Chapter Text
[Flashback, Six Months Before Sonic Was Imprisoned]
Blaze and Amy were locked in combat. They held their fight in the courtyard of the Sol Empire Imperial Palace.
Amy put her right foot forward and dashed toward Blaze as she tried repositioning herself. The princess's eyes widened a bit while Amy's fist was sent in an uppercut toward her chin. Blaze reacted swiftly, slamming her palm into the hedgehog's wrist. This sent the uppercut off course.
Amy: "Huh?!"
Caught off guard by this sudden counterattack, Amy was left open to a frontal assault. Blaze used her other hand to muster a ball of weak flames. She slammed it into the hedgehog's chest. Amy was sent flying back, skidding on the ground as Blaze followed her. She put a foot on Amy's torso to stop her movement.
Blaze: "Looks like I've won this match as well. Though, you did catch me off guard there."
"We should finish up before even more of the area is destroyed."
Amy slowly lifted her head, embarrassed.
Amy: "I didn't expect you to have the time to react..."
"I seriously underestimated how fast you are."
The cat took her foot off, helping the hedgehog up before letting out a deep sigh.
Blaze: "That's because you rely too much on brute force."
She reached into her pocket, handing Amy a handkerchief. The hedgehog took it, wiping her face.
"You expect the opponent to waste too much time thinking. Therefore, your priority leans more toward putting as much strength into your fists as possible."
"I would call it a basic strategy, and it is. But most expect more complex approaches."
Blaze closed her eyes and shrugged.
"So, in that regard, sticking to something so simple isn't a bad idea."
Blaze snapped her fingers, a small fire lighting at the pointer's tip.
"However, it's important to exercise parallel processing in any fight."
"Learn multiple approaches, then implement them in the middle of combat."
Amy stood there, a bit of steam coming off of her head. She looked dazed after that info dump.
Amy: "I completely understood everything you just said."
She brought up one of her hands, pinching her fingers.
"But could you say it just... one more time."
Blaze sighed.
Blaze: "You have changed, and I can see improvement. However, your old habits keep resurfacing."
"You've adopted a fighting style that is rather straight-forward."
"Just start trying to fix that, and we'll move forward."
Amy let her head down.
Amy: "Sorry-... Yeah, I have gotten a bit dull recently."
"Eggman's attacks have lacked recently. There are only the occasional Badniks."
"I suppose I've gotten used to it. How peaceful it is, I mean."
She lifted her head back up.
"Not much to think about except smashing their faces in, you know?"
She flexed her bicep a bit, much to Blaze's dismay.
Blaze: "So why did you come to me in the first place?"
"I'll have you know I'm not here to play any games. I didn't agree to train you just so you'd have something to do."
The princess reached over and grabbed the edge of Amy's dress. She wiped off a bit of dirt, and the hedgehog slowly reeled back. She appreciated it, but she could handle the cleanup herself.
Amy: "I'm... well aware of that fact, Blaze. It's not the reason I came."
"It's something else entirely, really"
Amy shook the edge of her dress, desperately trying to get the last pieces of dirt off.
"The real reason I came all has to do with ME."
She gripped her dress and squeezed. There was still some dirt left in the folds.
"I'm... unsatisfied, with my own capabilities."
Blaze tilted her head with her arms crossed.
Blaze: "And what part are you referring to?"
Amy: "The part of me that hesitates."
The hedgehog lifted up her hand, staring at the palms.
Amy: "I'd say I do relatively good in crisis situations."
"But, when it really counts, I always seem to freeze up."
"Like when Sonic was facing that Time Eater. All I could do was stand by and watch."
Blaze: "There wasn't much anyone could do in that situation."
Amy: "But what if that's what we were just telling ourselves? Why were we sitting idle while Sonic-"
Blaze walked forward, putting a hand on her shoulder.
Blaze: "If you keep comparing yourself to him, you're never going to get anywhere."
"I get you admire Sonic, but don't let that admiration cloud your judgement."
Blaze stared directly into Amy's eyes.
"Have you ever given thought to what you would do in his absence?"
The hedgehog went quiet and Blaze let her go. She looked around at the destroyed environment and sighed.
"If you haven't, that's fine. I doubt anything bad would happen to him anytime soon."
She turned back to face Amy.
"But that train of thought holds you back. I hope you've come to realize such."
Blaze closed her eyes and turned, heading toward the palace entrance.
"I will inform the staff that we're finished. They should start on cleanup shortly-"
Amy took a step forward, her foot slamming on the ground. Blaze stopped her approach once she heard this.
Amy: "That's exactly the reason why I came to you."
"I understand completely what you're trying to say."
The hedgehog balled up her fists.
"Though hearing it from you re-affirmed my own resolve. I was... beginning to doubt myself, for a while."
Amy looked up at Blaze, who held her back toward the hedgehog.
"I don't want to be reliant on anyone."
