FicWad

The street was bathed in the murky glow of early night, with some light shining from lamps and windows.

Then came the explosions.

Her eyes darted around, trying to gauge the distance where they were from her standing point in the room. She crept down the hallway, opened the door and stood in shock. The Mettalix was just outside their gate, and Kharis was grappling with it as the robot turned to face her. He cried for her to run, and she did so. But the weight of the jacket and backpack made her running laboured...and she couldn't keep it up for long.

She tripped, and fell.

It was in front of her, raising the blaster on it's arm, no facial expression, staring with 'eyes' of blood red. Then it fired, and she tried to scream, but no noise came out. She was unable to move, unable to do anything except stare - the energy lacing from the blaster going into slow motion as it headed towards her.

Then Kharis was in front of her, taking the blast, with her eyes wide as he fell. The robot deactivated, but for her brother it would not be this simple. He was a living creature, and with a beating heart and lungs to breathe, he would have a different fate. With his last breath, he gave her the necklace, and told her to run.

She ducked into alleyways as another of the robots headed behind her. But it was no use running, it would find her eventually - and it did, and raised the blaster. This time Kharis would not be there to save her, and the only part of her which could move, her hand...clasped the necklace like a lifeline.

And it fired.

But nothing happened, and when Aura finally opened her eyes, the Mettalix was gone. The only sound was the wind rushing through the alley where she stood. Then a voice called from the darkness...

"Aura...where are you?..."

"Kharis?" her breath caught in her throat...he was alive...

She started to run, again down the twists and turns, but never leaving the alleyway, She knew the place well, but no matter where she turned, Aura found herself in the same setting.

The voice came again, and this time it seemed both fainter and stronger at the same time.

She'd seen him take his last breath no more than five minutes before, and this memory was still so fresh that it could not be put aside. She tried...but it wasn't possible...her heart, and soul, were telling her the voice belonged to Kharis - but in her her mind, she knew it was just her imagination, trying to give her something she so desperately desired.

"Khar..." she began, his name breaking into a sob as it caught in her throat.

Tired, she let herself fall to the ground, legs bucking underneath her, and both arms wrapped around her body.

"I wanna go home..."



__________________________________________________________________________________________

Alternate dimension
8am, day two.
__________________________________________________________________________________________



Aura woke up to find herself in a strange room, not her one in Emerald Hill, or even in Azure City, and for a brief moment, she was disorientated until she remembered.

Sitting up in the bed, she was surprised to find that now she felt fully awake and rested. Though she didn't remember doing do, Aura figured she must have fallen asleep, and done so to make up for the energy exerted first by taking herself and Amy back to Emerald Hill, then here and helping the child - Shelly, her mind told her. It was a lot of power exerted considering she hadn't tried to boost it in any way.

Swinging her legs over the bed, Aura yawned and stretched her arms, and realised she wasn't wearing her clothes.

Instead, a pale green nightdress came down just below her knees, and after standing, Aura looked in a mirror, allowing herself to smile as she chuckled and did a twirl. Noticing the bandage on her arm, and taking a closer look, she confirmed it was new, and touching it gingerly produced a slight spark of pain, but nothing compared to before, and she hoped the same could be said of Amy. But any initial optimism was dampened.

The door creaked, and she jumped, uttering a small cry of surprise, as a head poked itself around the corner.

It was the child she had helped last night...if it was last night, and Shelly smiled brightly.

"You're awake!" she cheered "I hoped you'd wake up soon, mama's making pancakes for breakfast, and she made extra ones in case you woke up, and daddy'll eat em if you don't come down soon!" Shelly pulled on her arm "You were sleeping for a long time, all evening, and night, and then a whole day and night, and I wondered if you'd ever wake up!"

Aura couldn't help but smile at this enthusiasm. Shelly sounded a lot like she had when she was that age "thank you...but I think I should get dressed first, did your mum take my clothes?"

Shelly nodded "Uh-huh, but they ain't dry yet, it's still raining, and we don't have anything to dry em with, so they're still over the radiator" she went to Aura and took her arm "But mom said you can borrow some of her clothes" and dragged Aura out of the room, their footsteps echoing loudly on the wooden flooring, and a voice shouted up to keep it quiet; Shelly just shouted back that they needed some clothes, and took her past another room.

"That's Zachary's room" she stated "He's not around now, cause the robots got him" she murmured, sniffing "I was gonna rescue him last night, but they almost got me too...till you showed up"

She took Aura into a larger room - there was an outfit already laid out on the bed of jeans and a t-shirt, both different shades of blue.

