Author

O.K. Everyone, welcome back. The break was nice, but it's time to kick things up again

Let me give everyone a little detail about the fan art…We're working on it. I'm letting him take care of the inking and coloring while I sketch the drawings for him. We're going to be posting it on his deviant art account, and I'll keep you updated for any new pics. Tell us what you think (on his profile I prefer); you're the experts after all.

If you want to see the pictures, go to deviant art and look up AiMajor-Sung97.

And if you plan on giving me ideas or have any suggestions for our drawings…Private message me, please. An idea isn't as good if every reader knows about it.

Daily shout outs.

TheGuyFromMineCraft: We already have one made. I was planning on drawing Luna and Shadow duking it out, but I'll save that for later…Twilight and Tails deserve the first post!

Silverwolf11: I'm sorry, but I don't have a role for him. I have everything played out and if I decided to add another Sonic character to the story, it'll throw it off, and I don't even know how Silver even acts. I haven't played Sonic 06, and I'm not planning to.

Erika: You know…Through your previous comments, you taught me something. You have shown me that I didn't use every character to their extent at the party. The next time something like that happens, I'll be sure to show every character present.

Next time you want to do something like that; post a fan fiction of your own and type the edited parts…I'll announce to my readers if you're good with it.

And I like to thank everyone for your comments, support, and your time with this facfiction. I read every single comment posted, and I cherish every single one of them. We're approaching the 20,000 viewer mark, and the bonus is almost ready!

Let me go ahead and say something. To ease everyone's mind and worries, I don't use the same material twice with my bonuses. If you're queasy; be thankful, but as I said about them, expect the unexpected! My only respect is to the rating system…The only thing I'm going to tell you is brace yourselves. The next bonus is over 10,000 words long, and I had a blast writing it.

Enjoy the chapter.

---

The sun began to rise over the horizon, beginning yet another day in Equestia and every inhabitants beyond. Ponies are thankful for Celestia's power…Except for one unfortunate echidna.

Stirring in his couch, Knuckles began to wake up. The first he done was hold his crouch while screaming in howling pain. Almost at once, his entire body began to ache with it. His stomach felt like fire, ready to combust at any moment. To top his suffering off, he was dizzy; a massive headache hammering away at him. The first mistake he made was sitting up.

Immediately, he felt a burning liquid rising against his throat. Before he knew it, a nasty green chunky liquid shot out of his mouth, splattering all over on the already gooey floor. His vision began to clear, and the very first thing he noticed was the mess around him. The floor beneath the crouch was coated with an icky-green liquid. The spot where his head rested was covered with spit and smelt like something relevant to a dead body. It was the worst thing he felt in his entire life.

Suddenly, he heard clops from up stares. Pinkie began to make her way down when she heard the painful moans from her red friend, with medicine ready.

Now, she handled drunks before; her life as a party pony has equipped her with experience necessary to handle the after math of wild parties. She knew how to handle hangovers, all sorts of hangovers; whether it be extreme sugar rush to wasted…When she arrived down stairs, her eyes widen in shock when she beheld the sight before her; It was the worst hangover she has ever seen.

She galloped over to Knuckles with a cup of cure on hoof. The echidna looked up and saw Pinkie.

"…How you feeling?" She asked him.

Pinkie saw his face, and it made her cringe. Blood shot eyes with layers of wrinkles underneath them. Dark yellow snot dripped from his nose, his skin pale and sick, bruises all over his body…Poor thing, Pinkie pities him.

"Drink this," Pinkie offered the cup to him, "It'll kick the little evil ponies out of your head."

His movement was slow, very slow; it took a good six seconds for him to grab the cup.

"…Thank you." His voice sounded like literal crap.

He chugged the drink down, his tongue completely numbed by the vomit. After a minute, his massive headache began to ease; clearing his mind so he can think.

"What happened last night?" He horsed.

Pinkie took a couple of steps back, smiling to see his friend recovering a bit, "That's simple, silly! You partied!"

Knuckles then realized the mess that party must have been. Crumbs of food and trails of liquid scattered all around the floor, any object that wasn't nailed to the floor or wall was knocked down. To top it off, the only thing he can smell was vomit.

There was only one thing that concerned him.

"…Who won?"

"You won!" Pinkie simply answered, her smile returning to full form, "She passed out way before you did!"

Knuckles slumped back down on the couch, letting out a long sigh of satisfaction as his head hit the soaked cushion, "…Sweeeeet."

The pink party pony watched over him as he laid on the couch for several more minutes…When he was sure that his vomiting subsided, he stood to his feet and-

"OOOOWWWW!"

He collapsed to the ground, holding his groin and pelvis like he's been shot.

"Oh, goodness!" Pinkie shouted, "I have some lotion for that-"

"No. No-no." He pleaded, "I'll be fine; just going to try to walk it off."

Knuckles tried to stand up, but was awarded with another surge of pain as he hollered in agony…What the heck happened to him last night?

Pinkie shot to the door, "Maybe I should get Fluttershy-"

"NO! NO!" He shouted at the pink pony, "I'm going to be just fine."

