Dark Sonic Forces

Ch. 3

By: Cutegirlmayra (I'm doing a livestream on Instagram and a Discord event for Q&As. Please PM if you'd like to join me! :Db It's gonna be good~ Hopefully, lol. Well, I have this entire thing laid out. But I should state that this was voted to be a 'Make-out Sonamy' so please be aware of what you're getting yourself into. I don't write or read inappropriate material, but that don't mean I won't write a kiss or two. Juuuuust letting you know. A 'heads-up' if you will for the sensitive hearts of which I am a part of lol Don't worry, there's build, so everyone's still mostly in character- but that's kinda why the 'dark and uncontrollable emotions' have a play in this too xD helps lead into more AU scenarios... Enjoy~)

Warm breath.

Then that uncomfortable feeling that something was given to her... a dark presence that tried to squirm into her dreams...

But even in her discomfort, she turned to her side and felt something solid and real. What was it?

Amy flickered her eyes open, seeing something blue and peaceful resting by her bedside...

Her eyes widened all at once and she rose up, shocked by Sonic's sleeping, gently rising and lowering body as he slept beside her.

She usually would see him sleeping while running along a route trying to find him. He wasn't always silently huffing a breath or two, but in fact, he would be snoring up a brand new storm most days.

She immediately jumped to the conclusion that he was too tired to even startle from his sleep at her rapid movement from surprise at seeing his face so close to her own.

She felt herself and checked to make sure she was actually awake and presence, feeling for bruises or cuts and doing medical assessments. Once she was cleared, she looked over Sonic but dared not touch her sleeping prince.

'How'd he get here..?' she gently tilted her head to see how truly worn out he appeared, and her heart broke at the sight of it. '...He must be kinda hungry...' she ignored her first question and decided to act instead. Kindness was always a big factor in all she ever did, besides pursuing her own hopes and dreams.

Carefully maneuvering herself out of bed, she began to realize that no matter what noise or movement she created, he would remain fast asleep.

With a tender smile, slightly humoring the situation, she crawled out without much consideration and looked back to make sure he was still sound asleep...

He was... his blue fur was fully restored against the white covers of her bed and pillow... his gloves were slightly more grey from the dirt and soot, and she mentally noted to clean up after this whole ordeal.

That's when she remembered she hadn't showered.

After caring for her needs, she went to fix something up for Sonic! A nice meal... a breakfast fit for a growing hero!

"Eggs and Bacon~" Amy sang slightly, bobbing in motion to the tune in her head as she flipped the bacon and stirred the eggs.

When she was done, she made a glass of nice cold milk and headed back to her room.

"Woah."

She turned around to a voice that matched Tails. He was wagging his tail at her leftovers...

"They're all yours." She winked, and he happily rubbed his hands together.

"Oh, boy! Thanks, Amy! Uhh... are you having dinner in bed today?" he looked to see her tray of goodies as she sweatdropped a moment. "Y-...You could say that." She didn't know if Sonic would want his presence... in her room... to be known like that. So, she decided to keep it a secret and move on.

She was fibbing a lot these past few days...

When she entered her room again, turning around to close the door, she was startled yet again by seeing Sonic stir and lift from his place by the bedside.

She blushed at the image... like an emerging butterfly from its cocooned sleep.

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Sonic couldn't understand what was going on.

One minute, he was leaning over Amy... the next?

He's lying on her bed...

Groggily, he felt his muscles move himself up from the comfy and soft touch of the covers below him and turned to see the indent of where Amy once was.

He rubbed his head, wondering how he was gonna get out of this one before smelling something awfully enticing, drifting through the room.

He turned his head... seeing the flustered expression of Amy Rose.

So... she was here.

He carefully examined her a moment, his eyes rapidly scanning everywhere along her for any sign of injuries. Cuts, scratches, bruises, gashes... anything he might have accidentally done to her during his struggles in the forest...

She seemed fairly... pretty.

She was alright, anyway. And that's all that mattered.

He let out a sigh of relief and smiled at last, "Hi." He lowered his hand on his face and turned around, getting ready to shift his feet under him and step off the bed.

"...Hi..." Amy's breathless response paused him in his movements, and he looked back to her.

It was incredibly awkward... seeing her eyes droop down like he was the vision of a perfect dream to her.

It was hard not to throw a mocking joke out into the open either... he had to refrain himself and simply closed his eyes to chuckle in his throat.

"Ack..." he rubbed his neck, feeling the sore dryness that spread like wounded cry inside it.

"...Oh!" He figured Amy snapped out of her fawning fantasies and rushed over to him immediately, showing him what his nose had picked up on. "Milk, eggs, and bacon! I know you like your meat." She politely placed it on her bedstand, and then sat down to stare at him again.