"Momma doesn't really wear them, and she left your socks and stuff, cause they were okay" She left, and Aura got changed, and tackled her tangled hair with a brush on the table. Bounding steps showed the younger vixen was returning, and Shelly held out a hair scrunchie "you did have one...but it got really soaked, and they take a long time to dry, even longer than the clothes, so you can use one of mine"

Aura took her hair into a bunch, tied it around, then let it hang. It was a light lavender colour, going perfectly with her hair, and she felt touched.

"Thank you so much Shelly" Aura smiled "I don't know what to say"

"How about your name" Shelly grinned "You know mine, and I don't wanna hafta shout 'hey you' every time I wanna talk"

Aura resisted the urge to laugh "I'm Aura"

"Good, now I can actually call you something" Shelly went down the stairs with Aura following hesitently.

When they got to the bottom of the stairs, Shelly veered to the left and both entered a kitchen, which Aura vaguely remembered from when she had arrived. Ashley was sitting at the table, trying to distract a much smaller version of himself to sit in a highchair, while another looked on laughing and clapping their hands together. The mother, Ally, was at a cooker, flipping pancakes, sliding them onto a plate, then turning to place them on the table. She smiled at seeing Shelly and Aura.

"Glad to see somebody wants breakfast, come on you two, sit down" she motioned to the chairs, Shelly did so first. Aura just stood there for several seconds "don't worry dear, I meant you too"

"But you don't know me..." Aura trailed off, confused and embarrassed, staring at the floor, or the wall - anywhere but at them.

Ally just chuckled "You helped Shelly, even though it wasn't your problem, and I'm very grateful for that", she motioned again to the chair next to Shelly, and Aura smiled and sat down. In the space of a few minutes, pancakes had been cooked, put on the plate, drenched with syrup, and eaten in record time. She hadn't realised it, but she was very hungry.

"Mom...can we go around town?"

Ally paused for a moment "I'm not sure...after last night, he might be looking for you"

"Who might?" Aura asked, knowing fairly well the answer, but needing more information.

"Ivo..." Ally began, giving her a glance "Haven't you heard of him?" she sounded sceptical, and Aura tried to think of something fast.

"I'm not from around here...I know he's a powerful presence, but not much else..." she didn't like to lie, but doubted they would believe the truth - that she was from an alternate version of Mobius - and would deal with that if it came to it.

"He's been in power for ten years...I had no idea there was anyone who didn't know..." Ashley commented "He took over the planet by putting innocent people in his 'badnik' shells...and nobody has the firepower to oppose him"

"But not everybody does get put into a badnik shell, do they" Aura asked "I remember that robot saying something about being put into labour"

"Yes - that's what happened to our son, Zachary - he was out after the 'curfew', and got taken away..." Ally swallowed numbly "it could be that he's in one of the factories around here, but we can't get in there, they're all heavily guarded by the troopers"

Aura felt torn, she'd left to get away from the fighting and because she had failed so recently. But maybe she could help, she knew what it was like to lose a brother, but Shelly hadn't lost her's completely yet. There was still a chance, and if there was, she had to take it. Then she would go back home and face up to the repercussions of her actions - or lack thereof. There would be no more running anymore.

The decision surprised her, and made a small smile trace her lips "I guess that settles it then"

Ashley and Ally exchanged glances.

"Settles what?" Ally finally asked.

"I'm just going to have to try and get him out" Aura announced, smiling at Shelly "I managed to stop that trooper, and it's definatly worth a try"

Shelly grinned, tugging on Aura's shirt, "With that sparky thingy huh?"

Aura nodded "Exactly"

"Sparky thingy?" Ally and her husband echoed together.

"Uh-huh, I told ya didn't I momma. She came up to the trooper, and it grabbed her, but then she made all this sparky stuff come out of her hands and it let me go, then she did it again, and it let her go, and we ran!" Shelly finished, making a sweeping motion with her arms, and jumping up and down in her seat in the excitement.

"I thought you were making it up..." Ally murmured.

"I can show you" Aura stood up, waited for their approval, then stepped back a couple of feet. Her hands lay by her side, and she bowed her head, closed her eyes, and concentrated. Then, opening them and bringing her hands up, she made a gesture with her hands, bringing them together and placing her fingertips on each other, a flow of power through her veins, to her fingers, then a spark came from her hands. Everybody watched intently. Another spark came, and another, then a faint glow enveloped both hands, and a ball of lightning and energy came into her palms. Spreading them outwards, she watched it, then let it become smaller, and smaller, until it was the size of a marble, then, let it go completely.

"How's that?" she asked, slightly gasping, but none the worse for wear.

Shelly grinned "That was so cool!"

Aura grinned, then turned to Shelly's parents.

"Ok" Ashley said "I believe you, and I really appreciate your offer, but this isn't really your battle..."