It took him a half an hour of waddling on the floor with his hands tucked between his legs before he could even thing about standing up. Pinkie tried to give him a hoof, but he quickly shooed her off with a case of the blushies.

After about an hour, he finally managed to get to his feet. It still felt like someone swung a hammer to his crouch, but at least he can handle a little amount of pain. Staggering outside with Pinkie beside him for support, they opened the door.

Knuckles hissed like a snake when the sunlight hit his eyes.
"You need to pay a visit to the hospital!" Pinkie suggested.

"I said I'll be fine." Knuckles growled.

When he tried to stand on his own, he fell to the ground while howling in pain. Pinkie lowered and scooped him up.

"Oh no, mister!" Pinkie said to him, "I'm not letting you out of your sight until you get checked out!"

Knuckles let out a loud grone as Pinkie knelt down and scoop him up; resting him on her back. Pinkie began her long stroll to the Ponyville hospital with a moaning echida on her back.

Just walking down the street, a lone mare was simply walking to a nearby market until she saw Pinkie carrying something red on her back…When she narrowed her eyes to investigate, her pupils shrunk to total terror.

"IT'S SPARTA!" She screamed before hightailing it back home like her life depended on it.

The red echidna looked on as the mare began to disappear. A low, gassy burp slipped from his lips.

"I swear," Knuckles mumbled while holding his stomach in, "I ain't ever drinking again."

---

Rarity began her new line of clothes while Sonic was sitting on the couch, still drowsy from waking up.

"Are you sure you don't want me sew some cloths for you and your friends," The white pony asked delight, "It'll be on the house."

"…I'm pretty sure." Sonic answered, shivering when he remembering yesterday.

Rarity resumed her work while Sonic simply lay back on the couch, deeply yawning. Normally, he would go outside to let the tree branches rock him to sleep...But he wasn't in the mood to go outside.

"So…" Sonic began, wanting to get a question off his chest, "What do you think of Knuckles?"

Rarity let out a little pout and shot her head around, "Darling, I don't want to discuss about 'him'; I'm in a good mood and I don't want anything ruining it."

Sonic rubbed the back of his head, "You know he was drunk last night, right?"

"He embarrassed me in front of important Canterlot designers!" Rarity shouted, "That could have been my big break!"

The hedgehog let out a long sigh, "Listen…He's not a bad guy, poking a little fun is just his way of showing friendship."

Rarity stood quite for a couple of second before answering his statement, looking somewhat regret full of degrading the said echidna, "I may tolerate his obsolescence for the sake of friendship, dear Sonic; since Rainbow and Pinkie like to pull pranks on me and the rest of my friend… but he's certainly not calling me a marshmallow!"

They heard the door open. A small, orange filly came scampering through the door way; a cheerful smile on her face.

"Why, hello Skootaloo," Rarity greeted briefly before resuming her sowing, "If you're looking for Sweetie Bell, she's already at the club house."

"Well, actually," She turned her head to the side and blushed a little, "I came to see if Sonic is here."

The said hedgehog shot his head up and saw a little filly nervously trotting towards him…He's not for sure why, but there was something about this kid that made him smile.

"Hey, uh…Mr. Sonic," She lowly spoke, avoiding eye contact, "H-how you doin'?"

…This is the cutest filly he has encountered yet, "What's up?"

"Uh…" She coward to the floor, her tail wrapping around her own body, "Me and the girls were wondering if, uh...If you would like to come ta…Hang out and…Stuff?"

He never heard of this little filly, but what kind of harm would be done by playing a game or two with a bunch of cute little fillies.

"Sure." He answered with a smile, "I don't mind."

Rarity looked behind and saw the two heading out the door…What a sweet thing for him to do.

"Have fun you two!" She called out as they made their way to the door.

Sonic and the little filly made their way out the door, their faces warming as the morning sunlight struck their faces; such a peaceful morning.

"What do you have in mind?" Sonic kindly asked the filly, taking note of her nervousness.

She could hardly believe it…Sonic! Right there in front of her! The fastest creature alive is standing right above her! What should she say? What is she supposed to say? Th-th-th-this is unbelievable!

"Uh-uh-uh," She began to shake, sweat pouring from her forehead, "I-I-I was wondering, if you would like to; well what everypony would like you to do…"

She couldn't even complete her sentence. Sonic watched as the little orange filly stuttered, trying to force the words out of her mouth. Sympathetic, the hedgehog knelt and put a hand on her back; gently stroking to try to calm her down. Skootaloo looked up and saw Sonic's warmful smile…It soothed her heart instantly.

"I was wondering if you like to come with me ta school," She finally asked, "See? We're having a show and tell at school, and everypony there wants ta see you, uh; you know. Do those tricks and stuff; they're so rad!"

Sonic stood back up and gave her his trademarked snicker, "Heh, sure! A little show and tell never hurt anypony."

Skootaloo hopped for joy, giving the hedgehog a good long hug around his leg. Sonic picked the little filly up and properly hugged her back.

