I was walking alone in New Mobotropolis. Tails had taken off somewhere, probably to see Rotor, who had hurt his back during the attack to save Tails. A boulder was falling and Rotor had pushed him out of the way, allowing it to fall on him, only seconds before he was captured. Tails was probably worried about him, and I couldn't blame him.
"Wonder where everyone went." I wondered.
POOF! POOF! POOF!
"AH!" I cried out.
The press. Typical. Everyone took cover so they wouldn't go blind from all the cameras. Like before, they were shooting out questions, but I guess that was to be expected. The girl who came out of no-where, suddenly saving everyone? It was one HUGE scoop! And like before, I was asked the same questions: Was I related to Sonic in anyway, was I his new girlfriend and all that.
'Man, how do I get myself into these things?' I thought, shielding my eyes. 'Someone get me out of here!'
My wish was granted but not exactly how I had expected, same for the green hedgehog who had come along.
A flash of green light scooped me up and out of the crowd. It took me a few seconds before I understood what was really going on I was being carried by someone at super sonic speeds. My exposed arms told me whoever it was, was wearing a leather jacket. I knew only one Sonic character that could run so fast and wore a leather jacket. I looked up at his face, to be certain.
I was dead right.
"SCOURGE!" I cried, out of surprise more then fear.
"What, you were expecting prince charming?" He asked, showing his sharp teeth.
"Let me go!" I cried, starting to thrash around.
"Take it easy, baby. I'm not gonna hurt 'cha." He said.
"Yeah right! NOW LET ME DOWN!" I demanded.
"Aw c'mon, don't be like that." Scourge said, finally stopping.
"LET ME GO!" I yelled again, making him drop me.
"What's the matter? Sacred I'll hurt 'cha?" He asked, grinning widely.
"No, I just don't hang out with jerks like you!" I snapped loudly, dusting myself off as I yelled.
I then noticed that he was circling me, giving me a strange look.
"Something on your mind?" I asked.
'As if you have one!' I then thought cruelly.
"Yeah, I'm thinking that I like what I see." He grinned.
"That better not mean what I think it means." I growled.
"Oh, it does." He grinned widely, showing me his teeth again.
"What about Fiona? Aren't you liking her?" I asked bitterly.
"I'm liking you too." He then licked his lips.
"Well, I'm not liking you!" I snapped, grabbed a handful of dirt, and threw it in his face.
"WHOA!" Scourge covered his face.
I scrambled to my feet and made a break for it.
---
Scourge wiped the dirt from his eyes and looked around.
"You missed her." A voice said.
"Give me a break, Fiona." The green hedgehog snarled.
"You know the doctor isn't going to like this." The red fox said, coming out from behind a tree.
"Ah, that cranky old echidna can get her if he wants, but I want to know why, though." Scourge said.
"According to him, she knows everything and anything about Sonic and his little friends." Fiona informed.
"Let me guess: He wants to suck every little bit of info out of her head for a weakness!" Scourge said, starting to become manic.
"Bingo." Fiona said.
"Then let me at her!" Scourge cried, and ran after the blue hedgehog.
---
"Oh man!" I cried, looking over my shoulder. "That green maniac is headed right this way!"
If Scourge caught me, I could pretty much kiss my chances of going home good-bye!
'C'mon Workman, think!' I thought.
Turns out I didn't have to come up with something, because a few seconds later, I was flying through the air, held up by someone behind me.
"You okay, kid?" An all too familiar voice asked.
"Rouge!" I cried before looking over my shoulder.
"Scourge giving you trouble, is he?" The albino bat asked.
"You could say that." I answered.
"Figures, he's always out for only himself." I noticed a hint of annoyance in her voice and quite frankly, I couldn't blame her.
"Yeah, he's such a womanizer." I agreed.
"Oh, so you know about the time he flirted with all of us girls?" Rouge asked, somewhat surprised.
"Oh yeah." I nodded. "If anyone tried that with me…"
"Can't finish?" Rouge asked.
"Well, sort of…" I looked down, ashamed,
"What do you mean?"
"Well, I could probably kick Scourge's butt…only, I'm not really sure that I could…"
"What do you mean?"
"I know martial arts, but it's only to be used as a self-defense, and I've never had to do that, we're not even allowed to spar at my school so I'm not sure if I could bring myself to fight." I admitted.
"Oh, I get it, you're nervous about fighting." Rouge said.
"Yeah, basically."
"Don't worry, everyone is nervous their first time."
"But that's not quite it. I mean, I'm willing to fight the guys in school I could probably beat them if I really wanted to, even though most of them are much bigger then myself, I might even be able to land someone in a hospital, if I were really mad. So I'm usually cocky when someone in my school is looking for a fight even though I'm only three quarters their size, but I'm almost as big as Scourge and, for some reason, I couldn't bring myself to fight him."
"Don't worry, you're just nervous." Rouge assured. "To tell you the truth, I was the same way when I first fought Knuckles."
"You were?"
"Yeah, I only managed to hide it because I used my cockiness as a cover."
"I see…"
Rouge gently landed near a deserted area of the new city, surrounded by nature.
"We should be safe here for the time being." Rouge said, looking around before sitting on a nearby rock.
I merely nodded my head. Minutes slowly passed, I mostly watched the clouds roll by, thinking…
"Something on your mind?" Rouge asked.
I looked over to her, noticing that she was messing around with a small emerald in her hand.