"Sometimes it doesn't have to be" Aura murmured, then turned to Shelly "But if I am to do this, I need to scout out the city, find out where those factories are, points of entry. I've not been here long, so if I don't know where to find him, I can't actually do anything" she turned her head "Is there more than one factory in the city?" Ally shook her head, and Aura nodded, relieved, "Okay, so if I can find this factory, scope it out, find the exits and such, then I can go in tonight. If this curfew is after six, and anyone out there afterwards gets taken in, they won't expect me"

"What if they catch you?"

"Then I get in anyway" Aura smiled wryly.



__________________________________________________________________________________________

2.30pm, day two.
__________________________________________________________________________________________



It was over.

Sonic gazed down at Amy, her head was bathed in bandages and her chest rose and fell with each breath. The white gauze and machines by her side unnerved him, but the doctor had assured him they were merely for observation, and that it was not nearly as severe as it seemed. Releasing a breath he couldn't be sure for how long he had been holding, Sonic pulled one of the chairs from the side of the room, very quietly, to her side, and sat down.

For close to two days, all he had been doing was pacing, stopping sometimes for a coffee, a breath of fresh air, but these were when Tekno or Tails had come down, and insisted he take a break. Had it been up to him, Sonic would not have left the corridor at all. The chair in the corridor had virtually been his home for the last thirty-six hours. Then the doctor had come in, and said that she had successfully made it through the critical period, and that things should proceed normally now and Amy was out of danger.

Now that the overwhelming fear was over, at least for now, the adrenaline had simply drained from his body. Not having had any rest, save for the few times he had fallen asleep in the chair, usually for scant minutes, Sonic was powerless to fight his exhaustion, and leaned back and allowed his head to droop slightly.

In the last moments of waking, he unconsciously put his hand over hers, then his eyes closed, and Sonic fell asleep, unaware of what had just happened.



__________________________________________________________________________________________

Alternate Mobius
5.30pm, day two.
__________________________________________________________________________________________



Because she thought it would be easier to snoop around in the evening, they waited until an hour before the sun would go down to leave.

Aura was following Shelly down the streets, through the twists and turns she remembered from the other night, finally emerging in a large clearing. As she looked closer, it dawned on her that this was the same place she had rescued the younger fox from the Trooper, and was amazed to see it lined with stalls, as if for some sort of market. Dragging her along to one, Shelly struck up a conversation with the person behind it, exchanging some money for a drink, whilst Aura just stared.

This was a complete and total change from the other night, and not just because it was now daytime. There was still tension, but unnoticeable except to those who would recognise the signs. But people just talked and carried on as if there was nothing to be worried about, like they were not under the dictatorship of a madman...

"Aura?"

Jolted from her thoughts, she took the drink offered, and a cool clear juice went down her throat, satiating her, and bringing a smile to her lips.

Mobian berry squash...some things transcended dimensions - just like her - and Aura suppressed a chuckle.

Then she thought of Amy when somebody in the crowd with a slight resemblance passed, and instantly the scene of Metal Sonic flinging her across the room returned. The smile vanished and she glanced down to see Shelly pulling on her shirt.

"What's wrong?"

Aura's eyes went wide. The way she had spoken, the look...it almost tortured her, because it was almost a mirror image of when she had asked Kharis the same thing in the ice-cream shop, on the day he died...

"Nothing..." Aura mumbled, looking away, and tried to change the subject "We need to find that factory so I can check it out"

"Nu-uh" Shelly shook her head "Something's wrong, and mom said it isn't good to bottle things up, you hafta talk to someone about it"

Aura sighed "Yeah...that's what Kharis always said..."

"Who's he?" They were near the outskirts of the city by now, and sat down on a wall. It was partly crumbled, rubble lying on the ground under their feet. Aura's feet shifted on the ground, while Shelly was still short enough to swing them back and forth sitting down.

"He was my brother" Aura explained "He died when I was eight...I've been on my own since then"

"Was he a good brother?"

Aura smiled "Yeah...mom and died died when I was young, and he was quite old when I was born...eighteen, so he took care of me, became both a mom and dad to me, but when he died, I was on my own, left, travelled around for a while" she paused, rubbing the back of her head with her hand "I guess I was trying to figure out what to do..."

"Cause he'd been a big part of your life?" Shelly prompted.

It made Aura nod, but also wonder why she felt so free telling Shelly. Not enough for everything that had happened, but still more than she would reveal to anybody else. Maybe it was the way she reminded Aura of herself before everything had changed "...I didn't know what to do without him, and there wasn't anybody else I could go to...or that's what I thought that, until I went back and found some people that I had known, who still remembered me, and could help me..."

"But you left 'em?"

A deep pang of hurt swept through Aura, and tears threatened to come from her eyes "I made a mistake...I thought I had faced a fear, I thought I could face it again without doing what I'd done the first time...but I couldn't, and I didn't"

Shelly frowned, part of what Aura just said made sense, but she hadn't said exactly what the fear was. Something told her that asking what wouldn't be a good idea, so she settled on another question "what happened?"

