Hi! I'm updating early this time.
Chapter 22: Stubborn
The red sunset shone behind her as she walked in a spiritless pace back to her house. Her red-glazed eyes were focused on every step her feet took, counting each one just so she can keep her mind off the thing she'd sob over earlier. Amy didn't go back to school thinking that her mother was still there waiting for her. She didn't want to see her, or anyone at the moment. The pink hedgehog just wanted to be alone for a while.
Part of her was hoping that her mother would just leave her be, and another part-a fairly larger one-hoped that she was here to stay or finally take her home.
Amy come didn't come home to an empty house, though. There, right on the porch stood Rouge and Cream. The former looked utterly ticked off while the latter was deeply worried.
The gates creaked as she pushed them open and closed them behind her. She made her way to her front door where her two best friends waited for her.
Amy didn't meet their gaze.
.
"Well?" Rouge glared at her. "Aren't you going to explain?"
"There's nothing to explain," she dully replied.
Teal orbs flashed. "Nothing to explain, Amy Rose?!" Cream was now scared and worried. Rouge had used the full name which was a sign that she was beyond furious. "There's a woman in school asking about you, claiming she's your mother! And I remember quite vividly that you told us that your parents died when you were five years old!" The rabbit now placed a hand on her friend's shoulder to hold her back because Rouge looked like she was about to pounce on Amy.
The pink hedgehog finally turned so she could return the glare the bat sent her way. "So you're mad at me because I lied?" She spat.
"I'm mad because I don't understand why you're avoiding her!" Rouge shot at her.
"Simple," Amy chuckled bitterly adding a defiant shake of her head, "I don't consider her as my family anymore. They'd relinquished that right long ago when they dumped me out of their life!"
Cream looked taken aback at how cold and venomous the words were spoken. For the longest time they'd known Amy they never thought the pink hedgehog to harbor a grudge against anyone especially her family.
"H-how can you say that, Amy?" the rabbit stuttered.
"Don't call her that," Rouge growled, "that's not her name." She jerked her way out of Cream's grip. Latching her hand on Amy's wrist she began to drag her away from the house.
"Where are you taking me?" Amy asked, eyes narrowing in confusion.
"I'm taking you to where you should be." Rouge affirmed. "They just want to talk."
The pink hedgehog already knew who "they" were. She immediately pulled her hand away from Rouge, but the bat held firmly into her limb, not letting her escape this time.
"I'm not going anywhere near them!" Amy bellowed, yanking her hand away.
"I'm not giving you an option." She sneered, pulling hard on the resisting girl.
The two of them then fell into a tag of war game. Neither one gave up, both determined to have her way. Cream who was simply a spectator in their battle looked distressed at this display of stubborness. She tried to pry them off each other but neither was willing to surrender.
"Amy, Rouge! Stop this, this instant!" Cream ordered desperately, but it was as though she had momentarily disappeared from the scenario because the two wasn't paying attention to her.
"Let go of me, bat-girl!" Amy barked.
"Not unless you agree to see them!" Rouge shouted.
"Never!"
"Fine then!"
Rouge put more force into pulling the pink hedgehog. They were now outside the metal gates and she was steadily leading the unwilling Amy into the direction of the main road. She could hear Cream's desperate cries and Amy's constant protests in the background. Rouge paid no attention to the two and focused into her goal. She was going to make Amy see her parents even if it meant she had to drag her like this all the way to them. Screw the looks people will send their way, they could just mind their own business and if anyone was foolish enough to comment...well, at least Rouge will finally have someone to pour all her rage on.
"Stop struggling!"
Cream was crying now. "Please, stop it." The poor rabbit begged.
"Unhand me, Rouge!" Amy shrieked.
Amy pulled back, a grimace tugging at peach lips. She planted her foot into the ground as a way to keep her from advancing. But Rouge was too strong, too stubborn to let Amy deal with this problem herself.
Why can't they just try and understand?
Rouge pulled her again forward with more force than ever. They were half way through making it to the main road and Amy felt panic starting to consume her. She didn't want to see them. She doesn't want to go anywhere near the people who abandoned her when she was just a mere five year old girl. She didn't want to be with the ones whom she thought loved her, but gave her away. She didn't want to see her father, her mother and her sister...waiting for her to come back and be part of the family again...and...and...experience happiness with the ones she cared most in the world.
It hurt too much.
With every ounce of her strength Amy pulled back one last time as a cry of despair finally escaped her throat.