"...Thanks." He side-glanced her, not sure how to react and not wanting any follow-up questions as he decided it best to start eating and stop talking.

She closed her eyes in delight as he picked up the milk and started chugging, letting a loose puff of air show his satisfaction at the cold drink and reached for the bacon.

"...How do you feel?"

Amy's inquiry left him wanting to fake a choke, but instead, he just kept eating.

"Fwine." He spoke through a full mouth, making her pout.

"Sonic," her tone turned from doting wife to scolding mother instantaneously. "Manners."

He rolled his eyes, drinking more of the milk and then wiping it off with his arm. He smiled jokingly to her, "I'm good." He nodded and continued to eat.

"...Try the eggs." She scooted closer, picking up her legs and holding them as she excited looked at the plate.

Once again,... the air felt tense as Sonic slowly shifted his eyes to her.

"...Okay. Nevermind." She looks away, embarrassed at her over-eagerness to please him and moved off the bed.

He just followed her with his eyes,... before smiling at her cute but strange antics and took the fork off the plate.

When some eggs fell loose from the fork, he frowned in annoyance, lowering his eyelids. Finally, he just tossed the fork back down and used his fingers.

She was distracted from looking at him anyway, he could get away with a little finger-food action.

She was nervous, not wanting to make this more awkward it looked like, and held her hands together and close. Standing with her back towards Sonic, she hung close to the center of the room, shaking her bundled and held hands together as she looked for something to focus on.

He smiled through another sip of milk, 'At least she's trying...' he thought her attempt to act normal was humorous, to say the least, but still sweet in its own way.

Something finally caught her attention, but Sonic ignored it and moved on.

There was a scraping sound, and finally, he paused with his mouth open to look up and see her with a pencil and notepad.

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Taking her clipboard of Rebellion Notes she had taken to plan her days and keep track of things, she flipped the page and started doodling Sonic.

She tried to make every line perfect, even exact and would work through the silhouette first and then try and erase once everything was circled out more.

She was having difficulty on the curve of his spines... when she looked up to try and re-see what she wanted to draw and only noticed her subject staring back at her.

His smile was contagious, and she ducked behind her board when she got caught.

Blushing...

"What'cha got there?" Sonic charmingly leaned forward and lifted his head up, turning it to try and look over and see what she was drawing.

"I-I'm... I'm not very good." She admitted, modestly moving a piece of her pink quill back behind her but it just flopped back in place. "I didn't want to disturb you... I mean-! Y-... You just woke up and all!" she hugged the drawing, not daring to let him see it but also oddly embarrassed by it too.

She turned her head away as Sonic's interest perked, and he chuckled again.

"Drawing me while eating is kinda creepy too. But I'll allow it, just this once." He winked at her, before holding out a piece of bacon and devouring it by holding it up and letting it slide into his mouth, chomping on it all the while.

"...Yeah, it's a real treat." Amy sarcastically stated, seeing him lower his head down and chew with his mouth open, biting down hard on the piece of meat before looking back at her and shrugging.

"Whaa?" he spoke with food in his mouth again, and she couldn't help but laugh a little at it.

"You're disgusting." She flopped the picture down, and he tried to lean over again and take a look.

She opened one of her closed eyes and playfully pulled the clipboard back up to her face, "Noo..!" she protested, making him crook an eyebrow up and mock her indirectly.

"Whatever you say." He gave up trying to see the image she was drawing and just kept eating.

When he was done, he felt something off in his shoes, having them down on the floor now.

"Well, I-... woah." He sat back down when he felt a clump of something and took his shoe off, trying to shake out whatever was in them.

Pieces of dark grey rocks and pebbles of clotted dirt came pattering out onto her floor and rug.

She gasped, seeing how filthy he was. "I'll clean those for you!" she placed the clipboard down and walked towards him, bending down to the bed and offering her arms out to him. "I'll make them good as new." She tried to convince him, hoping he'd part with them a moment for her to get him cleaned up.

He looked up with a bit of innocence and confusion, apparently having never given someone his laundry before.

"...Will you give them right back?" he inquired, which only made her scrunch her neck back a bit and hold in another playful laugh.

"You're so funny, Sonic!" she blushed and felt successful as he blinked at her once more, seeing no sign of ill-intent, and took the other shoe off. He handed them to her like it was a sign of trust, and then peered up.

"When can I get them back?"

"Your socks and gloves too, Sonic."

"Whaa..?" he seemed shaken by that response and moved back, squeamish again.

"Go on. I'll give them right back."

"..."

"What's the matter?"

"Will you... will you look away?"

"...Sonic!"

She moved his shoes onto one hand, a finger to hold each one, before placing both her hands to her hips.

