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Autumn was in full swing. With the brisk wind of the season, the boughs of hardwood trees rained their leaves upon the world in a shower of ruddy splendor, painting the world in idyllic shades of red, orange, and gold. Halloween was quickly approaching, and the denizens of Station Square were completely invested, setting up all manner of pumpkins and festive decorations to enjoy the season. Conversely in nearby Emerald Hill, Mobius’s fastest hedgehog was taking a breather on his front porch, taking slow sips of his coffee while watching the fall sun begin to sink beyond the steeple of the old Baptist church at the end of the street. Sonic loved this time of year: the temperature, the food, the company.
The blue speedster had been taking things slower recently, having decided to bite the bullet and purchase a home in the mountains near station square so Tails could have a proper education alongside a stable place to live that wasn’t his workshop. Coincidentally, his decision to purchase the house came suspiciously close to Amy Rose’s own move to the quiet neighborhood; but his friends hadn’t pried, and life moved on. The two-story little number was the perfect size for the brothers, and the old rocking chairs on the patio had quickly become the cobalt hedgehog’s favorite roost in the cooler months. He even had the time to catch up on a plethora of books he had been meaning to read; He was finishing up “The Hobbit” when the phone began to ring.
Placing his book down onto the railing of the weathered wooden stoop before him, Sonic rose to his feet as the wind picked up, twirling the fallen leaves in new spiraling courses. Crossing the threshold of the porch onto the checkered linoleum of the kitchen he deftly made his way to the source of the ringing, plucking the phone from its jack.
“Hello, Sonic the Hedgehog speaking-”
“Hi Sonic!” The bubbly voice of Amy Rose came through the receiver. “I was worried you wouldn’t hear the phone ringing from the porch.”
The hedgehog was pleasantly surprised, and smiled upon hearing the fuchsia hedgehog’s voice. Maturity had done the cobalt hero a great deal of good, and his feelings for Amy Rose were a byproduct of that. She was, of course, one of the deciding factors for his move to Emerald Hill; not that he would ever admit it… A hedgehog needs his pride after all!
“Oh come on, like I would miss one of your calls- besides, I’ll be swinging by your place with Tails later tonight for the party anyways.”
“I don’t think showing up at my house in a few hours would make up for purposefully ignoring my phone calls, Sonic.” She deadpanned.
“Hey hey hey, it was a hypothetical. Besides, I’m not that bad about responding… anymore.”
Amy sighed a breathy giggle before answering.
“Small miracles I suppose… Anyways, I was wondering what time you two were going to be coming by tonight. The party starts at 6:30. I know that’s not exactly prime time for a Halloween party, but I wanted to make sure Tails, Cream, and Charmy could join in before it gets too late.”
“No, that sounds like a plan to me… It’s a school night after all and I don’t feel like trying to get Tails up tomorrow morning after a 1:00 A.M. sugar crash, and I’m sure Vector and Vanilla feel the same.”
“The real challenge will be convincing him not to eat all his candy at once tonight!”
“Hahahaha! You remember that from last year, huh? He’s a little more adjusted now so I think it’ll be fine… but time will tell I guess. Do you happen to have a costume this year”
“I feel like I wouldn’t be much of a Halloween party host if I didn’t!”
Sonic began to consider what costume she could have possibly picked this year, but before he could ask her, she beat him to the punch.
“As for what it is, you’ll just have to wait and see~” Sonic could hear the excitement evident in her voice.
“That sounds like a plan, Ames! Although… maybe I’ll show up early and take a little sneak peek~”
After a few moments of silence the two started snickering at the sheer absurdity of their overly clichéd flirting. After catching his breath, the cobalt hedgehog realized that he would have to start making sure Tails was in his costume.
“I’d love to continue chatting with you Ames- but I need to make sure Tails is all set to go. I’ll see you in about an hour.”
“Alright I’ll see you both later, Byeeeee!”
—-----------------
Upon placing the phone back on its jack, Amy Rose fell backward over the arm of her couch, exhaling loudly as she stared up at the stippled ceiling from her contorted position. The fuchsia hedgehog had yet to pick out a costume despite her insistence to her blue beu. It wouldn’t get any easier if she waited until the last minute. So, rolling over the side of the couch, she righted herself.