"Rouge, I'm begging you. LET ME GO!"
Rouge unexpectedly released her grip on Amy which caused the pink hedgehog to fall backwards and land on solid ground, sideturned. The pink hedgehog burried her face onto her palms and sobbed. Cream fell on her knees and hugged her friend, crying along with her. Amy shifted and wrapped her arms around Cream.
Rouge stood there, stunned, as she looked down on her two bestfriends. She crossed her arms and darted her eyes elsewhere feeling shame and guilt surge through her being at having just forced her friend to do something she didn't want to. Rouge only wanted Amy to talk to her parents, only talk, to fix the misunderstandings between them.
When they'd talked with Basilica and Andrea, Amy's mother and older sister, she and Cream found out about Amy's beginnings. The pink hedgehog had spoken a little bit about her childhood with her "grandmother", but never once mentioned that she actually had known who her parents were, that she had once had a family. Amy only said that her parents had died when she was a mere five year old kid and the story stopped there. She never told them that her parents had given her to an old lady who she then labeled as her grandparent when they weren't even related by blood...
She clamped her eyelids shut. Amy had lied. Perhaps it was her way to cover the pain, or she was too ashamed to admit that her parents had practically thrown her out like a worn-out doll. But if Amy heard the real story behind the act, she would understand; at leadt, Rouge hoped so.
For a while the bat let her two best friends cry. It would do good, the crying; Rouge herself could feel the trickling sensation on her tanned cheeks. At least, this way, Amy could let out some of her emotions she'd been bottling up inside her.
Amy needs to talk to her family. She should. If she wanted to know the reason why she was given away. Rouge and Cream gave their word not to tell, and she intended to keep that promise.
Rouge turned back to a still weeping Amy and Cream. Heaving a tired sigh, she bent down and encircled the two in an embrace that she hoped would give the message she was sorry for what she did. To her relief, the two each wrapped one arm around her, letting her join the circle.
When they pulled away from each other, Rouge stared into the pink hedgehog's unwilling eyes. "Amy," she spoke very quietly, "just talk to them."
The next day...
"Amy Rose?"
No answer.
Ms. Brown called the name again, but received no response. She looked up from her seating plan and at her class, seeing the pink hedgehog missing. Vanessa's brows furrowed and then her eyes moved to two students who were closest to the absent hedgehog.
"Rouge, Cream," she called. The adressed girls snapped to attention. "Tell Amy that if she fails to attend class again tomorrow, I will be sending a letter to her guardian reporting her absentism."
"Yes ma'am." The two nodded.
Vanessa closed her seating plan. Taking out a large book from the drawer of her desk, she flipped it open and began her session.
Rouge gripped her pen so hard it cracked. Her eyes narrowed in disappointment and annoyance towards nothing in particular. Sharp bat fangs flashed which worried the peach-furred rabbit beside her, but Cream looked just as unhappy about something.
The blue hedgehog in the class eyed the two as if to read their individual thougths. His eyes narrowed in suspicion as Rouge turned to Cream and whispered something to her. His ears twitched as he tried to make out the words the bat relayed. All Sonic could understand was 'she promised!', the rest were a bunch of buzzing nonsense. He could already guess that the matter that upsetted the two had to do something with pinky.
The ball flew in an amazing speed towards the net. The goal keeper that was a brown dog, jumped to his left to where it was about to pass through, attemping to block it. But his fingers missed it by mere millimeters and the ball sailed inside the bars.
"Goal!" someone shouted.
The dog fell on the ground, but immediately stood up and retrieved the soccer ball.
"You're really getting better, Sonic," he praised before throwing the ball over to the blue hedgehog who stopped it with his chest, then kicked it upwards with his right knee as it dropped and allowed it to fall to the ground, placing his foot on it afterwards to secure it in place.
"Thanks, Lim," he replied but hid voice wasn't the usually cheerful one, but instead leaced with a bit of annoyance. The dog, Lim, looked at him worriedly. Sonic turned and kicked the soccer ball, leading it towards his other teammates.
A moment later Sonic's path had been blocked by Tails, who tried to steal the ball from him. The blue hedgehog kicked the ball here and there, twisting and turning in an attempt to confuse the yellow kitsune. When he was able to get pass Tails, he was yet again confronted by two more of his co-players, the other one being Knuckles and other was Geofrey.