"It's just your socks and gloves! Don't make a big deal out of it!" She reprimanded.

He pouted at her in a bit of rebellion... but then slowly took a cautious look at his socks...

"It's not like you've never taken them off before..."

"..."

"...Sonic?"

She flinched back subtly, "...You... You should shower too."

"..."

He just kept staring at his feet.

"...Sonic, you will remove your dirty clothes, and take a bath." She offered her free hand, ready to get the articles off him if needs be.

Finally, he took a deep breath and held it, removing his socks and then carefully his gloves.

Amy was used to what was underneath, it was the same as her, so she didn't care about his stubby, clumped feet and his bare hands, seeing smaller nails than she had on her own anyway.

"Oh... by the way." She looked curiously up at his face, "Why were you sleeping in my-"

He tossed them to her, cutting her off before she could continue her question.

Annoyed and letting them fall into her open hand, She took them and nodded, deciding not to ask that just yet.

Worried she was making the situation worse, she became much more joyful and tried to change the mood. "Good! Now, off you go! You—and your clothes—smell bad. I'll get the bedsheets later." She smiled warmly, turning back into the housewife look Sonic perceived and walked off as he stared after her.

"...You want me to leave?"

"You have to take a bath!" she was about to open the door, not seeing anything wrong with it until...

She immediately took her hand off the knob and turned around, seeing Sonic's head tilted back and a look of 'really?' pasted upon it.

"If you leave my room looking like that-!" her mind raced to what the other rebellion members would think...

"...Now you get it." Sonic rolled his eyes, having apparently thought long before that removing his clothing in front of her was a little risqué...

"J-just-!" she was trying to think fast, slamming a hand into her face in an attempt to punish herself for not thinking of that sooner. "Just run really, really fast down to the showers!"

"...Whatever you say, Amy." He got up, stretching a bit since he didn't have the chance too before. "But I'm just surprised you didn't think of this situation sooner."

She blushed as she parted some of her fingers to get another look at him...

She didn't really understand why it would be suggestive... she understood what people might think—since he'd be coming out of her room... but not the part of him being...

Well, he was always naked, but nothing showed through fur. Everyone knew that.

"I-I-I'm just being more mature than you, is all!" she puffed out, trying to defend her honor somewhat and went to peek outside the door. "If anyone asks, I'll just say I saw you come back and asked for them. Besides, you don't seem to know how to wash your own clothes anyway."

"I wouldn't say that." Sonic continued to stretch, but there was a strange grin on his face, as though he was thinking about something else as he spoke... "I rinse them off in streams or lakes. The smell gets mostly off, anyway..."

Amy dared not to ask about the stinky water smell, but figured his clothes were long overdue for a real washing...

"This might take time." She concluded and turned back around. "I'll walk out first." She instructed, and carefully began to move before-...

"...You really aren't attracted to me being completely without... anything on?"

She slammed the door and hyperventilated a moment, pressing herself up against the door as her face turned a bright red.

She hadn't even thought about it!

She thought herself mature, even back when she was 12 she thought she practically was a lady. But being just a bit older now... she wondered why she wasn't as affected as she probably should be in this scenario.

"I just... I don't know!" she admitted, shrugging in her embarrassment and not looking back at him. "I'm just used to you, I guess! I didn't seem any harm in it!"

"Uh-huh..?" He seemed intrigued at that, leaning forward and teasing her slightly as he rose another eyebrow up. "...You are a mystery, Amy... I thought of all people, you'd be the easiest to see things that way..."

That way..?

She didn't know why that phrase bothered her so much, but she shook her head and tried not to squint her eyes to think too hard on it.

"I-I-I'm leaving!" she looked back slightly, pouting. "D-don't say I'm 'easy'... that's rude."

"...Sorry." Sonic leaned back up, taking on a different expression and seeming to realize what he said was actually kinda rude... He rubbed the back of his head and looked away. "I shouldn't have said that."

"At least you're aware..." she sighed out.

"Yeah, well... you're not a little girl anymore. I need to be more aware of you, sometimes..."

That also felt weird to hear, but she looked down and felt slightly excited to hear that Sonic saw her as a lady, and not a child anymore.

"O-oh. G-good." She creaked the door open again. "Meet back here when you're done showering, I'll have your clothes ready in an hour or two."

"WHAT!?"

Agitated, she slammed the door again and pivoted to stomp her foot at him. "Sonic! Please! This is a covert operation! Our reputations are at stake!"

"...You mean mine is at stake." He countered, a friendly competitive challenge on his face.

"Pfft! Stop making it seem worse than it is!"

"...Isn't it?"

"Ohh!" she opened the door, "Just hurry up and take a bath!"

"For 2 hours..?" he whined, and she just rolled her eyes and smiled, leaving him to his own means and walking towards the laundry station.