The pink licorice wallpaper was unrecognizable behind the deluge of oranges and blacks that masked her home's usual strawberry charm in a veil of festive darkness. Decorations filled the space, so she had to meander through a multitude of streamers and other spooky baubles to reach her room, which was just the beginning of her dilemma. Fighting with her closet, her eyes lit up when she got her hands on what she was looking for, a large box labeled ‘costumes’ on the side.
“This is perfect! I’m so glad I kept all of these!”
Amy Rose loved a holiday, it was the reason she hosted most of the group's parties, and as a result she had quite a few costumes on hand, but she needed something unique this year. Blindly grabbing the first outfit out of the box, she found herself holding a blue gown right out of Arthurian legend.
“Hmmm… It’s cute, but not really what I’m looking for.”
Tossing it onto the bed next to her, she grabbed the next article, finding a green plumber’s cap and overalls.
“Ehhh, too on the nose, and I can’t rock a mustache”
Ever so slowly she soldiered on through every last outfit in that box until there was a pile of costumes on the bed ranging from pirates to penguins. Frustrated, the fuchsia hedgehog flopped onto the bed, not caring about the costumes beneath her.
“Ooooooh, what am I gonna do! Sonic’s getting here in an hour and I still don’t have anything! Maybe I should just go with a witch again like last year. Hopefully Tikal doesn’t have the same idea…”
Rolling over in bed as she sulked, a picture on her vanity caught her eye. It was taken shortly after Sonic saved her from the clutches of the Metal Sonic during their adventure on Little Planet; ah, she was so cute back then in her large orange tutu and bright green shirt… THAT’S IT!
Practically flying to her closet, Amy began piecing together one of her best ideas yet. Sonic won’t know what hit him…
—-----------------
“Tails!!! We’re going over to Amy’s soon, are you almost ready to leave?”
The blue speedster stood in the foyer, ready to shout up to his little brother once more. Sonic smiled to himself as fast foot falls filled his ears rather than words as the aforementioned kit sailed down the banister at high speed to land at the hedgehog’s side.
“I’m all set!”
A long white lab coat and a pair of over-engineered goggles adorned the smartly dressed fox. He had decided to be a mad scientist this year, which was fitting in Sonic’s eyes, especially since he had moved his things into the attic. Sonic liked to call it his evil lair much to his little brother’s annoyance.
“Looking good Tails! I almost wish I went as Frankenstein’s monster now!”
“Thanks, Sonic! It definitely took some time to get everything together. Amy was a big help with sewing up the lab coat.”
“I’ll bet she was, we’ll have to do something nice to thank her some time soon, maybe invite her to dinner?”
“Like you’re inviting her over because of the lab coat” Tails murmured to himself. He, much like the rest of their friends, felt like the two hedgehog’s were about as subtle as a freight train, and wondered when they would actually make things official, because at this point they might as well be.
“Did you say something buddy?” Sonic asked, snapping out of his daydream.
“Nope, just going over my costume to make sure I have everything. I think I’m all ready!”
“Then lead the way Dr.Frankenstein!”
Making their way to the front porch, Sonic placed a bowl of candy on top of the railing. He wasn’t a big fan of leaving bowls of candy out for trick or treaters like this, but desperate times called for desperate measures, promising himself he would hand it out personally when they got back, the pair began their trek to Amy’s.
—-----------------
The sun had fallen, basking the sleepy little neighborhood in a blanket of dusk, perfect for the spookiest day of the year. A slight chill ran through the hedgehog, and for a moment wondered if Tails might be cold, but one look at the kit excitedly bounding down the sidewalk without a care in the world banished that thought from his mind. The two had stopped at a number of houses before finding themselves before Shadow and Tikal’s home. The young couple was seated in a pair of rocking chairs, nursing what appeared to be cups of coffee and handing out candy.
“Hey you two! How are the love birds on their first Halloween together?”
“Very well, thank you.” Shadow responded dryly, “It’s actually Tikal’s first Halloween ever.”
“And I’ve had a wonderful time!” the echidna added.
“Well I’m glad you’ve decided to get into the ‘spirit’ of things…” Sonic nudged his sable doppelganger's arm and Shadow deadpanned.
Taking a closer look, the pair were indeed dressed up, but Sonic was puzzled over Shadow’s costume.
“I can see that Tikal is a witch, but Shadow, what are you supposed to be?”
All the blue hedgehog knew was that he was dressed like a sort of evil looking ringmaster, complete with a black suit and overly large black top hat.