"We were out" Aura began, feeling a lump in her throat "And that fear came back" Speaking of the Mettalix was hard, and so was Metal Sonic. The fear felt identical, but had merged to resemble the old fear but with a startling sharpness of something different, making it worse.

Before, the memories of the Mettalix had still been there, but had dulled over the years to the point to where she could lie in bed, close her eyes and imagine it had all been a dream. That the bed she was lying on was in their house, and if she got up, left her room and went a few steps, she would stand outside his room. Then she could walk in, climb into the bed and say she had a nightmare of what was actually real... But then her eyes would open, and instead of seeing her room, her clothes, her school books and stuffed toys, she would open them to a smaller room, with different belongings, and in no way the same. There had been dreams exactly like that, and every time she cried herself back to sleep. It wasn't so much Kharis anymore, she knew he couldn't come back, but the fact that her life could never be like that again.

"A friend of mine got hurt..." she continued, seeing the younger fox watching her, looking with curiosity and kindness. It made it slightly easier to go on. "And she got hurt because I saw that fear, and I couldn't face it again..."

"So you ran away?"

Aura nodded, feeling suddenly ashamed.

"What if that fear comes back, and you ain't there? They could need you" Shelly said out of the blue, and Aura didn't know what to say to that.

If Metal Sonic did come back, could she make a difference? Though he had, after all, surprised her then, and had her in his grip, very tight, she'd managed to get free of that. But she had been hurt, Aura thought, rubbing the injured limb gently. Right now, she still wasn't strong enough, mentally or otherwise, to do anything, but perhaps soon...but then it could be too late.

"Lotsa people get scared" Shelly piped up "I did when I went to try and get my brother, but it doesn't mean I'm a coward, just means I got scared, and that happens to people and they make themselves face it. I usedta be afraid of the dark, so I had my light on" Shelly grinned "So I had it turned down a little each night, then put the light outside my door on, then kept shutting my door a little, till I couldn't see it anymore, and I don't need the light anymore!"

Not being able to help but smile at her happiness, Aura knelt down and gave her a hug, then looked at her "you sound a lot like me when I was your age" she commented fondly "But I forgot what I was like then, and you reminded me, thank you, Shelly"

Shelly's eyes were fierce and determined. With a satisfied nod Shelly took her hand again and took her away from the wall where they had been resting.

"The factories are around here, but we have to be quiet and stuff, it's more harder to get in when it's dark, but Robotnik still has guards here when it's light"

"How do you know this, it doesn't seem like people would come around here..." Aura looked around, it was dark, despite the daylight, and not at all welcoming.

"I've been here before, I tried to rescue Zachary lots before you found me, I got in here but not really far, the troopers he uses aren't too fast, so I ran away lots, but that one the other night made me jump...and he caught me"

"How far did you get?" Aura whispered, as they snuck down a side alleyway, between two factories.

Shelly gave a sheepish grin "This far..."

"That's okay" Aura assured her "I just need to find out where he is roughly, then as long as they don't move him, I can get in there and get out with him"

"Using that sparky stuff?"

Aura nodded "Exactly" she began to look at the structure, among other things... she added mentally. Teleportation, however, was a last resort, it tired her easily, and with somebody else ran the risk of posing an even bigger threat to her health, and their safety. She told Shelly to wait a short distance from the factory. Aura didn't want to put her in any danger, she herself was a lot more experienced at sneaking around, considering her past, whereas Shelly was still a child. Footsteps made Aura jump, looking around hurriedly. With no place to hide, the only thing she could do was react as she usually did - teleport.

Teleporting directly into the building she had been standing by, and dropping into a pile of material. In the darkness, she didn't know what it was, but it felt like some kind of wool, or cotton, and was warm to sit upon.

Voices drifted from below her.

Aura listened intently. They were troopers, and had some very interesting, and useful information. Careful not to give any indication of herself there, she continued to eavesdrop for a few more minutes before they walked away and the factory became silent again, then held up a hand, letting it glow slightly, and looked around. Her legs, upon standing, felt slightly wobbly, and though it could be done, she didn't want to teleport out again.

A small shaft of light indicated the door, and sliding down a pole, making sure it was clear at the bottom - she couldn't keep the glow alight when dropping down - Aura got to the door, squeezed herself through the crack silently, and ran down the street until she came again to where she had left Shelly. Only, when she arrived, she wasn't there.

"Shelly!" she whispered loudly.

No answer.

"Shelly!" Aura hissed again, this time louder.

Nothing.

Now she was getting worried... Even though she'd only known Shelly for a day, she felt pretty sure that the girl wouldn't have run off without thinking. Something had to be wrong, Aura knew it.