He put her down when a coo threatened to slip.

With ecstatic legs and a cheeky smile, she summoned a small scooter and hopped on.

"Common!" She innocently cheered, "Let me show you the way."

When her wings began to flap, she took off with a trail of dust.

She awfully fast for a cute little filly!

Sonic boomed and ran next to her, keeping his pace next to her. Skootaloo looked to her side and saw the hedgehog running right by her. She almost squealed…Sonic; the Sonic, is running by her!

The filly was about to shout something to him until something struck her head. It didn't knock her down, but it enough to send her veering off to another street. The street itself was busting with activity, random ponies trotting, carts being pulled, stands being pulled up.

With a keen eye, Skootaloo sped head on to the upcoming obstacle course. She hopped over the little animals, ducked under stallions, leapt through ramps. Sonic stopped and watched in fascination; it was as if she was his long lost sister.

With a deep breath, he sped through the street. Not at full sprint since the street was busy, but fast enough to become a blur to everypony else. He hopped over ponies, wall jumped, even pulled off a couple of tricks when he sped through a makeshift ramp. He saw Skootaloo at the oth-

*THUD!*

…Forgot to duck.

Sonic fell to ground, little ducks and squirrels dancing around his head as his vision blurred. After a couple of seconds, he began to make what obstructed him. It was the side of a cow.

The cow looked behind and saw the blue hedgehog standing up. Furious, she bucked him square on the head, knocking him back down.

"The nuts on some creatures!" She hissed while trotting away with her nose stuck up in the air.

The kick wasn't hard, but it was enough to daze the poor hedgehog for a second or two before he stood back up; catching up to Skootaloo.

---

Ms. Cheerilee was randomly calling students to represent their show and tell until nature called her to the bathroom. While she was away, Applebloom and Sweetie bell were sitting in the mist of the classroom, pulling their heads in so they could whisper.

"Where tha hayseed is Skootaloo?" Applebloom whispered, "She shoulda be here with Sonic bye now."

"How am I supposed to know?" The little white filly answered, "Skootaloo is always late for class."

"Then why did we let'er go get him, then?"

"Because she begged," Sweetie bell whined, "She wouldn't shut up about him, remember?"

"…Oh, yea."

The two crusaders continued to wait nervously for their last member to arrive. The class has only heard rumors of the hero. Can he really break the sound barrier? Can he really jump fifty feet in the air? Can he really slice through steel without-"

"SWEET MOTHER OF CELESTIA!"

The fillies instantly hushed and looked to the bathroom door. After a second, the bathroom door slammed open; revealing a snarling Ms. Cheerilee with a magazine in her mouth.

She looked neither left nor right, she marched straight to snails; slamming the magazine on his desk.

"What is this?!" She demanded.

The fowl jumped in fright from the intimidating mare. When he looked down at the magazine in question, his expression became innocently blank. The magazine revealed two mares sticking their flanks out to the camera, with tails lifted to show their stuff to the world.

"…That ain't mine." He quickly answered.

The teacher gave him a blank stare; then flipped the magazine to the back and read the hand written message on it out loud.

"Property of Snails. If found, please return."

Ms. Cheerilee was casting daggers at the curious fowl. His puny mind raced to come up with a reasonable excuse.

"Uh…It's research," his face brightened a little, "Yea! Research! Let's go with research!"

The outraged teacher banged her hoof on his desk, "How dare bring this file thing to my school! Do you know the disgusting business dealt in this industry?"

"OOOOOOOOO." The class sang in a chore when they saw the magazine.

To his complete oblivious grip on the situation, he chuckled a bit, "I sure do."

Ms. Cheerilee would have gone over the edge if she didn't take a couple of deep breaths to catch herself, "This industry portrays mares as sexual objects…Do you view mares for nothing more but pleasure?"

"…No." He sighed, now comprehending the seriousness of the situation.

The teacher picked up the magazine and trotted behind her desk, putting the magazine in a cabinet and sat down.

"We're going to have a little talk with your parents about this." She flatly said to him, narrowing her eyes at him.

"So I can't use it for show and tell?" He asked.

…This was going to be a long day.

---

Sonic was making his way to the front door, observing the innocent and colorful setting of the school and play ground. It reminded him a lot of his youth back on his planet.

He made his way to the front door, kicking a ball out of the way while grabbing the door handle. When he opened the door, he was greeted by a surprised mare.

"Oh! Uh, excuse me," She bowed her head respectfully, "Pardon my use for words but…You must be Skootaloo's show and tell."

Sonic answered by bowing his head back, "I don't mind, it's not like I have something else to do anyways."

"Then I thank you for your company," She said, "Would you like to come in?"

When he stepped inside, he was met by a series of whispering 'awes'. Skootaloo took his hand and led him to the front of the class.

"Everypony," The little filly proudly presented, "I would like to introduce everypony to the most awesome creature that has ever set foot in Ponyville!"

It was weird, but Sonic began having stage fright in front of those cute little fillies, "Uh…High guys."