Sonic's ears twitched. He posed himself as if to charge forward, Knuckles and Geofrey positioned themselves for an offensive move; but what he showed was actually just a trick into fooling them into giving him a path to cross. Sonic wedged his footbunder the ball tossing it overhead a ways away fron his two opponents. He raced to catch the ball, then jumped and gave the ball a powerful headbutt that sent it flying over the opposite goal.
The ball passed through the net, earning another score for Sonic.
A panther ran towards the blue team captain. "Sonic," he panted as he slumped beside him, "our net is that one." He jerked his thump over his shoulder.
Sonic gave a small smile, which was very obvious to the feline that it was forced. "I know. 'Just trying to challenge myself a bit by playing on both teams.
The panther drew his brows together albeit giving a small smile as well.
The team practiced for a few more minutes before they decided to have a break. Sonic, Knuckles and Tails sat on the bleachers on the right side of the field. The red echidna poured a whole bottle of water on himself, shaking his head and sprinkling drops on his companions.
"Man, you aren't going easy on us today, Sonic," Knuckles commented, rotating his shoulder.
"Yeah," Tails agreed, his tone sounding a bit complaining, "we aren't in a real match, so you needn't have to go all out on us."
Sonic drank his water heartily, almost emptying the whole bottle. He raised an eyebrow at his two close friends. "Match or no match we have to do our best, shouldn't we?"
His companions groaned in response while Sonic drank the rest of his water. His emerald green eyes lowered towards where their soccer coach stood resting as well. From his view, he saw that the black wolf's eyes suddenly widened and the canine turned around. Sonic's eyebrows drew together as another person appeared. A pink hedgehog. Sonic knew who she was.
"Hey, isn't that the lady who's been looking for Amy?" Tails said, apparently noticing the woman too.
"Hmm," Knuckles nodded, "I heard she's claiming to be her mom. You think she's telling the truth?" He turned to Sonic and immediately the red echidna's breath caught in his throat at the menacing glare the blue hedgehog sent coach Rune and the woman's direction.
Knuckles nudged Tails, and pointed at Sonic. Tails' blue eyes widened in surprise. The two exchanged glances, having the mutual thought as to why their friend would react that way to a person he hadn't met before. Knuckles only shrugged, leaving whatever matter that ticked Sonic off to himself. Besides, if they asked, Sonic would just brush off their question.
After another practice round, they all headed to the showers and changed back into their uniforms. The sky was awash with orange and yellow shades of color, and students were pouring out of the gates. Sonic waved goodbye at his friends and teammates as they parted from the gates. He tucked his hands inside the pockets of his trousers as he walked home.
When he turned a corner, he spotted Rouge and Cream with two pink hedgehogs. Emerald green eyes narrowed at the quartette. He stooped and leaned against a post, far enough to conceal his presence and within hearing range.
"...she promised!" Rouge's voice exclaimed. The bat sounded exasperated. Sonic narrowed his eyes. Promised what? If only he could have spoken to pinky's friends, asked them how well the younger pink hedgehog was dealing with this situation. No doubt that Rouge and Cream had confronted her about this, and he wondered what pinky could have told them. "We came and talked to her yesterday and she told us she would come see you!"
Then why was she absent?! Sonic thought. What was she trying to do?
The mother hedgehog sighed. "We came to the address you told us where she lives," she looked at the younger pink hedgehog and her sad blue eyes were mirrowed. "She wasn't there. No one was home."
Rouge and Cream exchanged a confused look and then turned their attention back at Basilica.
Basilica lowered her head. " When we asked the people from nearby houses..." she trailed off and she looked away from Cream and Rouge, her eyes sparkling with unshed tears.
Andrea placed a comforting hand atop her mother's shoulder, but she herself looked as ready to cry. "They said that she left...carrying a suitcase."
BOOM!
Basilica, Andrea, Cream and Rouge closed their eyes at the sudden gust of wind that shot towards them. It caused their clothes to flap frantically and they had to hold onto their skirts and lower dress to keep it from revealing anything up their legs. A cloud of smoke lingered and after it cleared four pairs of eyes slowly opened and stood upright.
"What on mobius was that?" Basilica asked gazing beyond the direction where the sound and wind had come from.
The only thing left there was a dark mark against the pavement.
Yeah...sorry for all the errors. I'm also working on some other Sonic fics, one Sonamy, one Shadikal and another one involves all the pairings I support (gonna be another cliche High School Fic but a bit different). So yeah, I don't know if I'll be able to publish them cause I'm in college now.