"Shelly!" she tried once again, still nothing.

Then, a muffled sound, almost unnoticeable to her hearing, and she turned around.

"Shelly, is that yo..."

Then she felt something connect with the side of her head, and everything went black. As it did, Aura could feel herself falling to the ground in slow motion, her body strangely detached from her awareness.

Then nothing.



__________________________________________________________________________________________

6pm, day two.
__________________________________________________________________________________________



Tekno passed the door to Amy's hospital room again. She had gone back to Emerald Hill again to get a few things, and a call had come in from one of the zones that Metal Sonic had attacked. Not wanting to bother Sonic, she and Tails had gone to find the robot was still there, but while the badniks proved little trouble, it was impossible to touch the blue robot, both receiving scratches on their arms and legs for their efforts. Other battles had been hard and they were no strangers to failure, but Metal Sonic had already done enough damage. Not being able to stop him was very depressing, so though neither had been injured badly, both had their pride hurt.

It helped then, a little, when pushing open the door slowly she saw Sonic still sitting in the chair fast asleep, leant over so much he was almost lying on the bed. One hand was around Amy's, but there were tears at the edges of his eyes, and a worried, tense tug to his mouth.

She shook his shoulder gently, murmuring his name twice before he stirred, yawning slightly as his eyes opened, taking in Tekno. Awareness increasing, he then felt his hand enveloped in Amy's and made to bring it away, feeling reluctant to do so.

"You care about her, don't you?" Tekno said softly.

Sonic glanced back at her, biting back a comment to say something along the lines of that he cared about them all, or that he didn't know what she was talking about. But as soon as he saw the pink hedgehog, fur slightly paled from her injuries, he found he didn't want to say any of them. Instead, he settled for nodding slowly, it was an acceptance of how he was feeling, but still didn't say he knew exactly what it was.

"You know" Tekno mused "Ever since I first saw you two standing together, how you talked and acted to each other, I always hoped you two would get together"

Sonic blinked "You did?"

She nodded "I know you always keep saying you don't like her and everything, and that's a shame, because she's not anything like how she was when you first met her. You're both so similar, wanting to be the hero, helping people, and sometimes too strong to admit when you were wrong..."

"...Like now" he finished, realising what she was getting to "Man...you have a way of getting people to open up, dont'cha, Tekno"

"So how do you feel about Amy now?" Tekno asked softly, making him sigh, looking to Amy, then back to the canary, who had a thoughtful and curious look on her face.

"I...dunno" he finally concluded "I mean, I never thought of her as anything but an annoying little kid, but she's not anymore...is she"

"No, she isn't" Tekno nodded "I know I didn't join you until a few years after Amy came to the team, but even I can see she's grown a lot, mentally and physically, we all have"

"Some of us more than others..." Sonic murmured, wanting to change the conversation, at least for the moment.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, Aura" Sonic paused, changing the subject. "She ran away again, and I can't believe she did that"

"She was scared, Sonic, you can't blame her for that"

"I guess not..."

"That's not why you're angry though, is it, Sonic?" Tekno frowned "It's something else"

"Wha...huh...of course it is!" Sonic growled "When people are scared, they shouldn't run away, you need to find somebody to help you through it!"

"Like you did with Johnny's death" Tekno prodded slightly.

Sonic sighed, it was true, what he had just said was exactly what he should have done when Johnny had died, but instead he had run away, just like Aura had.

"Why are you angry?" Tekno asked again, after seeing the fire in his eyes diminish slightly

"Because when I ran off, you guys came after me, and helped me...but wherever Aura is, we can't get there, so we can't help her... He paused again, holding his arms tight "I hate being helpless"

"I know, Sonic, I know" Tekno sat down on the chair he had vacated, facing him, "But I'm sure she's going to be fine, and I hope she comes back; you just have to trust in people sometimes, like we have to trust Amy to recover, Aura to come back, and all of us to defeat Metal Sonic"

"Have you found any weaknesses yet?" Sonic asked, grateful for the chance in subject, and that it hadn't returned to Amy. He was also gettign increasingly worried, the Mettalix had been difficult opponants, but Metal Sonic seemed to be on a whole different playing field. Ever since the accident, while Sonic kept a vigil here, Tekno had been working on their biggest problem.

"No...Robotnik seems to have upgraded him using the basic Mettalix module, but I can't hack into his files to get any information"

"We'll beat him!" Sonic spoke up suddenly "I know we can, we just need to keep trying till we do, and if you can hack into his files, I'm sure we'll find a weakness somewhere!"

"See, Sonic" Tekno smiled "That's more like the person I know. Like you said, we just have to keep trying, there's no such word as can't"

"Right, Tekno"

"So, what are you going to do about Amy?"

