Everything Changes (A Sonic Boom Fanfic)

Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten

Kay silently trailed behind Sonic and Amy as the three of them made their way to Meh Burger – apparently the only place any of them went to get food, from what she could tell. That had to be unhealthy. As they walked she pondered over everything Sonic had told her about his past, mulling it over even as she observed him interacting with Amy. He seemed much more comfortable and open with her here – flirtatious, almost. But then again, she hadn't seen Sally Acorn pop up and catch his attention.

Tails and Knuckles were already there when they finally arrived, along with a girl Kay had never seen before and didn't recognize whatsoever. The closest comparison she could come up with was Marine the Raccoon, but that was a stretch at best.

"Oh, hey, Sticks," Sonic greeted as he and Amy took their places at the table. "Haven't seen you in a while."

"I had a gang of war-crazy frogs invade my home last week," the girl explained casually. "Had to send them back to the underground, then clean up their mess." Her gaze drifted over to Kay and stayed there. "Who's this?"

Amy piped up instantly as Kay took a seat between her and Knuckles at the opposite end of the table from Sonic. "This is our new friend Kay," she explained. Then, looking at Kay, she added, "This is Sticks the Badger. She's the one I was telling you about yesterday."

"She knows who I am?!" Sticks cried suddenly, looking half angry and half scared out of her mind.

Kay frowned in confusion. "Uh...just your name. Nothing else, really." She briefly recalled Amy's mentioning that this girl was crazy and lived in the jungle, which would explain both the eccentric behavior and the fact that the gang apparently hadn't seen her in a while even though the village seemed pretty close-knit.

"Names have power," Sticks retorted. "You know someone's name, you can do anything!"

Kay blinked, stared at her along with the rest of the group, and decided it was way too early in the day for this. She sighed and shook her head. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Amy leaned in to theater-whisper in Sticks' ear. "She has amnesia."

"Amnesia?" Sticks frowned. "Do you remember anything?"

"I mean...I remember my name, I guess. That's something."

"Nothing else?"

Kay thought about it. Was there anything else she could tell these guys about her previous life that wouldn't give away the fact that she had come from a different dimension? No, not really, she decided at last. And none of that matters now anyway. It's not like I can go back. So, in response to Sticks' inquiry, she shook her head.

Sticks suddenly jumped up on her seat, pointed a finger at Kay, and shouted, "Alien!"

Everyone at Meh Burger turned to either look at Sticks or the newcomer she was pointing to. Kay didn't know what to do or say, but thankfully Amy came to her rescue.

"Sit down, Sticks," she scolded, tugging on the badger's arm to make her obey. "Kay is not an alien."

"That's what she wants us to think!" Sticks cried again. "Look at her! She came out of nowhere and now she doesn't know anything?" She turned to Tails. "You and Sonic found her asleep on the mountain. She has no idea how she got there and doesn't know anything about the island? She went to the library to gather information. And didn't you say you only found her because you were investigating an anomaly that you'd pinpointed at that location?" Sticks pointed at Kay again. "She's an alien sent to gather information about us to report back to her overlords so they can invade and turn us all into mindless robotic servants!"

Kay was so completely lost she didn't know what to do. She shook her head. "I'm not an alien!"

"Are you sure?" Knuckles asked skeptically, eyeing her. He held up four fingers. Wait – he has fingers now? "How many fingers am I holding up?"

"Four."

"Ha! Wrong! It's..." He began counting for himself, got to the end, and a blank look came across his face. "Oh, yeah. I can't count."

What is wrong with this world? Kay thought incredulously.

"Everyone take it easy. No one here is an alien," Sonic spoke up authoritatively. "Kay's just having a rough time right now. Having amnesia doesn't make you an alien."

"Unless it coincides with an anomaly in the space-time continuum," Sticks pointed out.

Kay put her head in her hands and sighed. Once again she was reminded how completely backwards this world was from the Mobius she knew. All that youthful optimism she had about being able to learn and adjust here was quickly fading away.

"Sticks, that's enough," Amy said with a frown. "It's too early for this. Let's all just eat and have a good morning. Someone turn on the Comedy Chimp show. It'll help lighten the mood."

Sonic stood up. "I'll order for us. Be right back."

As he walked away, Kay caught Tails' glance and she froze. He was looking at her as if for the first time, with a whole new spark of suspicion in his eyes that hadn't been there before. It appeared to her as though he was taking Sticks' accusations seriously. She sighed again and turned her eyes to the nearest TV, which Knuckles had turned to Amy's requested program. This was going to be a long day.