Written by Joshua David Tarwater
Special Thanks - @Cutegirlmayra
Illustration - SmilesFPS (SmilesFPS www.twitter.com)
Logo Design - Xenoko (XenokoYT www.twitter.com)

♪ ~ [Another Eden ～時空を超える猫～ ~ Yasunori Mitsuda ~ Another Eden Original Soundtrack]

         “Soni~c!” Rosy called out to Sonic as she emerged from the currently tranquil ocean waters that the finger like mountains of Archidemia Zone rose from. The blue hedgehog she called out to from where she enjoyed her swimming session was perched on a branch sticking out of the side of the mountain as though it were a hammock. Opening an eye, he peered down at Rosy waving at him from the water below.

         “Come on Sonic! The water’s great! It’ll be a perfect day to learn how to swim!”

         “No thanks,” Sonic dismissed the offer and shifted himself into a more comfortable position.

         “Come on Sonic!” Rosy huffed and puffed her cheeks up as she got angry with Sonic’s dismissal. “You have a cute girl who’s totally in love with you offering to teach you how to swim! How can you just ignore her!”

         Naively trying her best to look attractively cute where she swam, Rosy failed to draw Sonic’s attention. She did not give up though and smiled mischievously as she let herself float on her back.

         “Come on Sonic, it’s not like you can’t go fast in the water swimming! Just watch me!”

         Having a love for fast things and knowing full well that Rosy should be as fast as him thanks to their Ring Bond, Sonic lazily lifted an eyelid to watch Rosy take off at speeds he had to admit were admirable. He could never run that fast underwater, so watching her swim at speeds he needed dry land to achieve brought a smile to his lips, and a short, impressed whistle.

         “Keep trying, rascal,” he laughed, “but even being that fast isn’t going to get me in the water. I prefer running on dry ground.”

          ~Ooh~! That Sonic!

          ~I love everything about him, but that same stubbornness that lets him never give up makes it so hard to help him sometimes. I know he doesn’t like water because he can’t run freely in it, even if watching him run on the surface is astonishing, but learning to swim would be a huge help for him.

           ~I guess I can’t complain too much. Tee-hee! Sonic’s stubbornness has let me help him out quite a bit. After all, with the Zone freed from Yolk’s control we could ask the Engineers to help us retrieve the Tornado from the bottom of the ocean. Naturally, with my swimming ability and Sonic’s speed I was able to find it and help the Engineers get started getting it out of the water. It’ll need a lot of repair work, and Sonic and I are going to have to earn it by helping out around the various cities throughout the Zone, but it’ll be fun. I enjoy meeting people and helping make things even a little bit better for them. I know Sonic does too, so I just have to help him focus on the fun bits.

          ~*Sigh*

          ~I had hoped I could do that by teaching him how to swim while we waited for the Tornado to be pulled up, but Sonic chose to take a nap instead. And it’s not that I didn’t try, but it’s too late now. The Tornado is in the cargo hold of the airship the Engineers sent out and Sonic and I are going to be joining it.

          ~Spending time in an airship’s hold isn’t likely to be fun, but maybe Sonic will let me take a nap with him. Hee-hee! All of the canvas sacks and netting. I bet it’d be fun to set up a lover’s hammock. But there’s already some netting that kind of works, and I’m already feeling kind of sleepy.

          ~Hee-hee. Normally I’m more energetic than this, but I guess a little nap… will… be… okay…

♪ ~ [Land Lords ~ Nobuo Uematsu ~ Heavansward: FINAL FANTASY XIV Original Soundtrack]

The humming of propellers and massive machinery.
Dust unable to settle due to the vibrations.
Crates, canvas sacks, rope, and netting.
Steel and canvas walls joined by wooden floors.
A nest for a red biplane and two hedgehogs.

         “What are you doing now, Amy?” Sonic asked as he watched the pink hedgehog girl in the white leotard roll into a suspended net. He might have heard a mummer of some kind but was not sure. He did not trust her however to not be setting a trap for him and set his hands on his hips. “You’ll have to speak up if you want me to hear you.

         “Amy?”

         Pausing a second time, Sonic tried to make out where Rosy had disappeared in the netting but could not make her out in the shadows. Tapping his foot, he frowned slightly. “You’re trying kind of hard, aren’t you?”

