The Girl With the Light in Her Eyes

Chapter 9: Reunion

Their feet penetrated the soft, moist earth below, each step seeming to threaten to absorb their bodies into the ground without hesitation. Nothing in the planet seemed harmless anymore: after all, if even Sonic the hedgehog was someone who killed, someone who wouldn't hesitate to make one of the biggest mistakes of his life, then no one could be trusted.

"Are you sure...that now is the time?"

Tails twisted his head slowly to gaze at his stoic partner, noting that Shadow always seemed to be staring forward, looking past step one to the final step; but that kind of thinking would get them no where with obstinate blue hedgehog- and even Shadow knew that, deep down.

"It's been years. What better time than the present to knock some sense into that blue idiot?"

"Still, Shadow," Tails grumbled doubtfully, "Sonic's in a really fragile state...and we don't even have a plan of what we'd say to him."

"Like I need a plan to kick his blue butt."

Eyes widening, Tails sped up to jump in front of Shadow, instinct telling him to defend Sonic from the trouble about to find him. A fierce light in Tails' eyes that had been seemingly long extinguished burned bright once more, refusing to allow the onyx hedgehog to get his selfish wish.

"This isn't why we're doing this," Tails finally spoke after a staring contest between the two. The fox had no fear for a change: knowing the truth had given him more drive than ever. "You said it yourself to Knuckles earlier."

"Do you think there's any other way to get him to see the world for what it is? Talking to him will lead to his escape, and the cowardly cycle will reset itself once more."

Tails hesitated; it was true that he had no better ideas, he was much better at fixing machines than fixing people. But Tails knew that this wouldn't be right, couldn't do anything but add damage to what was already destroyed.

"If you do that, Shadow..."

"If I do it then what?"

"He'll have lost us, too."

Empathy flashed across Shadow's eyes, recalling the tenderness Amy had offered him all of those years ago on the Ark. A nostalgic frown covered his muzzle, realizing that he had more in common with the blue hedgehog than he thought.

"...I see. I believe I let my emotions get the better of me. My apologies." Shadow's posture straightened, his eyes regaining the haze that usually covered his pure black pupils. It was rare for the hedgehog to let his feelings show through with such a raw intensity.

"It's alright, Shadow, but I think we should head-"

Fast footsteps sounded from the distance, like the whirring of an engine; there was only one person whose legs could move like that.

Shadow was gone. But Tails couldn't move that quickly.

"Tails! Tails!"

Shuffling on his feet, Tails turned to face the direction of the wind, startled by the amount of sheer enthusiasm in Sonic's cry. The last he had seen his friend, he was a mess of a broken hedgehog. But here Sonic was, running.

"Sonic?" Tails was too shocked to hide the disbelief in his voice.

"In. The. Flesh." Flashing him a smirk, the blue hedgehog skidded to a halt in front of his best friend, looking lively and rejuvenated as ever. It was as if he had gone through a time machine.

"Are you...feeling okay?" Tails mumbled awkwardly. He was having trouble facing Sonic after hearing Shadow's story, especially after hearing it twice and remembering each and every little detail. At the same time disgust filled him while looking at his best friend, guilt also flooded his heart.

"I feel great, Tails. Well...for the most part. But I've gotta keep up appearances; a little lady is watching me, after all." A dreamy smile covered Sonic's peach muzzle.

"Little lady?" Ironically, the same anger that Tails had tamed within Shadow began to bubble up to his own mouth. Tails was still a kid despite his intelligence, and was unable to have the self control to stop himself from spitting out his next sentence.

"You mean the one you killed? That's what you're so happy about?"

Sonic froze.

"I know. You're wondering how I know. Well because my best friend wouldn't tell me, I had to go finding out for myself! Do you have any idea how much we all loved Amy Sonic? Do you have any idea what we're all going through because of...because of..."

He broke. The tears were set free, and Sonic just stared for a moment, seeing himself within Tails.

"I..I just.."

Peach arms wrapped themselves around his orange torso, squeezing the fox tightly. Shadow watched from afar, pondering how this would play out as the fox bawled into Sonic's arms, unable to refuse his tender grasp. 'Nothing really will break those two apart," Shadow thought to himself, part jealous and part repulsed. He decided that it was time for him to take his leave, and the dark hedgehog vanished into the darkening night.

"I'm sorry, Tails."

"Tell AMY that!"

"I did."

"Wha...What?"

Sonic sighed; he wished he could have thought over what he was going to tell his brother. But that's just who Sonic was: always winging it, because honesty always works best for him.

"Listen," Sonic started, "I don't know who told you. My bets are on Shadow, but hey, you never know. To be completely honest," Sonic tried to avoid Tails's gaze, feeling intimidated by how absorbed the fox's blue eyes were in his speech. "I didn't really know myself until she got me to remember. I guess when it happened I was just so...so disgusted...so in denial of it that...it just became unreal to me. Another nightmare."

Sonic cringed as he spoke, and while Tails still felt disgust and a twinge of hatred within him, empathy overtook all of those emotions.

"I'm sorry Tails. But I think I can make things right."

Sonic offered Tails a small smile when he noticed the bewildered look on his friend's face.

"You might not believe me. But hey," Sonic shrugged, "if Eggman can build a ship that can handle his weight while it flies, anything is possible.

And for the first time in a long time, Sonic the Hedgehog genuinely laughed in front of Tails.

I have come to a decision on the status of my stories.

It's been a while. I'm sorry. As sorry as Sonic is for killing Amy (well maybe not that sorry). But I have resolved to finish all of my unfinished stories, because I love them too much to abandon them, and I know I hate when a story is unfinished!

I'm going to finish them all, but I'll do it one at a time so that I may put my all into one story at a time. This story will be the first. I know where I'm going, and how this will end, so don't worry about this one finishing! It definitely will.

Thank you all so much for your patience! I love you all, and I promise I won't abandon you! If you wanna send me some love too, I'd really appreciate if you left me a review! Reviews are what fuel me to keep writing chapters, so if you want chapters faster...;D

Thanks!

-Breeze