The fillies looked on as the blue hedgehog slowly waved his hand at them. The teacher decided to start things off.

"Why don't you start with your name?" She kindly asked him.

Sonic shook off whatever was on him and presented himself. He gave the class a little snicker, "I'm Sonic…Sonic the hedgehog."

He began by explaining his story of Eggman's invasion back home…Sonic wasn't too detailed about his story, but detailed enough to give the fillies an idea of the mastermind himself and his plans. He must have had a hidden talent of storytelling, because the fillies were very intrigued of his story. He told it in a way that put the fillies right there in the action.

He continued his story until the finished the part about the race. Everypony applauded, even the teacher applauded. His story only took a half hour to tell, considering everything that has happened since his arrival. After answering a couple of questions, Sonic decided to ask a couple of questions of own to the class. He never really understood the ponies to a great detail, so he might as well ask to make things interesting.

"O.K." Sonic said with a little cheer, enthusiastic about the audience, "I haven't really understood this world to a great extent since my arrival. So is it alright if I ask a couple of questions?"

Everypony nodded.

"I noticed that some of you in here have a weird tattoo on your flanks and some of you don't. Care to explain?"

A light amberish gray filly wearing glasses politely raised her hand. Sonic pointed to her.

"A cuthie mark appears ith a pony finds hith or her spethal talent."

"…Can you repeat that?" He deadpanned.

Another filly shot up her hoof, "Well, mister. If you must know, A cutie mark is a special mark a pony obtains when that pony finds his or special talent."

"Very good, Silver Spoon." Ms. Cheerilee, "Straight from the book."

"…Kiss up." Skootaloo mumbled quietly.

Sonic put a finger on his chin, "So you get a tattoo on your rump when you find your talent."

"Yes, Mr. Sonic. Doesn't take a genius to figure that out." Diamond Tiara rudely commented.

…Tattoos on their butts. Sonic thought, …Not suggestive at all.

He began to check out every cutie mark he found in the room, trying to decipher what each filly's cutie mark represented…He found one that stumped him.

"Uh…Silver Spoon. Wasn't it?" He called to her.

She politely nodded her head.

"I have a question for you…What does your cutie mark stand for?"

"I," She checked her rump, her face lighting red, "…I don't wanna talk about it."

"We got a couple of ideas." Snips chuckled with his friend chuckling with him.

The two fowls continued to giggle until the teacher threw them a death glare.

After asking a couple of more questions; he bowed his head to dismiss himself. He was just about to walk to the door until little Skootaloo clamped to his leg.

"Don't go, Sonic," She pleaded, "We want to see your awesomeness!"

"Yea!" One filly shouted, "We want to see you break the sound barrier and stuff!"

Sonic became a little baffled about…It's actually inspiring having a group of kids look up to you.

"Alright class, lets settle down," Ms. Cheerilee addressed them, "I'm sure he has other things to attend to."

"Naw, I don't mind." Sonic answered, "I have nothing else better to do. Take them outside and I'll show them a couple of things."

The fillies roared with cheers.

"Well…" The teacher gave it some thought, "I-I guess it wouldn't hurt."

Almost at once, every filly and fowl lined up with their teacher in front. The younglings let the school one by one until the entire building is empty...Except for one fowl.

When Snails was sure everypony was out of the room; he slowly stepped back to the trash can, keeping a close eye on the door. When he was sure the door wouldn't open, he spun around and swiped the dirty magazine from the trash can. He held it close.

"Don't worry; daddy gotcha." He whispered.

With the magazine secure, he trotted to the door.

---

"Gosh…Ah didn't even see him!" Applebloom awed, staring to the open space, "Did anypony else?"

Every filly and fowl looked and looked for the speeding hedgehog. He was standing in front of them one second, and gone with a long dust trail the next.

"There's no way that thing can run around Equestia in two minutes!" Diamond Tiara shouted out loud, "He's down right crazy!"

Ms. Cheerilee had her little watch out, keeping track of the second hand.

"one-ten." Cheerilee mumbled, "one-eleven, one-twelve."

"He's not crazy!" Skootaloo shouted at the spoiled filly, "He's a hero!"

"Thirteen, fourteen, fifteen."

"Whatever you say, blank flank." Silver Spoon said.

"Sixteen, seventeen, eighteen."

A sudden dust trail swished in front of them. It quickly cleared, revealing a smirking blue hedgehog.

"Time?" He asked

"Sweet Luna!" She gasped, "Two seconds to spare!"

Every filly and fowl cheered except for Tiara and Silver Spoon, who just pouted. Little Skootaloo hopped to the blue hedgehog.

"Can ya do those crazy stunts when we were getting over here?" She begged.

"I-I don't know," He stuttered, "I should be getting back to the library."

"Pleeeeaaaaase."

Skootaloo sat down and stared at him, her eye expanded and lips trembling…Sonic could no longer hold his urge; he knelt down and gave the filly a hug.

"I guess I could do a couple of tricks before I go." He sighed.