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The wind behind Sonic felt slightly more free than ever before. He didn't feel anything was weighing him down and it almost felt childish to run with his hands and feet completely exposed.

Amy was right, it's not like anyone would care, but it was an odd sight. Culturally, you just wear them. At least the shoes.

Sonic wasn't much into 'properness' but he did respect cultural. He had traveled so much, it was ingrained into him to be considerate of other lifestyles and beliefs.

But he absolutely loved his simple life. Full of excitements and dangers around every corner.

For a moment, he forgot about the spiraling darkness he was harboring within...

A huge, goofy grin was on his face as he finally halted in front of the men's showers.

There were too many people... he wouldn't be comfortable here.

He scanned around, trying to avoid eye contact and realized he was sticking out like a sore thumb. A celebrity like him? Having gone missing in action for 6 months?

He raced up to the ceiling, walking the beams and peering down to try and find a shower area that wasn't occupied.

"Shoot." Sonic muttered to himself, "Amy'll be mad if I come back to the room smelling like a warthog..." he tip-toed a moment before his eyes glistened at a locker room door titled 'private shower'.

"That's gotta be open." He smirked and looked around.

In this heavily piled bunker, there were a lot of soldiers. He'd have to move swiftly and stick to the shadows.

"Whelp, time to be stealthy!" he whispered to himself as he climbed down the beams.

Darting around, causing some men to wrap towels around themselves and ask if a 'draft' in an underground tunnel was even possible, he finally managed to slip his way into the private shower.

Looking around, it didn't look all that fancy, but it was something...

There were some towels to the side, a soap bar, the usual.

He locked the door and sighed.

"It's been a while this I've acted this domesticated..." he hunched forward, disappointed that he was obeying so willingly.

He then looked up at the low light above the room. '...But she's done a lot for me... recently.'

He scratched behind his head, feeling his nails more predominantly than before and brought his hand back to his face. "Hmm." He slightly glared at them and turned to a cabinet by the mirror.

He searched a bit before finding some clippers in a drawer. He turned to the mirror, then looked at the sink... shaking it off, he just adjusted the length a bit and cut some of it off, scratching behind his head to feel any difference.

Felt better now. More like how he liked it.

He put those away and looked for anything else he wasn't thinking about.

Q-Tips,... he may need cotton sticks to wash his ears...

He put a box of those down and kept digging,... he had about 2 hours anyway...

"Why does it take so long to wash a simple pair of socks, gloves, and the best shoes in the dang world?" he muttered to himself, just making jokes before seeing some shaving cream.

He humorously touched his chin, "Hmmm..." he squinted his eyes... "I'll pass!" he tossed it back down, snickering inwardly to himself.

"Oh-ho-ho!" he excitedly brought out some cologne and checked out the bottle. Standing upright again, his nose bounced a moment over it before reading the generic title. "Men's Body Spray..." he popped the lid off like a bottle and smelled, "Pfft! Sure to make the ladies faint." He mocked but was about to put it back before a thought entered his mind.

"...Hmm." He pulled it back out and looked it over...

"...Natural musk is a must." He nodded, huffing at the idea of even thinking about using it.

He was once again about to put it away... but took one last whiff and angrily put it on the sink with the rest of the items he had collected.

"Hmph." He ignored his decision then and walked into the shower.

"Wah-OH!" It was way too cold...

Not being used to these things, he sped out and shook himself off from the water.

"What kind of-!?" he peeked back into the shower, seeing the water still spraying and gave it a death glare. "I hate you in a bowl of dipped earth..." he spat out, "And I hate you through a spiked hose too..." he was referring to his dislike of water, before seeing the red and blue coloring on the dial.

He looked back up at the shower, before closing that door and opening the other.

As he adjusted it, supposing red means hot, he felt the water and then smiled.

"Ah. There is a system to this... controlling water... madness." He entered and started letting the water hit his chest and run its way through his fur.

He shook out his head and dipped it under the water as well.

Closing his eyes, he let out a sound of relief, finally able to start and clean himself 'decently' as Amy would say, for once.

He found the soap to smell weird and was all at once glad he had chosen the cologne...

While he continued to figure out how to get his individual quills lathered in shampoo, he found his mind racing back to the fight...

His process turned slower... less rushed as he wiped some of the falling suds off his arm...

Infinite mocking him... his outburst on the gurney... Amy...

He couldn't help but pause a moment, looking a little up from his thoughts as her words repeated in his mind...

"I believe no one can stay mad at a kiss forever."

His eyes drooped...

He felt his hand twitch and slowly pulled it up to the bridge of his eyes...

His eyes shifted, looking at nothing but remembering the sensation...