Green eyes flashed, blinking, "What do you mean?" Sonic asked, with a fright. He should have known their discussion would return to this point, but he was still caught off guard.

"Are you going to tell her how you feel, and try to make it work, or just hide it?"

"I...I don't know" he stuttered, hands wringing each other, looking back to Amy, who shifted slightly in her sleep "I want to tell her, but I don't even know exactly how I feel...and I told her so many times I didn't like her, so why should she believe me..." he paused "besides, it's been a long time...what if she doesn't feel the same way still?"

"She does, Sonic" Tekno smiled, walking to the door, "Trust me Sonic, if you let her know, things will turn out just right"

He smiled, "Thanks, Tekno"

"No problem" the canary nodded, "Now, come on for just a few minutes, I think we could both do with something to eat, and I've heard the food here isn't too bad. Plus, if you don't, you'll end up in this place yourself sooner or later"

"Sure" Sonic said, leaving the chair and following her.

With one last glance back at Amy.

Perhaps things would turn out okay. Amy was going to be fine, and he'd now found out he did care for her more than he had ever thought. Those feelings were still confusing, but like Tekno had said, if he followed them, everything would work out. He was sure as well, that they could defeat Metal Sonic. Sure, they didn't know how yet, but they would find a way, like they always did. And whether it be hard or not, it would be worth it. This wasn't the first situation they had entered blind, and it wouldn't be the last.

Sonic did feel slightly unsure though about Aura. She had looked so angry with herself and terrified of Metal Sonic when she had left. Having run away once already, could he be sure she would come back? He shook himself mentally - that had been a long time ago, and he knew a little of how terrifying that situation had to be for the child she had been. Hopefully those years away had made her stronger, and would prove a stabilising influence, and bring her home.

The only question was, when?


__________________________________________________________________________________________

Alternate Mobius
6pm, day two.
__________________________________________________________________________________________



"Wake up..."

The words penetrated her head, making Aura groan. Her arms whirled around, trying to make the voice stop. Expecting to encounter the covers of her bed back home, and see Kharis, they felt just air.

She wasn't home?

"Kharis, I don't wanna go to school!" she mumbled, "Can't I stay home with you"

"Sorry Sparky" he smiled "But we have to get you ready, you've got an important job to do"

"I have?"

He nodded "People are depending on you to help them, and if you stay here, you can't"

"But I'm only a kid"

He sighed, "No...you're not" he admitted reluctantly "Think about it hard, are you?"

She didn't want to, but against her own wishes, her mind did so. Images of Sonic, Amy, the other Freedom Fighters, then Shelly, her family, Ryndar, all those filled her mind and hirled around until she couldn't try to fool herself any longer.

"No...I'm not"

"Atta girl" Kharis sounded pleased, "You know what to do, and I know you can"



"I think she's coming around"

Aura groaned. Her head throbbed incessantly from where she had been hit, and she mumbled at whoever was speaking to shut up.

Time passed, the voices drifted away for a while, and she just lay there in silence, trying to get her bearings. Some time later, though she couldn't tell when, some sort of wet cloth was being draped across her forehead, the coolness almost blissful to her injured head. She was sure there would be a lump there later.

"Come on Aura, you've gotta wake up...please!"

Aura would have blinked had her eyes not been closed "Shelly?" she murmured, forcing her eyes open and finding the young child leaning over her with a big smile on seeing that Aura was awake. Voices from the corner indicated there were more people...whoever they were. One came nearer, and helped Aura into a sitting position. The throbbing had subsided now into a dull ache, and she could make out her surroundings more clearly.

"I was worried!" Shelly exclaimed suddenly, flinging her arms around Aura's neck and hugged her tight.

She really was worried... Aura realised with a start.

"Careful kiddo, or you'll squeeze her to death" the other chuckled, and Shelly sheepishly let go.

"You must be Zachary" Aura figured. His fur was a shade of brownish gold, a stark difference to the pink fur Shelly had, but the eyes, and the ears possessed a likeness which suggested they were related.

"That's right" he nodded, "And you're Aura, Shelly told me about you, said you saved her from the troopers"

Aura nodded "Yes...but we got caught now anyway..."

Zachary shrugged, and sighed "Might have happened sooner or later, but I hope we can get out of here..." he paused "Shelly said you were going to rescue me...was that true?"

"Well I was..." Aura murmured "But I got caught...how stupid can I get" What she had said to Shelly's parents now seemed boastful, the consequences of being caught seemed much more serious now she was confronted with them. What had seemed an acceptable plan had made a complete reversal.

"Hey, it's not your fault." Zachary told her "These electronic cuffs are annoying though, they make my wrist hurt"

Aura's ears pricked up.

"Electronic?"