"Rouge…" I started. "…Why did you tell me that you were nervous about your first fight with Knuckles?"
"Oh, is that all?" Rouge asked, cockily. "Huh, to tell you the truth, I don't know myself. Guess it was just because of…"
"Because of what?"
"Your eyes, there's something about them, they told me I could trust you with this secret before I even knew it."
"My…eyes?"
"Yeah. They have a sort of…"fire" in them. But it's not exactly a fire but something else, something I can't put to words."
I blinked a few times, amazed. Were my eyes really all that special?
"And, I also notice," Rouge continued. "That they have something more valuable then jewels in them…as well."
She spoke with the same softness that she had in the end credits of Sonic Adventure 2: Battle. I could only wonder what had come over her, considering that the Rouge from the Archie Comic books was a force to be serious with. She could beat anyone to any treasure, both ancient, and illegal. She could also single handedly beat Fiona Fox, Bean the Dynamite, and Bark the Polar Bear, and she had done such in an illegal fighting tournament. She was also a flirt that helped her get what she wanted, even from Scourge.
"Is that…the emerald Scourge gave you…when he impersonated Sonic?" I asked, pointing to the jewel she was fingering.
"Yeah, I still can't believe that scum tricked us all." Rouge said.
"The only reason he tricked you was because he's a flirt, he knew how to play on your heart strings. He somehow knew just what it took it make you fall for him, the same for the others."
"Really…" Rouge was silent for a minute. "What does it take for you?"
That made me blush!
"W-W-What do you mean?" I stammered.
"What does it take to play YOUR "heart strings"?" Rouge asked.
I didn't dare say anything.
"Well?"
I sighed before saying,
"I've never really been with anyone. I've always been sort of a loner. No guy has ever really done it for me. They're always bragging about they're latest girlfriend, like they're some sort of trophy, heck, my eleven-year-old brother's the same way, and he actually had eleven girlfriends by his eleventh birthday!"
"Really…"
"Yeah, if I ever did find a guy, I want him to be true, someone who would stay by my side, no matter what. If he were to die, I would remain single, so, that if there, really is a Heaven, I'd be with him, forever and ever and the other way around."
"Very romantic." Rouge commented.
"Yeah, I guess." I shrugged.
I could swear I heard Rouge chuckle slightly, but I barely noticed. Something else had caught my attention. There was a sort of creaking sound, like an old swing blowing in the wind.
"Rouge, do you hear that?" I asked.
"Hear what?" She asked.
"That creaking sound, hear it?"
There was a moment of silence before Rouge responded.
"Yeah, I hear it."
"What is that?" I wondered aloud.
"Probably that." Rouge then pointed behind me.
When I looked, I was in for a surprise. It was a large tree about fifty feet away, and hanging from one of its many branches was an old wooden swing, held up by large pieces of rope. I blinked a few times before I got up and started walking over to it.
As I did, I could see something else play before my eyes, like a daydream or…a memory.
---
"No fair Sonic, I can't run as fast you!" A tiny blue female hedgehog cried as she ran up to the tree.
The fire-year-old male hedgehog replied with,
"You're just slow!"
"No, you're just too fast!" The other said.
"Says you!" Sonic laughed and got behind the old swing. "C'mon, I'll push you!"
The other hedgehog a four-year-old female, climbed onto the swing and held on tightly. The younger Sonic started pushing the other hedgehog on the swing, and she soon started giggling as the wind ran through her blue fur.
"Higher Sonic, higher!" She laughed.
"Okay!" He said, and pushed her as hard as he could.
After a few more swings, the female started singing.
every dawn,
you watch over me
like the moon in the night.
Every evening
and every dawn,
do you promise me you'll be my
guiding star?
This went on for another minute before the swing finally came to a stop.
"You get on and I'll push you!" The female said as she jumped off the swing.
Before Sonic could get on, a strong gust of wind blew, sending the petals of the cherry blossoms into the air, causing the two to giggle.
"Sonic, let's come back here someday! We can bring the others!" The female said.
"Yeah, think you can bring your brother?" Sonic asked.
"Mama says he's still too small to go out and play in the backyard yet."
"Oh well, c'mon." Sonic said as he climbed onto the swing.
The tiny female ran behind him and started pushing.
---
There was a flash of light in my mind and the scene in my mind was gone. I had been so focused in it that I hadn't noticed that I had walked right up to the tree. Unlike the on in my mind, this one wasn't in bloom.
"Something wrong?" Rouge asked.
"It…It's nothing." I barely said.
"Whatever."
I just continued staring at the old tree, and I couldn't help wondering why I was. I slowly walked over to the old swing, and placed my hand on it. There was something familiar about it.
"I must be imagining it." I whispered quietly.
"C'mon, the others will start worrying about you." Rouge said, placing her hand on my shoulder.
"Yeah." I sadly nodded.
Rouge carefully scooped me into her arms, so I'd more comfortable this time.
"Rouge?" I asked after a while.
"Yeah?"
"Do you know anything about that tree?" I asked, pointing to it.
"Only a little. It hasn't bloomed any Cherry Blossoms in years, and no one can figure out why. There's nothing wrong with it but it still won't bloom."
I nodded a little, somewhat confused.
After nearly ten seconds of flying, I felt something land softly on my cheek. Rouge wasn't paying attention, so I took it off my cheek. It was a pedal, a Cherry Blossom pedal to be exact. I looked around. There was only that single Cherry Blossom tree. Something told me, that before this was over, that tree would be in bloom again.