Under the darkness... He felt along his chest and shoulder... He couldn't feel anything. It was alluring that way. No emotion. No exhaustion. Less drama during the fight.

But the second he shifted back... all of that came rushing back and he realized it wasn't nothingness he was feeling... it was being numb to his own body. Something was inside him... controlling him.

His head suddenly violently whiplashed and he gripped it, banging himself into the wall adjacent to him. "Ahhh...!"

He trembled as his fur turned slightly dark... fading in and out as a memory resurfaced...

From the moon.

Infinite had tortured him, sure... but Eggman had run some funny experiments on him too. Laughing... All Sonic could recollect was laughing... as painful spikes of energy flooded into him and left him blacking out.

He hadn't remembered much... but just then, he seemed to have an episode of recalling that painful experience, and seeing a squirming substance be lowered down to him... a black form that would protrude little vines out and in all over itself...until one of them grew out so long that it looked like it was reaching down to him.

His vision was blurry... he had blacked out before knowing what was happening.

"That substance..." Sonic growled out through his teeth, kicking as he sat at the bottom of the shower.

The water kept running...

He breathed hard and put a hand up to block the water from restraining his breath.

He leaned his head back and turned his head away to let the water rinse out the rest of the shampoo's residue.

"Eggman... he must of done something to me... put that... that thing inside of me." He touched his chest, feeling something... he knew it wasn't an emotion.

Something wanted out... pulled itself back in... and then tried again to push out.

"Ugh." He shook his head down, "It's like Dark Gaia all over again." He tried to balance himself and lift up through a bar on the side of the shower, hoisting himself up and checking the clock as he moved the sliding door of the shadow.

His little 'episode' lasted a little longer than it felt...

"Dang..." he dropped his head again, before forcing it back up and running his hand through his quills. "At least I'm not late."

He cut the water off and grabbed the towel, careful to not slip and slide since he didn't have any traction on his shoes anymore.

He used the cotton sticks on his ears, vaguely feeling he could hear a bit better now but that was only to distract his mind from the previous instance.

He fixed himself up wrung out his quills, before leaning over the sink and feeling his stomach turn.

Maybe it was the foggy mist from having not turned on the fan... but he was feeling faint.

He looked at himself and checked to make sure he didn't have raccoon eyes or black underneath his lids.

He was glad he didn't look too beat up... that darkness that encased him seemed to protect him somewhat from too many injuries.

He looked at his fur, back to blue...

He sighed and felt like he was going to throw up.

"...Dang it... Shoot..." he outstretched his arms and clung to the sink, lowering his head to await if any of that delicious breakfast wanted to make a return appearance again...

When nothing happened, he finally shifted his attention to the cologne.

"...Why'd I even bother." He thought out loud to himself.

He stared at it... thinking about what Amy said about him smelling...

He took the cologne and didn't give it a second thought, just sprayed and got it over with.

He didn't particularly think it made him 'smell like a man' but if it made Amy act funny it would be worth it.

He was surprised she didn't think differently of him... he had wondered if she'd catch on but for the longest time, she innocently continued to act as though she didn't care.

...Did she not care about an 'all natural' man in her room?

He laughed, even though his stomach still was upset, he found that kinda funny.

Amy? The Amy Rose? Not once thinking anything about having him passed out in her bed or him taking his shoes off? Even down to his sock and gloves, she hadn't acted funny till he finally pointed it out.

He let her figure it out on her own, not wanting to state the obvious, but wondered why she hadn't thought anything...

He looked up in the mirror, checking himself out a second.

He hadn't lost his good looks...

"Eh, she was distracted." He concluded and wiped the mirror off.

Then it hit him.

His eyes widened.

She hadn't acted any particular way after kissing him either...

He looked down, a bit spooked.

"...Yeeahh... how 'bout that." He turned suspiciously to the mirror again, shifting his head towards it. "...She laughed..." he looked a little upset by that, feeling the shock of that moment come back and the dark substance inside him react to it.

"...She laughed..." he glared... and the dark fur came back over him... white eyes pierced the mirror's reflection, and long, dark strands moved like a wispy outline of himself...

"...She laughed." He closed his eyes and smiled, nonchalantly dismissing the emotion. The darkness melted away, almost shrieking in surprise at how quickly it was reduced back to being a small thing implanted inside him. He snickered and laughed, lifting his hand to his face. "Haha! She was only playin' me! Has she grown up that much? That kissing me isn't even a big deal anymore? Well, it's not like we had before but-" he kept trying to talk it out, something he never thought he'd ever need to do.

But being trapped in one location... forced him to stop and think more than act.

He was always constantly moving... now it was his thoughts and emotions that kept shifting within himself...

While his body was forced to remain relatively still...