"Mmm-hmm" Zachary nodded, showing her his, then motioning to her own. They were connected to each other by a cable which, though flexible enough so the hands could be moved to eat and drink, didn't stretch enough for any kind of escape. An idea forming, Aura stared at her own cuffs, looking at the mechanisms very carefully.

"Are you ok?"

"I think...I think I might be able to get your shackles off..." she began, then trailed off .

"But?"

Aura sighed, and her head bowed "But it could be dangerous...you could get hurt..."

Zachary didn't say anything for a few moments, and the only sounds that could be heard in the cell were the drops of water from the ceiling and the muffled whispers of the others at the other end of the cell. Aura mused, there were only three more, including Shelly and Zachary that would make five. It would be too difficult to get her own cuffs off if she did what she hoped to...so there must be some sort of unlocking device somewhere, and if they got out, she could find it. But she still didn't know if Zachary would let her attempt to remove his restraints, if he refused, the others would certainly do the same, and she hadn't enough time to recharge enough for a teleportation. This was the only course of action she could see.

"Do it"

"What?"

Zachary nodded "Do it. If I get hurt, I'm not going to blame you, and if I get free, then, well, we have a better chance of getting out of here, right?"

"...I guess so..." Aura stuttered, more than a little shocked that somebody she had only known for a few minutes, was going to trust her to this degree. She wasn't doing anything spectacular in her opinion, but the way Shelly was grinning made it seem so. But wasn't that was usually what Sonic, Tails, Amy...all of them did. Saving people, doing the right thing even if it didn't seem a good idea. The realisation hit Aura almost like a ton of bricks - that was what she was trying to do!

The first real smile for days crossed her face "okay then, let's do it!" Aura nodded, rubbing her fingers against their respective palms as much as possible with the shackles "All you have to do is stay completely still, otherwise you might lose your arm"

Zachary paled "Y...you mean that..." he started shaking slightly, and slapped herself mentally, that was smart... "It's ok...I didn't really mean that, it was a joke", she found the words coming before any thought came to her. "But it is important you stay still...I don't know how much I need to send into the lock, a small amount coming into contact with your fur won't hurt you, but a larger dose would... She trailed off, and paused, thinking it was best to be truthful "I'm not exactly sure how badly... I'd unconsciously absorb it, but I'm going to do my best to stop anything like that happening"

Zachary, still shaken, nodded and tried to be still again.

Would I have been like this if Kharis was still alive?.. The thought came, but pushing it out of her mind, Aura knelt and peered into the hole of the electronic restraints. Because of their nature, this wasn't a lock, but an access point of sorts. There was no indication of it's purpose, but it would make her task much easier, since a normal, metal lock wouldn't react as much to an electric attack, if it did at all, but this was electronic, machine-like, and machines could be jolted with small shocks.

This was what she hoped at least.

One finger was aimed at the access point, and a small surge of energy came from the tip, the surrounding glow bathing the whole of Aura's hand and the inside of the shackle in a low, yellowy-goldish light. Shelly gave a small cry of astonishment, leaning in closer to view, and watched as the grey furred fox kneeling beside her brother made the glow brighter, as more of the energy was sent against the imprisonment of the lock.

Then, after what seemed hours, a whirring sound echoed throughout the cell, and a soft click, sounded, a split-second after, the shackles fell to the floor. It was several more minutes until she had Shelly's off as well, but this time it was easier, the other three people following. Then Aura set about trying to get her own restraints free, but it was as difficult as she had assumed. The cables holding them together were fixed, and not flexible. No matter how many times the attempt was made, Aura couldn't get one hand far enough around to the access point of either shackle to send the energy through. She needed a key, but it didn't look as though there would be one, it seemed much more likely that there was a control panel or handset for unlocking them.

"Yeah..." Zachary nodded, when she mentioned it to him "Whenever he needed to let us out of them, Ivo had this control thing that he just pushed a button on..."

"Does it unlock the other cells as well?"

"No, that's some sort of thing on the walls outside. I don't remember looking at it really, but the troopers just gravitate towards a part of the wall when they bring us out"

"Will they be coming soon?"

"Not for a while I don't think" Zachary mused "You were out for a few hours, and I think it's late in the evening. They tend to come early in the morning, not sure how early...we don't get clocks in here"

Aura had a thoughtful expression.

Shelly pulled at her shirt. "D'ya have a plan?"

"Well...I did plan to sneak in and try to get everyone out, but that isn't an option now..." She paused, glancing all around the cell and into every corner. It was dark, but a small burst of concentration lit the room dimly, eyes now looking for any sign as she moved her hand in a few directions, hindered by her restraints, but she finally finished and smiled slightly "I might have a plan..."

"Really?"

"I don't think this cell is fitted with any sort of camera or sensors...right?"