“He’s Mr. Dark!” chimed Tikal
“Like from the Ray Bradburry book?”
The sable hedgehog nodded thoughtfully. “I liked the idea of matching Tikal from a literary perspective. We saw Macbeth performed the other day and I just finished Something Wicked This Way Comes, so when Tikal was trying to decide on a costume, we felt like these sort of themed costumes would be fun.”
Sonic was impressed at the attention to detail they both gave their costumes, especially since Shadow wasn’t exactly known for his holiday participation before he got with Tikal. The onyx hedgehog was full of surprises these days.
“I’ve got to give you both credit Shads, you really knocked it out of the park this year! And speaking of this year, I thought you and Tikal were going to be at Amy’s for her annual Halloween party?”
Shadow’s brow furrowed for a moment as he checked his watch. “I guess it is about time to start heading on over; we’ve been a bit sidetracked with trick-or-treaters”
“It’s been really fun seeing all of the kids in their cute costumes!” Tikal gushed “But I would have liked to give out a bit more candy…”
Sonic knew that Shadow wasn’t one to disappoint his wife, it was one of the gruff hedgehog’s gentler qualities, and Sonic wouldn’t rib him for that.
“We’ll probably stay here for now, Sonic.” Glancing behind himself to gauge Tikal’s reaction. We may come by later… Please let Rose know we said hello.”
“Sounds like a plan, Shads. I’ll let her know!”
Watching the two continue on their merry way, Tikal noticed a thoughtful expression had taken her husband.
“Something on your mind, dear?”
Shadow readjusted the rocking chair to face her and took a long sip from a mug of cider before answering.
“He may actually make it official.”
“And why do you think that?” she questioned. Not that Tikal was surprised; the blue blur’s feelings were as transparent as his speed, but acting on those feelings had always been his Achilles heel.
“It was the way his eyes lit up when I brought up Rose, it’s the same kind of reaction I had to you before we started dating.”
“You’re a sap, you know that.” Tikal’s face held a light dusting of red while she leaned in to kiss him on the cheek.
He winked at her, “What can I say, you’ve put a spell on me”.
She winked back “And now you’re mine”
The couple shared a chuckle before settling in, ready for an army of children coming up the street in search of tricks and treats.
—-----------------
At last the pair arrived at Amy’s house, and Sonic couldn’t help but be blown away at the fuchsia hedgehog’s commitment to decorating. Her bright pastel home was nearly unrecognizable amidst the many spooky decorations adorning its facade.
The large oak trees that dotted her yard contained a series of massive cobwebs interspersed with twinkling orange lights, bathing those that walked under them in a pallid orange glow. The yard itself had been transformed into a graveyard, complete with a number of skeletons posed in all kinds of silly ways amongst the fall foliage. Of course none of it was particularly scary, but that was Amy’s style, making sure everyone could enjoy the season and not scare the little ones. Approaching the front door, Sonic could feel his heartbeat quicken ever so slightly. ‘Nerves? At a time like this? You’re just coming here to see Amy… then again maybe the nerves are a little warranted.’
Before he could continue, the front door swung open, rendering the hero speechless. Before his very eyes stood Amy Rose, or should he call her Rosy the Rascal? The old nickname would be fitting, given her choice of dress; an orange pleated skirt was accompanied by a pair of lavender sneakers with orange laces to boot. She even found a stand-in for her old puffy-sleeved green shirt complete with white accents. He stood dumbfounded for a moment, unsure of what to say before Amy’s voice snapped him out of his stupor.
“Hey guys, I’m glad you both could make it! The fuchsia hedgehog gestured to the foyer behind her. “Come on in!”
The inside of the home was just as immaculately decorated as the exterior, with bands of streamers fixed to the tops of doorways to form curtains, while a myriad of other chilling decorations lined the walls. Walking the pair to the living room, it was clear that Amy hadn’t lost her touch. Just about everyone they knew was packed into the space. Vector and Espio were trying to bob for apples, but it was quickly turning into a contest of who could hold their breath the longest with Tangle rooting enthusiastically for the aubergine ninja. Big was having a spirited conversation with Mighty and Ray about the best fishing spots in town, while Vanilla was supervising Cream, Charmy, and the other children who were carving pumpkins in their own dedicated little corner.
Seeing his opportunity to give the two some time alone, Tails made a beeline for Cream and Charmy.
