your fire is as Burning Blaze if it can damage my Super form." Sonic looked away bashfully.

Blaze could hear her heart beat faster. She didn't like the idea that she hurt sonic but "you...you didn't want to let go?"

A smirk grew in Sonic's face. "Well why would I? You left a mark on me." He showed his hands once again, he was clearly resisting the urge to chuckle. The chuckle errupted into a duet of laughter as water was splashed in his face by Blaze.

"That was awful, hedgehog." Blaze laughed.

"Get used to it, princess" sonic retorted in between laughs.

Blaze eventually got Sonic out of the bath and they sat down in her bedroom, where Sonic regaled her with the stories of each scar, each battle, until they both fell asleep, completely shattered from the nights activities.