A huge knock came from the door and Sonic turned around.

"Hey! Are you gonna be a while, bud?!" someone angrily hollered.

"...Just a sec." Sonic smiled sheepishly, sweating a little in awkward nerves as he realized he was still in need of an escape plan.

He smelled good now... by most people's standards, anyway. And he tried to clean well so as not to be scolded the next time he saw Amy.

Looking back at his countenance... he knew the darkness inside him was like a ticking time bomb...

He couldn't tell if he'd let it run rampant again... or if he'd hold it back until at least being safety away from his friends.

"You're quite useful." He spoke to himself, smiling as he saw the mirror fog up again. "...But I'm the master of my own will... you can't have my body without my will."

The mirror filled up with mist, covering his form as he moved away, looking a little psychotic for a moment... frowning at the mirror.

He then tilted his head, closing his eyes and smiling with a signature 'heh' before looking to the door.

"Be out in a Sonic second!"

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Amy sat on top of the dryer next to the one tumbling Sonic's freshly washed clothes. It had taken forever to get the swamp smell off his socks, another just to deal with the shoes... and finally, his gloves were the easiest to manage.

She had removed the buckles to shine them and was doing so with a lazy and exhausted look on her face.

There were bags under her eyes. Clearly, she didn't get enough sleep these last few nights.

She wondered if Sonic felt the same...

Because one dryer was spinning, the one next to her vibrated and shuffled lightly beside it, causing her to feel that as she shined the golden buckles.

The bumpy seat was ignored, however, thinking back on waking up to Sonic in her bed.

Why was he there..? He did seem pretty exhausted, but shouldn't he have been even more tired than her? It was strange... he woke up alive and well, but she was expecting him to need to be taken care of...

When the dryer stopped, her little 'ride' did as well and she looked down to check if they were really dry or not.

"Third times the charm." She mused, hopping down and opening the clear shield that had condensation all over it.

She took out the socks first, the worst of all, and dared to sniff...

"Ahhh~" her eyelids bounced as they quickly shifted down. "I thought it couldn't happen. But here you are. Smelling like heaven." She put the socks over her shoulder and took out the gloves, sniffing them and melting into the warmth they gave off. "Ahhhh!" she rubbed her head into them happily, "You're just like a dream!" she then excitedly reached for the shoes.

Luckily, they weren't scraped up or banged up by the washer or dryer. She was worried when they came out of the washer but was glad to see they formed anew when taken out of the dryer. "And you... friend?" she placed her nose humorously up to the tip of the opening of the shoe. "Or foe?" she stuffed her nose in, burrowing a little to sniff.

"Ahh-haha!" she kicked her feet from below and behind her. "You smell good too!" she closed the door and began to shine the shoes, really digging the rag in there and making sure they shined that beautiful red glint she loved so much.

She made sure they were so shiny, she could be able to see Sonic a mile away now!

After reattaching the buckles back on, she admired her handiwork. "If he doesn't marry me after this, I don't know what else will convince him!" She happily, with a squeal of excitement, took off to leave the laundry area...

But then stopped.

Her foot softly came back down as she turned around...

She studied the shoes...

"...I wonder..." she hurriedly hopped onto another washer, taking her own boots off and slowly slipping her feet into his shoes...

They were huge!

But not so big as to leave her unable to move in them.

She took off the other one and did the same thing, then... slowly... tried to lift herself down to the ground.

The second her toes touched the ground in his shoes... she felt the comfortable soles and how they completely supported the arch of her foot, the comfy feeling of soft underneath her was like padding that formed perfectly to her shape and design.

Her eyes drooped and she melted into them, stepping a few quick steps before slowing her pace.

If these fit just right, she might be tempted to steal them. If they were snug, she would have wanted to dart off and see what they were like to run in.

But sadly, though that was her original idea if she ran in them... she would have stumbled due to their largeness.

The point of his shoes would have made her 'pigeon-toed' run a severe injury hazard.

She would be tripping before she could even start an evenly paced jog.

"Aww..." she lowered her arms in disappointment, before turning the toes in, a girly signature of hers and smiled with a faint blush at how cute the shoes looked on her.

"...Maybe me and Sonic have more in common than I thought." She admired the shoes, liking the look and feel of them enclosing around her the skin of her feet.

She heard a bang of a door, someone entering with a basket, and quickly ducked down.

She took off the shoes as quickly and quietly as she could, slipping on her boots and struggling to make sure they were on right.

She hit them lightly against the ground to make sure they were secure, and then speedily ducked while running towards the door.

She made it out alive!

She just had to maneuver the halls...

Luckily, she had left when no one seemed to be waking up much yet.

But now there was a herd of them...

Looking around, she decided to hide the items and go for her sheets. If Sonic was there, she would explain her strategy, and he might even be impressed!