“So did Tails have fun trick-or-treating? I know he’s been looking forward to it.” Amy asked as she watched him interact with the other children.
“He had a blast! We stopped by around 20 to 25ish houses on the way here. I was a little worried at first with how cold it is out right now but I didn’t hear a peep from him about the weather.”
As Sonic kept going on about all the unique houses they stopped at, Amy couldn’t help but get swept up in how sweet she thought it was that he was this enthusiastic about spending time with Tails on Halloween.
“-Then we ended up stopping by Shadow and Tikal’s place. I still can’t believe how much he’s changed.”
“I’d say he’s always been that way.” She countered, “He’s just never felt comfortable enough to show it. Love does that to you.”
“I suppose you’re right,” He answered sagely.
—-----------------
Moving further into the living room, things only got more dynamic.
Sonic whistled as he took it all in “This is crazy Ames; you weren’t kidding about how many people were gonna show up!”
“I know, right? It just seems to get bigger and bigger every year. I was worried I wouldn’t have time to prepare enough food for everyone.”
Sonic clutched his heart in faux agony “Say it ain’t so!”
The fuchsia hedgehog giggled at his antics.
“Lucky for you, I made sure there was enough for everyone.”
“And they call me a hero! Did you happen to make any-”
“Yes sonic, I made chili dogs”
His ears perked up at that, turning to her with an inquisitive look in his eye.
“Where might those be?”
Leading him through into the kitchen and away from the bustle of the party, Sonic watched as she pulled a foil covered plate from the oven.
“They’re not exactly freshly made… but they’ve been kept warm since I made them. I understand if you don-”
He held a finger up to her lips, cutting her off.
“Amy Rose, when have I ever turned down one of your world-famous chili dogs?” She responded by shaking her head. “Exactly. Now please hand me the plate.”
Gently, as though he were handling glass, Sonic took off the foil, revealing his prize. However, it was only a matter of moments before he was done.
Wiping his hands free of crumbs he turned back to Amy, who was slightly astonished. She could never quite understand how he ate that fast.
“Were they good?” She questioned, knowing the answer but wanting to hear it anyway.
“Let me put it this way… If my breath didn’t reek of chili dog I’d kiss you” Sonic held a smug grin as he made his proclamation, clearly goading a flustered response out of her.
The blue blur apparently had forgotten who he was speaking to. Amy Rose has been waiting for this for years; he was essentially giving her permission after all.
Grabbing him by the collar she pulled him close, only a hair’s width away; she was playing hard ball here of all places??!! He hadn’t expected anything close to this, not that he was complaining. His heart hammered in his chest, but as he started to close the distance she let go, leaving him utterly befuddled.
Bounding to the other side of the kitchen, she turned to face him with a playful smirk dancing upon her features.
“Tell you what loverboy, get a mint and then we’ll talk…”
She slipped away just as the monster mash started playing.
Wiping the clueless look from his face, Sonic shook his head and smiled as he made his way after her, getting ready to dance the night away with the rest of their friends.
“Forget Eggman, that girl is going to be the death of me”.
—-----------------
The rest of the party was a haze of music, costumes, and candy. Sonic wasn’t sure he’d ever danced this much in his life.
But now things had begun to wind down. Most everyone had gone home by now. Vector took it upon himself to walk Cream and her mother home, which left the Chaotix without the head of their troupe. Which meant it wasn’t long before Espio followed suit, dragging a semiconscious Charmy along with him. One by one Amy’s home became more and more empty, and by midnight, only Sonic and Amy were left… except for Tails, who was asleep on the sofa.
Now, costumes changed out of and strewn decorations taken down, the pair stood upon the back patio taking in the fall air. The moon was full that night; large and looming it sat in the inky blackness of the twinkling void above. For a time, the two stood in silence, the only sounds coming from the rustling of hardwoods above and the caw of crows flying in the dark of night to deliver their fiendish cheer to unsuspecting trick or treaters.
“Thank you.”
The words flowed softly from Sonic’s lips and rested in the space between them.
“For today, that is. That party wouldn’t have happened without you.” The blue hedgehog turned to face her as he said so, positively beaming. His words brought a smattering of pink to her already rosy cheeks as she turned away.
“Oh stop it” she retorted, swatting in his direction bashfully.
“I mean it! Tails had been looking forward to that all month. He was so excited he could hardly sleep last night!”