"Some of the others might be, I dunno..." Zachary mused "I've seen people just make fun of Ivo when they come in and they get made into a badnik, but we've said that stuff in here and nothing's happened. Besides...why would he need to watch us..."

"He obviously doesn't think you can escape" Aura grinned "And that gives me an idea" Shelly yawned, then curled up beside her brother, and Aura nodded "But I think we all need some sleep, and we can't do anything until the troopers come in the morning"

"I've slept since we were brought back tonight, I'll keep watch" Zachary suggested.

"Okay then" Aura agreed, leaning up against the wall and letting her eyes close.

Hopefully, this would work.



__________________________________________________________________________________________

9pm, day two.
__________________________________________________________________________________________



Things seemed to pass in slow motion for Amy. The images that whirled inside of her mind could not be distinguished from what was real, and that from her own imagination. She saw pictures of her and Sonic, some where he said he loved her. It was something she had hoped for him to say ever since they had met, but it wasn't meant to be. Sonic had never returned her affections, and over the years she had thought they had disappeared, dissolved, no longer existing in any way, shape, or form. But here, in her mind, Amy could see that all that had happened, was that she had been denying and deceiving herself.

Amy...come on, I need you!

The voice was faint in this dream-like land, but the tone was clear and instantly recognisable.

Sonic...

Amy, please...look, I know you might not believe me, after all this time, but I think...I...I...I think I do care for you...

He loves me?

Unable to believe this, and dismissing it as a trick of her own imagination, Amy retreated further into the darkness of her mind. Then Sonic's voice, slightly sluggish, as though through thick fog, came again.

Amy...look, you'll hold this against me for the rest of my life...but if it helps any...

Amy held in a breath, even though she did not need to.

Would he...

Was he...

Amy...I love you

He had...

Amy found herself being taken back through the darkness, to the world of the waking...



Amy?"

Sonic stared at the figure in the bed, where just seconds before the eyes had begun to flutter. With a desperate air, Sonic grasped the hand tighter, and was amazed when it squeezed back. Then, Amy's eyes opened, and she smiled weakly at the hedgehog seated in the chair beside her. It was a wry grin, and her eyes though dull with exhaustion, seemed to have a sparkle all of their own.

"I heard everything you said, Sonic"

"Aw...you didn't!" Sonic groaned, wanting nothing more to bury his head in both arms and sigh for a long, long time. But this wasn't the embarrassed reaction he usually gave to any time he was caught out by Amy, but more relaxed, and of the same tone she gave him. The slight smile he had was completely evident of it.

However, he thought Amy would not let this go easily, but she surprised him.

"I did..." Amy murmured "And I just want to know something..."

"Sure..." Sonic stammered, thrown off by this statement. He expected some sort of teasing or joke, for her to dismiss it as getting his own back for all the times she had run after him, when she tried to get him under the mistletoe in the wintertime, or pretend she was going to faint just to get him to hold her. But he knew that Amy wasn't at all like that anymore, now she was more mature and grown up - having proven it time and time again after all.

"Do you think we have a chance?"

Sonic smiled, wanting to grin as much as he could. She believed him, and actually wanted to give it a go. All the doubts about what he had been feeling disappeared in an instant. "Sure Amy" he nodded "We'll have to take it one step at a time, but we can make it work, I'm sure of it!"

"I'm really glad to hear that..." Amy smiled "I guess I got quite a bump on the head, didn't I, for you to come out with that"

Sonic swallowed "Yeah...you gave us all a fright"

"I was scared...of Metal Sonic" she added "Probably not as much as Aura, considering what happened to her brother, how is she?"

"She's ok...I think"

"You think?" Amy frowned, pushing her body into a sitting position, then turning to the blue hedgehog.

"After you were...thrown" Sonic said with slight hesitation "We got you here, they were worried you had a concussion, so I got Aura to teleport you here"

"Is she ok? I thought that was dangerous"

"She was fine, got patched up while they were taking care of you, nasty burn on the arm and a cut on the face, nothing big. Then I got here and we waited while they told us what was happening to you" Sonic paused, remembering "really suddenly, she asked me why I didn't hate her, 'cause she blamed herself for you getting injured" he rubbed his head "I said I didn't blame her, but next thing I know, she's shouting that we can't trust her anymore, and /whoosh/, she's gone"

"I thought so soon after doing it once was impossible..."

"It isn't" Sonic shook his head "But it's very dangerous...and she's not anywhere on the planet, so we're gonna have to wait till she comes back"

"You think she will, Sonic?"

"I dunno" came the reply, punctuated by a soft sigh "But I sure hope so...Aura's been alone for too long, and she knows what her abilities can be in the fight, and that we need her, and she needs us"

"She needs a family"

"Exactly"