         Again, Sonic was met with no answer and grew nearly fed up. He was half tempted to spring her trap, but his ear flicked as he heard something hidden within the humming of the airship.

         “…su~…”

         “Did you…?”

         Unsure if the soft and feminine snoring was legitimate, Sonic did not complete his question. Instead, he waited a moment, the tapping of his foot falling into rhythm with the peaceful breathing.

         A quizzical look crossed Sonic’s face, and he finally approached the netting. Not without caution however as Rosy was still likely to be trying to scare him and her boredom. Yet as he climbed some crates next to the netting and took a seat atop them, he was left surprised. A surprise in and of itself.

         “Heh,” Sonic laughed a moment. “Would you look at that, she actually ran out of energy.”

         Lying in the netting, curled up loosely, Rosy had fallen fast asleep, her mouth hanging open delicately. It was an unusual sight to Sonic who had grown accustomed to her boundless energy. He had not seen her so inactive since…

         “Hey,” Sonic began, a tinge of worry in his voice as he held up a hand. He stopped himself however to see if it really was just an act.

Looking down Rosy’s body, Sonic’s eyes rested on her tail, which was as limp as a wet noodle, much like the rest of her, having not dried herself off after her swim. Sonic could only sigh but found the courage to reach out at last to touch her.

         He only intended to touch her forehead and make sure she was not coming down with a fever, but he near recoiled at the contact.

         There was confusion in his eyes, and he could not explain it. He had carried her for what seemed like an eternity while she lay unconscious and endangered. Hoping that he could sustain her with Rings and stay one step ahead of Ix and Yoluku there was almost no point she had not been in his protective grip. Why did touching her now alarm him so?

         Did he fear he might disturb her sleep?

         There was no answer, but there was a bit of pride that he would not be beaten by feelings he did not understand. So, again, albeit gingerly, he reached under Rosy’s bangs and touched her forehead. First with a fingertip, and then at last his whole hand.

         Rosy did not move, not even in the slightest bar the rhythmic rising and falling of her chest. Assured it was safe to do so, Sonic placed his other hand to his own forehead to compare their temperatures and made sure she was fine. Once he was sure, he should have moved his hand away and left her to sleep.

         But he did not.

         Again, a look of confusion took over Sonic’s features. Looking down at the sleeping Rosy, he was unsure why, and what it was he was experiencing. It was always different with her than anyone else. No one made him jumpy like she did. No one made him express himself as vulnerably as she did. And now, with her suddenly fast asleep, it was peculiar for her to be so still and peaceful. It was not like when he was carrying her through the Far Lands either. There was a distinct difference, even if both upset him in a way.

         “Your smile…”

         Falling on the answer, Sonic ran his hand tenderly down Rosy’s face and gently cupped it under the side of her face. He could have brushed his thumb across her parted lips if he wanted, but he merely took in the sight of her. So peaceful and still.

         ‘That’s what it is.’

It was no longer difficult for Sonic to understand what was bothering him. Rosy’s smile was gone. Ever since she regained her consciousness, even bereft of most of her memories, she had almost always met him with a smile. Whether she was mad at him or trying her best to keep up, she was always smiling.

         “But look at you now, you rascal,” Sonic allowed himself a smile and soft laugh. “For all your smiling, your body couldn’t keep up. I guess I fell for it too. I keep getting bad reads on you and can only tell if you’re hurting when you lose it. But how much do you hide behind your smile? I guess I’m going to have to watch your smile and find out.”

         Gently, he stroked Rosy’s cheek with his thumb, and then jerked.

         “Urk!”

         He nearly jerked a second time when he realized he could have accidently woken her and left himself in a bad spot. Fortunately, she continued to sleep, and he carefully moved away from her and back to the floor of the hold, where he groaned again.

         “Really Sonic? How do you expect to watch her smile without making her freak out?”

         Scratching at the back of his head, Sonic mumbled to himself obviously not agreeing with the idea. “Definitely not smart.”

         Even as much as he criticized himself though, he looked back one last time, his own mouth falling ever so slightly. But Rosy was still fast asleep, and Sonic was free to stick a finger in his ear and scratch away at an unseen itch. Rosy would never know of this gentle moment or Sonic’s plan to recognize her smiles. Not unless Sonic ever found the courage to tell her.