She raised up her clenched fist.
"I want to become a leader others can put their faith in."
The princess gave her a smile.
Blaze: "Then let us start with that."
[End of Flashback]
Amy [Mind]: "Is that what I was telling myself back then?"
The hedgehog, back in the present moment, was sitting in a chair just outside of a hospital room. She kept playing with her thumbs as her fingers were clenched together. One of her foots was tapping against the floor.
"I think it was just so I could end the conversation there."
"Or maybe I did know what I wanted to do."
Her foot stopped tapping.
"But there was some point where I lost it."
She could hear feint voices coming out of the room.
"Otherwise, something like this wouldn't have happened."
Amy leaned her head forward and down, now looking at the floor.
"And I would be-"
The door to the room opened abruptly, causing the hedgehog to jolt up quickly.
Rouge: "He seems to be rather lively for someone just knocking on death's door."
"Though, I shouldn't be surprised."
The bat looked down at Amy, who stared at her wide-eyed.
"I know, he wouldn't have actually died. Shadow isn't the type to leave abruptly."
There was a small pause which gave Amy the time to re-adjust herself. Rouge took a small step forward.
"You should go in there to see him. I'm sure he would want to talk-"
Amy: "No... it wouldn't be right."
Rouge tilted her head, putting a hand on her hip.
Rouge: "Sitting out here can't be a good solution."
Amy: "It's what I intend to do."
Rouge: "And why is that?"
Amy leaned back in her chair and sighed.
Amy: "I sent him to that village, Rouge. I should have known something like this..."
The hedgehog let out a small grunt.
"I should have been more prepared."
Rouge frowned.
Rouge: "And somehow all of this is your fault?"
Amy: "It's not a question at this point."
The bat took a seat next to Amy, pushing the chair closer to her side.
Rouge: "You can't get caught up in that kind of thought process, Sweety."
"There isn't much anyone in your position could have done to prepare."
Amy moved her eyes toward Rouge.
"We hardly know anything about who's responsible, let alone what they're planning."
"As of right now, the board is swept clean-"
Amy: "I-We... can't keep telling ourselves that."
Rouge: "Excuse me?"
Amy: "Ever since Sonic was imprisoned, all it's ever been is 'swept clean'."
"And even after we managed to free him, most of us were of barely any help."
The hedgehog fully turned her head, now staring directly at Rouge.
"I thought I could make a difference-a REAL one-if I took charge. I'd fight through these restless nights if it meant proving my determination."
She turned her head away, facing a wall on the opposite end of the hall they were sitting in.
"And with how restoration was coming along, there was a moment where I truly believed I had shown everyone-"
Rouge: "So what are you trying to get at here?"
"You've failed as a leader, is that it?"
Amy: "It's not that simple-"
Rouge: "I think it is that simple."
There was a moment of silence. Amy was a bit taken back by how blunt Rouge was being.
"You've shaped your thinking around him, haven't you?"
Amy: "What are you talking about?"
Rouge scooched in a bit closer.
Rouge: "That blue hedgehog, isn't it obvious?"
"You're not thinking like yourself, and you're taking up mantles with an impossible fit Darling."
She chuckled a bit.
"There's a reason Sonic's in the fast lane compared to the rest of us-aside from Shadow, of course."
"He's operating on a completely different plane, both physically and mentally."
"Never in a million years could you hope to match him."
Amy: "Then there's no point to it."
Rouge: "Exactly."
Amy tilted her head in confusion, but Rouge quickly raised a finger to silence her.
"No point in trying to copy him, of course. But that doesn't mean you can’t get to his level.”
"A leader can take the shape of many things, after all."
The hedgehog perked up a bit, and Rouge gave a smirk.
"All you need to do is come to the realization of who you want to be."
"The rest will follow suit shortly after. At least, in an ideal situation."
It's not as if Amy hadn't thought of the idea before. As a matter of fact, the hedgehog has presumed the path she was taking was her own. However, the thought of Sonic-as well as her own inability to act-lingered in the back of her mind like cobwebs. Expectations placed upon her by personal experiences, as well as her own self-doubt, clouded Amy's judgement.
And with that settled, the path forward...
Amy: "...isn't as clear as I had imagined."
Rouge stood up from her chair, pushing it back into place from where she had moved it.
Rouge: "That's all there is from me."
"But if you've got the cash... perhaps I'll find a bit more."
Amy looked up at her with her disgruntled face, causing Rouge to laugh.
"Only kidding! No need to be so serious."
The bat glanced over towards the hospital room.
"You should pay him a visit though-when you're ready, of course."
She turned away, now beginning to walk away and down the hall.
"He's always talking about how he enjoys your company."
Amy perked up.
Amy: "Is that so?"
Before the hedgehog could say anything else, Rouge abruptly stopped.
Rouge: "Oh, there was something else I had to say."
She turned around to face Amy.
"It has to do with Shadow's attacker."