The filly squirmed out of his grip and exploded in a bundle of joy and happiness, "Yea!"

Sonic shook his head and set himself up, facing the school building, "Alright, everypony. Stand back!"

They didn't have to think twice to back off.

The hedgehog knelt, snickering as he stared at the playground ahead of him. With a gleam in his eye, he boomed; a light shock wave blasting behind him. He ran straight to the poll, jumping and grabbing the poll with his hands. As his body began to revolutionize itself to the top, he grabbed the flag; dislodging it from the string. With the wind picking up, the flag flew straight up with Sonic at complete mercy with the wind. When he was directly above the school building, he dropped; letting his body free fall several feet from the ground. He flipped and repositioned himself, hitting the rooftop feet first and skid back to the ground, shards of shingles falling with him.

The little fillies cheered like a pack of excited cheerleaders…Except for their teacher

Sonic didn't stop there. He kept zipping to one part of the playground to the next, posing his body in different positions as he took to the air. During his performance, he ran head first to a swing set; spinning around it a couple of times before flying off.

Rainbow Dash was making her rounds around Ponyville and found a group of fillies cheering and screaming below. Curious, she swooped down and landed beside her number one fan.

"What the hay is going on?" She asked while staring ahead.

It didn't take her long to find Sonic almost causing a small twister when he blast himself from a blue spinner, launching himself again to the air.

"Is he just amazing!?" The orange filly shouted as she hopped in place.

Rainbow continued to look at the spectacle, watching the hedgehog perform for the little ones…She had to admit it, she admired his attitude; facing danger head on and throwing caution to the wind. She embraced that attitude when she was a little filly, and never once did she look back on it.

A small and gentle smile crest on her lips.

"…He is pretty cool." She mumbled to the orange filly.

Sonic jumped from the swings again and was about to jump from the school wall until-

"Nice moves, hot shot!" Rainbow cheered.

Her voice threw him off just long enough for him to collide with the building head on, hitting the wall with a loud thud. With his face implanted, he slowly flopped down to the ground.

His eyes were closed, almost knocked unconscious by the impact. Rainbow flew to him, standing over him and waiting for him to come too.

Sonic slowly opened his eyes, seeing the sun blocked by a shadowy figure standing over him. When his vision cleared, the very first thing he made out was two magenta eyes staring down at him.

"You O.K. There, buddy?" She asked.

As soon as he made out the rest of her cyan body and wings. He can practically feel the blush heating up on his face, only intensifying when her face began to inch closer.

"Why are your cheeks turning red again?" She asked, putting a hoof on his forehead, "You running some kind of fever?"
To dazed to stand and too memorized to speak or look away, he continued to stare into her beautiful eyes. The next thing he saw was Skootaloo standing over him.

"Do ya need to go see a doctor?" The filly asked.

Skootaloo continued to watch the strange phenomenon before her. Sonic was blushing, staring at Rainbow Dash with his lips almost trembling. She saw a strange calm and panic over his body, like it wants to run but again doesn't want too.

Finally, Rainbow Dash backed up and offered a hoof to him. When she broke eye contact, he reached his hand and grabbed; hoisting himself back up.

The group of fillies continued to watch Sonic as he tried to speak.

"Uh…" Again, hesitation swept over him, "H-hi."

"Wow, you took one nasty bump to the head." Skootaloo commented.

Sonic brushed his nervousness off his shoulder so he could comment and hopefully get out of this mess.

"I had worst," He answered, being sure not to look at Rainbow's direction, "You should have seen me when I was running through the flying battery years ago."

"Common!" Rainbow said with a hint of pride, "Any other stallion would have been knocked out by that," She gave him a playful punch to the shoulder, "You're tougher than you look!"

Again, he blushed. Instead of just running off, he stood his ground, "Uh…Thanks."

Rainbow may have missed his off behavior, but Skootaloo surely caught it. When he was in the classroom he was confident, friendly, and a bit cocky. When he's around her idol, he's stutters, nervous, and ready to take off…This is truly something the Cutie Mark Crusaders need to look into.

After a small and somewhat awkward discussion, Ms. Cheerilee called her class back to the school building. Rainbow took to the skies to resume her work; much to Sonic's relief…He surely needs someone to talk to about this, someone who can keep a secret-

"SONIC!"

The hedgehog shot his head to the direction of the noise and found a rather frighten yellow fox running to his direction. Tails stopped in front of him, pale as a ghost and ready to collapse.
"Sonic, I've been looking for you all morning!" He gibbered, grabbing the hedgehog by the shoulders, "I-I-I-I have a problem! I-I-I don't know what to do!"

"Whoa! Whoa! Slow down." Sonic said to him, trying to calm him down, "Tell me what going on."

Tails was about to speak, but felt his voice cut off before he could answer. The fox took a couple of steps back, looking up to his friend while nervously nudging his two index fingers together, "Well, I-It's not so much as a problem…I-it's a-a very unpredictable scenario."

"Tails, you can trust me." Sonic ensured him.

