Sonic the Hedgehog

Value

"Just wait out here for a sec," Amy says to the three boys in the hall outside of her apartment room before she goes inside and shuts the door.

The hallway has a nice color of wooden brown and has a scent that smells of sunflowers. The actual complex itself is surprisingly neat, making Tails question Amy's occupation. Having lived the past five years off of war benefits, the young fox has thankfully never had to enter the working field. There, he would surely get mocked like he used to before he began a life of mostly isolation.

"This is a waste of time," Knuckles grunts.

"Is there ever a time when you're not grumpy?" Sonic asks with his usual smirk.

Knuckles doesn't know what it is about that smirk, but it makes him want to punch it right off of the hedgehog's blue face.

"We don't know how close the enemy is to finding us right now!" he continues. "We should've just taken the emerald by force. That girl would understand if she knew what was at stake."

"Okay, one- you of all people should know how it feels to have something important to you stolen," Sonic says. "And two- you shouldn't be worried about how close Robotnik is... unless you're a chicken."

"What's a chicken?" Knuckles asks.

Sonic doesn't know how to respond. Tails breaks the silence.

"He's saying you're scared-"

"I AM NOT SCARED!" Knuckles announces to his allies and the surrounding rooms. "I am a proud echidna! We crush all opposition and demolish those who stand in our way!"

"Atta boy, Knux," Sonic says. "Then there should be no issue. Let's just explain the situation to this kind girl, take the emerald, and continue the search for the others. If Robotnik gets in our way, we'll smash his robots, wipe the floor with his mercenaries, and maybe squash him in the process. Then we'll have all seven and foil whatever scheme he's cooking up."

On cue, Amy opens the door to her apartment, smiling as her cheeks still blush red.

"Okay, you can come in now!" she says.

Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles walk into the apartment, and the two boys with the exception of Knuckles are wowed at how neat it looks. The front hall has a welcoming, pink rug, the living room has a large white sofa positioned next to a window where a potted plant sits, and in front of it is a coffee table where a pile of books is. In the kitchen area, the counter has a vase of roses, and the rest of it is clean as can be with a good refrigerator and stove. The fragrance of the apartment is also very pleasing to inhale, as it somehow smells like a fresh garden.

"This is a nice place you got here, Rose," Sonic says as he walks into the living room.

"Oh, thank you, Sonic!" Amy says, her calm expression not at all reflecting her bubbling insides. "And just Amy is fine!"

As Sonic looks around, his eyes wander to another hall leading to what is presumably Amy's bedroom. The hedgehog first notices the pink lighting, then the shelf, then- his eyes widen. Filling each of the shelves are... action figures of himself. All of them come in different shapes, sizes, and materials, but they are all unmistakeably him. Just to the left of the shelf, he can see half of a poster from where he is currently. He can make out very familiar blue quills and-

Sonic feels a breeze shoot past him. Amy sprints to the bedroom and slams the door shut, startling Tails and Knuckles.

"Don't mind that!" Amy says in between pants. "That room belongs to my, uh... roommate! Yes, my roommate! She's not here often but she seems to be a pretty big fan of yours! Hehe... heh."