Turning to face the sky, the blue hedgehog continued, his tone gentler.
“I couldn’t wait either, you know.”
Amy seemed to ponder his words for a moment, tilting her head from one side to another before crossing her arms and responding with a certainty that only she could.
“Well of course you couldn't wait, silly, you’re head over heels for me.”
Sonic did nothing but blink for a solid minute, before busting out laughing.
Gawking at the audacity of the hedgehog next to her, the fuchsia hedgehog put on her strongest pout.
“And just what is so funny about that, hmmmm?”
Sonic wiped the tears from his eyes and fought to catch his breath
“Nothing at all- I- hooo boy… It’s just so simple when you put it that way. You’re exactly right, Ames. I’m completely and utterly head over heels in love with you.”
“Duh, I just said tha- comprehending the words that just came out of Sonic’s mouth, she froze.
Anticipating her next question, the blue hedgehog sobered up, placing a hand on each of her shoulders to look her directly in the eye before answering.
“Yes. I, Sonic T. Hedgehog, am woefully in love with my goofy stalker and cute neighbor Amy Rose- OW!! What was that for??!”
Dematerializing her hammer, Amy took a deep breath. “For ruining the moment with your bad jokes.”
“Hey now, don’t be so mean to yourself… I really do think you’re cute.”
“Sonic…” she cautioned, moving to bring her hammer back out.
“Alright alright I’ll tone it down with the jokes.” He said with hands placed up in mock surrender.
“I really do mean what I said, though. We’ve had a will-they-won’t-they thing going for a while now and that’s not fair to you. I love you and I want to properly express these feelings.”
“Oh Sonic, you really mean that?” She asked with eyes full of hope.
“With all that I am,” he declared resolutely, wrapping her in a firm embrace.
When the moment had passed, Sonic shifted to look her in the eye once more. Sensing a question, Amy dared to ask him.
“What is it?”
“Oh nothing…” The blue hedgehog answered while pulling out a packet of Lifesavers. “I still remember what you told me earlier… well look what I found in Tails’ Halloween candy.”
Realizing what was about to happen, the fuchsia hedgehog turned beat red.
“What? You can do all that talk and can’t follow through? I thought I was the one who was bad at romance in this relationship.”
Sonic’s teasing only made her more red. What the hero didn’t count on is not to underestimate Amy Rose. While his guard was down, she blitzed him, capturing his lips, hard. Their kiss was one of blind passion. Amy had gotten what she always wanted and made sure to let Sonic know that. Sonic was trying to keep up with all that he had, and while he made a valiant effort, nothing could have prepared him for this. She had him by the collar of his hoodie in one hand and the back of his quills in the other while Sonic held onto her waist to simply stay upright. Feeling her slip her tongue into his mouth, the hero finally let go and enjoyed the moment- there would be time enough to really figure out what he was doing later. All he knew is that he liked what was happening right now. Meeting her in the middle with his own, their tongues danced just as fiercely as their lips did before they separated, leaving them gasping for air in the autumn breeze; the cold was a distant memory in the fires of their adoration.
Sonic was first to speak. “I think I’ve been sold on this ‘romance’ stuff~”
Amy giggled as she moved to wrap herself back in his arms.
“I’m glad. I’m not sure if I answered you, but I love you too, Sonic.”
She felt him hold her just a little tighter, and in that moment, all felt right with the world.
That is, until a certain fox came stumbling out onto the patio in search of his brother.
“Sonic? You out here?”
Surprisingly, he didn’t let go of her when Tails had shown up like she had thought.
Sensing her confusion, he explained himself “He’ll know sooner or later, besides, I don’t want to hide this from anyone.”
Turning back to tell Tails everything that had happened while he was passed out (minus the making out of course), Amy was left to once again marvel at Sonic’s maturity in all of this.
Eventually, though, it was time for the lovers to part ways, as bedtimes won’t be upheld on their own! As the brothers made their way down the patio and began the short trek back home, Sonic turned, dashing back to plant a chaste kiss upon Amy’s lips before resuming pace with Tails, but not before one last question.
“Hey Ames! Would you be interested in joining us for dinner on Sunday after Church?”
Jumping and waving them on, she shouted back.
“I’d love to! See you then!”
As he made his way down the street and under the tawny moonlight, he couldn’t help but smirk to himself and think that this Halloween was quite the treat.