The fox was very hesitant to speak, his furry cheeks sparking red.

"…You won't tell anybody about this?"

"No pony else will know." Sonic said, "Now what's going on?"

Tails' blush deepened. Sonic patiently waited for the fox to speak his sentence.

"Don't think I'm crazy but…I think Twilight likes me."

…Is Sonic hearing what he thinks he's hearing?

"I-I was just lying on the couch last night after the party, and I was a-about to fall asleep…then…" The poor things was shaking like a leaf, "…She kissed me on the cheek."

Sonic didn't make a single facial expression. After a second, a small smile crested on his lips.

Then it became a full fledge grin.

"Sonic, I'm being serious." Tails pleaded, his voice trembling.

At that, Sonic doubled back laughing; stains of tears pouring down his eyes…When he caught his breath, he settled down and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Tails," He softly spoke, somewhat regretful for what he's about to say, "We thought you would never figure it out."

Tails felt his jaw dropped, "You knew?"

"I'm not trying to put this in a bad way, buddy." Sonic addressed him, "It was pretty obvious."

"W-w-w-w how come you didn't tell me about this, Sonic?"

"Well…" He paused for a minute to think, "Twilight would have strangled us if we told you…And I thought you would have caught on."

Tails regretfully thought back…It was all coming together in a revelation of the past; Twilight always being close to him, the time when he carried her when she said her ankles were weak, the countless of times when she 'accidently' rubbed against him…The dance.

Why didn't he realize it at the dance?

"S…Sonic," Tails whimpered, "W-w-what do I do?"

"That's pretty simple," Sonic answered him, "If you have feelings for her, you're going to talk to her and become the closest friends you ever had with any girl."

"But-but-but-but I don't feel the same way about her," Tails said, "I see her as a good friend with the same interest as I do…But nothing like that."

Sonic sighed, relaxed but has a somewhat serious tone, "Just take her out and see if you develop the same feelings for her."

"I-I-I can't do that!" Tails almost shouted.

"Sure you can," Sonic answered with confidence.

"But, Sonic!"

"No buts!" Sonic firmly addressed him, pointing a finger behind him, "You're going to go over there like the little trooper you are and ask her out."

Tails swallowed, sweat dripping front his forehead. Defeated, he slowly turned around and began his looong journey to the library.

"By the way," Sonic called to him, "I'm about to call a meeting later today. We need to try to find another emerald.

"O.K." He answered without a single trait of confidence in his voice, "Promise you won't tell anybody about this."

"No pony will know." Sonic ensured him.

---

"Twilight did WHAT?!" Knuckles shouted in the hospital bed.

"Kiss him!" Sonic shouted with him, laughing like a maniac, "Kissed him right on the cheek when he was about to fall asleep!"

The white building was filled with boyish laughter. Sonic may feel a little regretful letting Knuckles in on the secrete, but he was constantly asking for an update on the situation. He is a close friend after all.

It's been a couple of hours since Pinkie left the hospital room. Knuckles' pelvis was wrapped around like a mummy; both his legs propped up to keep any kind of pressure from his injured body part.

"Sonic," Knuckles spoke, changing his tone to almost pitiful when he felt a jolt of pain from his groin, "I'm never drinking again, man."

Sonic has embarrassed himself in front of a group of fillies, offered advice to a scared fox, seeing his red friend in the hospital, and it's only ten in the morning. He cast a worried eye to his friend's injuries.

"…How many times have they kick you?"

"Just to my groin?" Knuckles thought back to the doctor's words, "Around five or six times…The doctor said that I'll be fine in a couple of hours."

Sonic felt his jaw dropped a little bit, "That's not natural."

Knuckles smirked a bit, carefully propping his fists behind his head, "…Have you ever heard the term 'balls of steel?'"

"I didn't think you had any left." Sonic joked.

They heard a polite knock on the door. A doctor and a nurse trotted in holding a couple of papers and a pen, casting a rather nasty glare at the injured echidna.

"Dr. Hooves, buddy," Knuckles greeted him with a small grin, "How are things? Did you get a good night sleep?"

The good doctor shook his head at his childish rants and looked at his papers, "According to the X-ray report, you have sustained no broken bones. I must say, it's a miracle you walked out of that with only a couple of cuts and bruises."

Knuckles pumped his fist, "YEA! BALLZ OF STEEL BABY!"

Knuckles was laughing out loud at his own joke until Sonic gave him a hard spat upside the head.

"I-I-I'm sorry, doc," Knuckles chuckled while whipping a tear from his eye, seeing the mare beside the doctor freaking out a bit, "I couldn't resist that."

With a long sigh, Dr. Hooves turned around and slowly walked out of the building with his assistant walking behind him. The two closed the door behind him to leave the two creatures by themselves.

"Anyways," Sonic said, "When you get out of the hospital, meet me back at the library. We're forming another plan on where we're going to find another Chaos Emeralds."

Knuckles dropped his tone to a more serious one, "Let's see, if you have two and Shadow has two. There's only three left to find."

"And Tails is also adding modifications to the machine to find the next Emerald."

