Chapter 3 : Distant Memories

His heart pounded. His chest heaved. He could feel his very blood rushing through his ears as he ran as fast as his two feet could carry him. The flesh on his legs was now nicked and slightly bloodied from the low underbrush he was running through scraping his legs, but he didn't care. He had but one word on his mind. One word, one name, two syllables, and a million sleepless nights.

Amy.

Although Cream's house wasn't far from his own home, Sonic felt as though it took hundreds of miles for him to reach it. He tried to intensify speed, but yet again the undergrowth of the forest he had taken a shortcut through was holding him back. The orange fox flew about a foot and a half overhead the hedgehog, using his two furry tails to levitate him and fly through the air.

"Tails, are you sure Cream was positive about this?" Sonic yelled out to his companion as he kept trying to run. "She wasn't just... playing some joke?"

"You know Cream's not like that. She wouldn't play any mean pranks like that," Tails pointed out. "And besides, why would she lie? Amy was as important to her as she was to me and you."

Sonic narrowed his eyes, fixing them on the small cottage ahead with the familiar orange colour scheme. He highly doubted the last statement Tails made.

"I still don't understand why we couldn't have just took the easy way, like the Tornado, or a car, or just walked around the block," Tails seemed to be commenting to both himself and Sonic. "It's a lot harder running through these woods-"

Tails's words became indistinct to the speedy hero as Sonic at last bounded out of the undergrowth and sprinted off towards the orange cottage. Tails's words were of little concern to him at the moment. His two red-sneakered feet became spinning blurs as he ran faster, and faster. Sonic couldn't help but smirk to himself, enjoying being the fastest thing alive. He glanced down at the path that stretched out before him; he had only a few more feet to go before he reached the doorstep. Little did he realise there was a small but solid rock concealed in the dirt.

"Hyargh!" Sonic quickly put on the brakes at the last moment. He dug his heels into the ground, his intention of progressively sliding to a stop in front of the cottage's door almost working. Were it not for the forsaken rock hidden on the ground. Sonic's toes somehow caught on the rock, unbeknownst to him at first, causing him to trip and collapse directly on his face. ". . . . . . . . ."

A pretty young female rabbit with dark brown hair and long beige ears tucked behind her head in a pigtail hairstyle opened the door to find him having faceplanted on the doorstep. "Why, hello, Mister Sonic. Nice of you to drop by."

Sonic literally sweatdropped. "... Hey, Cream." He pushed himself to his knees and then to his feet just as Tails flew up behind him.

"That's what I was trying to tell you, Sonic," Tails said, waving a finger scoldingly. "Haste makes mistakes."

Sonic turned around to give his younger fox friend a "you're-not-helping" look. Tails ignored it. Cream simply smiled and gave a small sweatdrop of her own, knowing it was always Sonic's style to rush wherever he went.

"Please come in, Sonic. We've been waiting for you." The doe stepped back from the doorway and gestured for the two to walk inside.

Tails then smiled and walked in. He greeted Cream and the shy little pet Chao who'd been hiding behind her the entire time, and the three others walked off to another room, leaving Sonic behind.

Sonic took a step slowly into the cottage, carefully closing the door behind him. His anxiety was returning now that the rest had been put behind. The only thing left was to look for her, but... The living room he'd stepped into seemed to be empty. Somewhat grateful to have a few moments alone, Sonic took the opportunity to try to build up some self-confidence. He noticed a nearby mirror hung by the side of a coatrack by the door and decided to use that for brief practise. He leaned a bit against the wall, giving his reflection a suave smile.

"Hey there. Well, who have we here. If it isn't Amy Rose. Long time no see, gorgeous. You're looking good. You're looking great. Did it hurt when you fell down out of heaven?" Sonic shook his head and gave his reflection a chuckle. "No, no- YOU'RE looking good. Yeah. So, how's it been goin' with you, baby? I know it's been a while since we've seen each other. Five years, actually. Gives us a good chance to catch up. Heh, heh."

Sonic stared at his reflection, his smile slowly fading away. He sighed and rubbed his ear. This wasn't going to work. He could feel it. How could she accept him after all this time? Would she remember what happened five years prior, when he...? What if she hadn't forgiven him? Or what if she didn't even recognise him when they saw each other?... What if she refused to see him at all?

Sonic leaned his back against the wall, looking up and giving the ceiling a blank gaze. He couldn't quite understand for what reason she had even come back. The way he had treated her, he would have guessed she'd move somewhere far away and never come back for the rest of her life. Why had she returned? Had she forgotten something here in Station Square? She couldn't have come back just to see him. Why? Why had she returned?

Too many questions. Sonic's head was beginning to ache. He rubbed it, then looked down and gave the floor a glare. "I hate pop quizzes..." he muttered.

His left ear suddenly flicked. He heard laughter in the next room. Standing up straight, he gave the hallway a look. That seemed to have been where the others disappeared. He strained a bit, wondering if he'd hear a familiar female voice. The only voices he could pick up were those of Tails, Cream, Cream's mother Vanilla, and two unfamiliar voices. He assumed one of those two was Amy...

Sonic took a deep breath and gave his palm a quick lick, then used his dampened palm to brush down some fur on his quills. He looked at the mirror a final time and hoped things would go okay.

"Well... here goes nothing."

Sonic tried to level his breathing pace and walked slowly towards the entrance of the kitchen. He found himself praying that things would work out, that she would remember him, that she wouldn't still be angry with him, as much he attempted to force these thoughts back.

Just play it cool, Sonic. Play it cool.

He pushed the door to the kitchen open. There was Tails standing next to Cream. Cream's mother was seated at the kitchen table, sporting a constantly cheerful smile on her now wrinkly face. Sonic bit his lip slightly and risked another step further inside the kitchen.

Now having cleared the corner, he could see who was standing off to the left. A light-brown chipmunk with auburn hair tied back in a braid and wearing a denim jacket with a white undershirt and black skinny jeans was smiling and exchanging words with the fox and rabbits. Sonic had never seen her before, but at the moment he wasn't too concerned. He was looking for one person in particular- and she was standing right beside this unfamiliar chipmunk. Suddenly his feet felt as though they were nailed to the floor.

Amy Rose.

Meh, I got a little lazy at writing the end of the chapter, and I know you guys are hating these cliffhangers, but here ya go. XD Hope ya liked. Next chapter, coming soon.