When she got back, however, he was nowhere to be seen.

"Tsk." She pouted, silently hoping to see him again. When she got her covers off she rushed back to the laundry room.

Ducking down yet again, she rose up and pretended to whistle as though she was just doing normal clothes.

She peeked over behind the basket she had placed the shoes, socks, and gloves behind...

Still intact!

She sighed in relief and hurriedly decided to rush her bedsheets process.

Spending much less time cleaning them, she rushed the washer and threw them into the dryer.

They smelled nice... she would worry about how really clean they were later.

She stuffed Sonic's clothes underneath the bedsheets and started to walk back.

Some friendly recruits tried to ask her if she needed help, but she politely declined them.

Making it back to the room, she closed the door with her back and let out a whine.

"I hate going undercover..." she hunched a little, "So exhausting..."

Her eyes blinked then... she looked up.

A pillar of perfection, she could smell a new scent she wasn't really familiar with before and stared as the light of her small, rectangularly wide window shone down upon Sonic's fur.

His silhouette highlighted a sporting lighter blue, but his regular blue still complimented the shine as he folded his arms and turned around, smiling normally to her.

"...I'm back." He stated proudly.

Amy was, admittedly, kinda surprised he made it back on time.

She thought it was funny that he would be punctual only for his clothing, and not for dates with her.

"Hi." She said with another dip of her chin to her collarbone, blushing...

He cocked up another eyebrow, not sure what her game was, but then looked a little sweeter to her.

"...Hi..."

They stared a moment...

"Oh, Sonic~ You're so dreamy~"

"Ah!"

"Just marry me! You smell so good~"

"Ooh! Quit that!"

"Hahaha..."

Sonic mocked what he thought Amy was thinking, and she immediately took some offense to it, but also laughed and threw her bedsheets at him.

"Hey! Come on! It was a joke!" He then turned his head aside, smirking, "Though, by the way you grew upset... I'd say it had more fact than fiction to it."

"Ohhhh, your shoes are dry!" she held his hidden clothes, showing them off as his eyes immediately fixated on the shine of his shoes...

A moment ago, he was staring out the window longingly... looking a little sorrowful too, before turning around and acting like her Sonic again.

She almost wanted to forget about the monster that had seeped into him, overtook his emotions, and left him wanting no emotions at all...

What kind of lure was that? Why would he freely give up emotions for power? It didn't make sense to her.

Emotions... were wonderful.

He tossed her bedsheets to the bed, but they tumbled from not being thrown far enough onto it as he made his way over to her.

"Are those..?"

She suddenly felt a sense of pride in her accomplishment soar through her from her feet to the top of her head.

"Em-hmm." She nodded, excited to see his amazed face. "Do you like it..?" she ducked her head again, blushing harder now as she felt his fingers touch hers a moment, taking his items from her.

"Wow! What a look!" he eagerly admired them, rubbing his elbow on the buckles and making a face in the reflected image he saw. "They really are good as new!"

She held herself with modest serenity, placing her hands on top of the other in front of her dress, and letting them hang down there as she closed her eyes and soaked in the praise. "I shined them. I wanted to surprise you."

"You really did a great job, Amy."

"Oh, Sonic~"

Her head turned and her hands came up to her cheeks, swaying her dress around at his words.

"Okay... maybe I do act like that still... but it's only because you're worth it~" she accepted that his tease was accurate but didn't care. He had complimented her hard work, and that was enough to make her swoon once again over her true, blue hero.

"They look swell!" he slipped on his gloves.

Amy stopped to watch carefully.

He then started to put on his socks, then his shoes...

"Nice a warm too." he seemed pleasantly pleased with her efforts, and she slightly puffed up a side of her cheek, throwing her fists down subtly.

She didn't feel anything... She didn't find it suggestive and didn't feel anything weird watching him put his clothes back on.

Was she even a woman?

Maybe she loved him in a different way... but she was sure she felt something when...

She remembered their first kiss... not really a first, since it was just a peck on the cheek, and covered her muzzle with one hand daintily as she thought about it.

Had he... thought about it too?

He stuck up his toe and admired his shoes, smiling at their new complexions and how neat they shined now.

"I'll be a new, shiny blur now!" he winked to her, and she melted once more with bubbles spiraling up from her stomach to her chest, resting like soda and tickling her just below the throat.

They compiled around her collarbone and she had to gently press on it to release some of the nervous buzz that floated below and underneath her skin...

"Thanks, Amy."

She waited for it.

"I appreciate it."

She felt her body push back up against the door.

Now... that was feeling.

She giggled like a love-struck goof and held her hands over her face.