Suddenly, Sonic heard a ring from his ear piece. He clicked the button.

"Hello?" Sonic greeted.

"Sonic." Tails whimpered in a low voice, "I'm calling from the bathroom; T-T-Twilight is getting me to read more books on the mare's anatomy. What should I tell her?"

Knuckles couldn't help but click his ear piece on. Sonic was on the case.

"Uh…I-I don't Tails, just read with her." Sonic answered, trying not to laugh, "And have you asked her about that dinner date?"

"I-I-I-I tried, but I was too nervous." Tails pleaded, "You have to come help me, Sonic. I don't know what to do."

"Don't worry, Tails. Just be yourself." Sonic ensured him, "Read with her, you'll be fine."

"B-b-but Sonic! She's reading about-"

*Click*

Sonic shook his head, lowly chuckling along with his friend for a minute or so. Sonic was about to say good bye and walk out before Knuckles called him.
"How are things between you and Rainbow?" Knuckles asked, "Any progress."

This question knocked the hedgehog clean off his comfort zone, "Uh…Does performing in front of her and almost getting knocked out unconscious count?"

Knuckles crossed his arms, "Did you talk to her?"

"…No." He moaned, "Too nervous."

"You know. Neither you or Tails will get anything done if ya'll continue to hide your feelings."

"I-I know." Sonic said, "I just lose it when she gets near me."

"Then you need to get it back," Knuckles gruffed, "So what if she turns you down, at least you'll be happy knowing than not knowing at all."

Sonic huffed, "You know, Knuckles. You're right. You are absolutely right! The next time I see her, I'm holding nothing back!" He began to make his way to the door, "I'm going to go straight to her and tell my feelings to her face…So what if she turns me down? I'll go down fighting!"

"That's the spirit, my gakusei!" Knuckles shouted while the hedgehog made his way to the exit.

---

In the mist of Sweet Apple Acres stood a lone tree house; a tree house many ponies do not know. It may be a little run down, but it's sanctuary for a particular organization whose purpose is to discover destinies for others and their own.

Or to put this in English…Three rowdy fillies who couldn't wait for their Cutie mark.

"Now there's something about Sonic that ain't quite right," Skootaloo began, pacing the wooden floor,

"What do ya mean? Skootaloo?" Applebloom asked, "Ah didn't see anything wrong with him."

"Like when he was outside when Rainbow dropped by." The orange filly explained, "Did anybody pony else notice."

Sweetie Bell pondered in her little special thinking spot, a light bulb hanging above her head, "When I think about it, I did notice Sonic acting rather suspicious around Rainbow."

"Ah don't think it mean nothin'." Applebloom stated.

"Hey! Sonic never gets nervous," Skootaloo said, "This is weird of him, and we're going to figure out what it is."

"Why should this even concern us?" Applebloom asked, "His business should be his own."

While the two fillies argued, Sweetie Bell stood completely still on her spot, putting a hoof on her chin. In what an artist would call the perfect thinking pose, her innocent mind pondered on the possibilities and making use of information in her head. When an idea appeared in her mind, her eyes narrowed.

Hmmmmm…

Applebloom and Skootaloo continued to argue until they noticed the brainstorming Sweetie Bell. Their innocent eyes widen in a mix of surprise and terror; nothing can compare the vast void of her mind. In complete respect, they backed off; even they cannot comprehend the process of her mind.

Then, all of a sudden, the little light bulb above her head flickered on.

"I got it!" Sweetie Bell yelled, making the others jump, "Sonic has a crush on Rainbow!"

It took a couple of seconds for their minds to process the answer, "You can't be serious!" Skootaloo stated, knowing that answer has to be true…Sweetie Bell came up with the answer after all, "Sonic would never have uh crush on Rainbow."

"It's very possible!" Sweetie Bell said, "They have the same interest, almost the same personality, they're close friends, and it explains Sonic strange behavior!"

Applebloom and Sweetie Bell cooed and hugged each other while the orange filly stuck out her tongue…Revolting!

"We should help!" Sweetie Bell suggested, "We can secretly follow Sonic and help him out…Like a covert operation!"

"Yea!" Applebloom agreed, "Maybe we can git out cutie marks for it!"

Skootaloo perked her head up hearing that word. The three collaborated together, bumping their hooves together.

"THE CUTIE MARK LOVE INITIATORS, YEA!"

---

A couple of hours passed since Knuckles' release, and the library was already crammed full with the six mares as well as Sonic and the others. They were all sitting in the living room, couches summoned by Rarity to house the extra company. In front of the audience stood the energy detector, which had some major modifications thanks to Tails.

Now, Tails usually wouldn't mind giving a small orientation to his friends, but when you have to speak in front of somepony that has been relentlessly hitting on you for the past week or so, and only found out recently about her ambitions…You'll be shaking too.

"N-Now," Tails began, standing in front of his friends with Twilight sitting the closest up front, "I would l-like to thank everybody and pony for being here. I know it's been an interesting night for all of us yesterday," He took just one quick glance at the purple mare and shivered when she threw him a lustful eye, "Uh…Twilight has received a message from Princess Celestia. They're combing the desserts right now and about to search the western jungle tomorrow…A-any ideas where to look?"

The group pondered a bit until Rainbow Dash shot her hoof up, "Can an emerald float on a cloud by any chance?"

Twilight broke her gaze from the fox for a second to answer her question, "I wouldn't think so. An emerald may contain magical properties, but according to Tails' study it wouldn't be able to float because of its weight. You either need wings or a special spell to walk on the clouds."

Rarity shot her hand up, "May I suggest the mountains?"

"There's a division of guards checking there already." Tails answered.

The group became stumped.

"Well…I'm not for sure where else to look," Knuckles grunted with his arms crossed, "Just about every landmark is being searched."

"Ah don't know where we're find the little emerald," Applejack commented, "Yer talkin' about finding a needle in a hay stack."

The group continued to talk among themselves until Amy spoke up.

"…What about a city?

Every pony and creature gave their attention to her, waiting for her to continue.

"I know it sounds a little weird, but what if there's a chance that a Chaos Emerald is in a large city?"

"You would think one of those millions of ponies will find that emerald?" Sonic stated.

"…You know?" Tails spoke up, "It's a long shot, but it's worth a shot."

"And one shot is better than no shot at all!" Pinkie cheerfully stated, "But then again you always hit and miss every shot you don't take and make every shot you don't miss!"

Sonic did himself a favor and scooted a little farther away from her.

"Well, if Tails made the necessary modifications on the machine." Sonic spoke, "Then we should be able to find it."

Fluttershy was in the back ground, slowly stepping up with her head hidden behind her pink mane, "Um…I-I don't know. The city can be a dangerous place."

"Fluttershy." Knuckles sighed while leaning back, "We're dangerous."

"You don't need to worry," Amy said while putting a hand on her back, making the pony squeak, "We'll be with ya."

"Then I guess it's settled!" Tails said, "This evening we'll set out for Fillydelphia. Once we reach the city, we'll split into groups!"

Little did they know that just outside their window, three little fillies were ease dropping on the conversation.

"Did ya'll hear that?" Applebloom almost shouted while hopping in place, "They're goin' to Fillydelphia!"

"I always wanted to visit tha city!" Skootaloo stated, "The skyscrapers, the markets-"

"The lights, the culture." Sweetie Bell finished, "This is going to be a blast!"

---

Deep within the northeastern desert, dozens of Royal Guards were frisking for the missing Chaos Emerald. The machine Tails provided floated by them, not making a single beep since their arrival. They have teleported from one end of the windy desert to the other, and not a single noise came from that machine. After many hours of searching, the sands covering the dessert began turning to a low-setting orange, marking the end of the day.

"Six hours of nonstop searching and we still can't find that emerald." One guard grunted, "My hooves are killing me."

"Every sector has been searched." Another guard said, "If we were anywhere near that emerald this blasted machine will be beeping already."

Huffing, the group of guards summoned their mats and planted their hunches down; taking a much needed break. Every stallion pretty much got into a circle and began chatting among themselves, topics ranging from Canterlot to politics.

Suddenly, a bright flash emitted beside them. They looked and saw a golden armored stallion trotting towards them. The guards immediately stood and saluted to their superior.

"Status report!" The elite demanded.

"Every sector of the dessert has been combed, but the emerald has not been found."

The armored pony huffed, shaking his head, "We don't have time for these delays. We have to find that emerald before that thing does. The security of our Kingdom is at risk."

"We are scheduled to search the southern jungle tomorrow." One stallion said, taking in a deep breath before continue, "Requesting a report from the fifty first division, sir."

The elite shook his head, "The mountains are still being search, and the stallions are coming up empty I'm afraid…That jungle is out last hope of finding anything."

The guards hung their heads and shook their heads, the machine resting beside them.

"We'll resume our search in the jungle, sir." The lieutenant spoke.

The elite bowed his head and teleported back to the palace. The guards gathered to a circle, charging their magic to teleport every pony at once…In a flash, the ponies disappeared.

Hiding behind a sandy hill, not too far from where the guards, stood a glaring black hedgehog. His arms were crossed, his eyes narrowing in a hint of anger.

"…Not for long now." He mumbled.

Knowing where the Royal Guards will be heading, Shadow charged his emeralds inside of him and teleported…He knew it was only a matter of time before that emerald will be found.

---

Author's notes

O.K…I feel like this chapter is a bit on the dry side of quality, but still necessary to kick everything back in gear. Yet again, you're the experts.

I'm telling ya, it's been quite a ride. Even though I have a little experience in writing (and I'm talking very little experience) this is my first written work, and I must say this was quite an interesting experience. I know my spelling isn't the best, but I try to proof read.

Deadline...As usual two weeks tops.

Don't forget to leave a comment on the way out, and if you can; please vote on my profile.

Signing out, and I bid everyone good luck! See you in a week or so.

Harry