"Aw~ It was nothing. After all, nothing's too much for my Sonic~" she doted, reverting right back to her old self again. This left Sonic with another awkward sweat drop, thinking the same thing to himself.

"Oh... But now that you're all better... A-and clean-" Amy still wanted to know why he was in her bed... did he choose to sleep beside her? Was he trying to state something..? Something... wonderful?

Her eyes lit up at the thought, "I... Why were you asleep next to-"

"Amy."

He cut her off again, but his smile never faded.

"I'm awfully hungry still..."

He patted his stomach and looked to the tray.

"That food was really something. I wouldn't mind another bite!"

"Oh!"

Immediately, her body leapt into action, "Of course! I'm sure Tails didn't eat all the bacon. I'll be back before you know it!" she placed a finger up to her mouth, wondering about that, but then waving before Sonic stopped it.

"Wait..!"

She turned to see his hand reaching her, and something inside her wanted to flinch back... to move away... As if some memory of his touch haunted it...

What was... that feeling?

He stopped with a restrained smile, as if trying to hide something and pulled his hand back.

"I... I just wanted to say something real fast."

"Oh... okay."

Amy turned back around.

He stared at her a moment, losing the smile.

She wondered why he looked so deeply into her eyes... so seriously...

"...Thanks."

He smiled again, walking a little more up to her and closing his eyes, placing a finger under his nose as he turned his face slightly.

"For everything. I really needed ya back there."

She felt her heart skip a beat again and immediately lunged forward.

"Always!"

She cried out, wrapping her arms around his neck as he angled his face away from her.

This was normal. The normal routine~

But then she smelled something nice, and her nose crinkled a minute.

"...Is that cologne?"

She could feel him flinch underneath.

"Emm~"

She laid her head on his shoulder, causing him to slightly look back to see what she was doing.

She slid her head up behind his face, smiling.

"...Now that's a smell better than anything in the whole wide universe."

She suddenly felt something, a thump inside and lowered her ear down slightly.

His heart was beating unusually fast for his resting state... her medical mind started wondering if he was overexerting himself. Was he just pretending to look alright?

What she couldn't see... was that Sonic's muzzle was a shade pinker than before... and his eyes looked filled with manly pride and accomplishment.

'Yes!' he mentally praised himself, seeming to have wanted her to come closer to notice in the first place.

When she didn't go to fetch the tray, he panicked she wouldn't ever get to notice, and so he quickly made up a small plan...

He just delighted in the fact that he swayed her to him and won some noticeable attraction and interest from her in the end.

It was a little odd that she didn't get riled up from him in her bed before... so this was just to set the status quo back to normal...

At least... that's what he told himself it was all about.

"W-what? Cologne? Please."

He fanned his hand and moved her off of him, still acting like a hot-shot and talking cockily.

"What need of I for that? All it does is drawn in women. I have enough trouble with just one, as is."

She pouted and glared up at him, but her expression softened and she nodded, "Yeah... best to not attract unwanted attention." She winked, "I like the limited competition."

His smile became wonky and showed his obvious nerves at that comment.

She then moved back to the door, looking away a moment before straight up back at him. "I'll only be gone a moment... You'll wait and stay here... right?" her hand reached for his own.

He was taken off guard when she held his hand... staring at it.

His shock turned to sorrow again,... but she didn't know why.

"Hmm?" she tilted her head again, cutely innocent of what was going on in his mind.

He breathed lightly and then closed his eyes again, open them only slightly to smile back down at their hands.

"Sure thing... Amy."

Her eyes sparkled with renewed love and hope, and she raced out the door.

"You won't wait too long! Promise!"

He felt he moment her hand's touch left his own... and could feel the substance inside of him start grumbling a rippling effect through his whole body.

...Did it feed off emotions? Or hate them all together...

Perhaps... not these kinds of warm... fleeting feelings Sonic never dwelt too long on before.

It was kinda... scary.

How much he was thinking today.

"Goodbye... Amy."

But the door was already shut tight.

Not a moment later, Amy came darting back in—"Sooonic~ Look what I got for you~ Tails had apparently 'shared' the rest of the food, it had been sitting out there a while... But lucky for you, I'm a fast baker! Look! A muffin!" she held up the delicious baked good before lowering it down to see nothing in the room...

There was her piled up sheets all bundled and draping off the side of the bed...

Her notes... swaying with something new on them...

She looked to the window,... her heart sinking at it being wide open and up, bashing against itself every time the breeze hit against it.

She walked over to the notepad... feeling tears and wondering why he wouldn't just tell her...

She saw her drawing... then flipped to the next page.

Small handwriting was scribbled there...

Sorry, Amy.

(Hey! So someone told me short chapters are better if that means I get them out faster. In that case-! You get this chapter XD Enjoy!)