“Rings do not change,
but the world does to the whims of their memories.
We never remember the past,
yet we surely live each day the same…”

···

♪ ~ [Pilgrim Snow ~ Yoko Kanno ~ WOLF’S RAIN]

          ~Ooh~! I feel like all I’ve been keeping in my Diary Ring, that’s what I’m calling the Engraving Ring Sonic made me now, is information about how the Rings and the world works. Really, it’s better just to experience it. But there is a whole lot more to what Sonic and I are experiencing in the Far Lands than just different uses for Rings.

          ~Tee-hee~♥ I say that, but really, there is a lot of time when things just feel the same. The Zone Sonic and I currently find ourselves in is a fair example of that.~

The sun above blocked by a small planet in the clouds
A ghostly Red Gear Ring behind the planet
An unnatural eye in a cloudy sky turned red
Phantasmal cog wheels turning in tune with those below
Steam and clockwork powered manufacturing plants
A city made of factories growing like corals from the cliffs
Moss and mushrooms of varied size it’s only inhabitants
Ancient trees watching over a deep labyrinthine canyon
A field of Light Blooms swaying on a pool like cliff shelf

          ~That planet up in the sky blocking the sun, and the Far Lands too, are all a seal for a mean bad guy I call Yolk because I can’t say his name properly at all. Sonic and I are here because of him, though it might be my fault too. I think I made a decision to save Sonic and am being punished for it. I don’t remember and my cards aren’t really telling me either, though Yolk can interfere with them. But that’s how I start every day. We~ll, after breaking out of the Light Bloom I sleep in. Yolk can’t bug me when I’m trapped in one.~

         In the field of orange, flower head-like blobs of light, a whirring sound could suddenly be heard. A moment later one of the flower heads broke as Rosy performed a wobbly Spin Dash that broke her free of where she had been held fast curled up for several hours. As she rolled past flower stems that seemed unneeded for the flowers that bloomed above where they ended, the one that held Rosy reformed peacefully. Rosy paid it no heed as she uncurled and ran with speed shared with her by Sonic the Hedgehog to the edge of the cliff borne shelf and pool the field of flowers rested in.

         Catching herself so as not to fall over the edge, Rosy looked around at the surrounding cliffs which towered well above her. The factories that burst from their walls and disrupted the waterfalls that curtained them, falling from the seemingly unreachable tops of the canyon walls. Decorating them were countless pool filled shelves that were like steps where more factories rested as well as ancient stone ruins. A moss-covered bridge where stone ruin and chicken wire catwalk met caught Rosy’s eye, and a bright smile adorned her face. As her tail started wagging, she jumped off the cliff and raced over.

         Her trip was not uneventful as stone golems that fused headless men with the form of an anchor drifted like ghosts and challenged Rosy. They were joined by spheres of stone adorned with massive green gems that made them appear as giant eyeballs. To Rosy, the gems were the ideal target on both the stone eyes and anchor men golems where they appeared in place of a neck and head. Curling into a tight ball and performing her best imitation of Sonic’s signature Spin Attack, Rosy jumped-up avoiding swinging massive stone fists and beams of green light fired from the gems and promptly smashed them. From her running battle Rings and Light Blooms burst into being in her wake. Rings from where the green beams of light disrupted the world and converted it back into Rings, and Light Blooms from where the twinkling seeds of light freed from the destroyed gems touched the ground.

         Rosy’s little battle was as much a legitimate battle as it was a chance for her to practice moving like Sonic. She was far from good at it though. Her Spin Attack would cause her to bounce off the ground if she did not uncurl, and uncurled she could not attack, rather landing on her opponents instead. She appeared far more graceful than she really was due to her acrobatic talents and tendency to wave and smile at the golems if she landed on them. But even as clumsy as she was, she soon reached her destination in the middle of the bridge she ran towards.

         “Good morning Sonic!” Rosy cheerful greeted the legendary speedster. He did not return her greeting though, seeming fast asleep between the teeth of a cog wheel that was wedged into the bridge.

          ~Tee-hee~♥ I’d love to nestle up beside Sonic, but he always chooses places to sleep where I can’t. Ooh~! He’s so good at it that it’s just unfair. And he always picks out a spot to sleep after I let a Light Bloom catch me so I can sleep safely.

          ~Right, I may have mentioned it before, but if those seeds of light freed from destroying golems land on you, they’ll bloom and trap you in the new flower. I’m a hedgehog, so it’s cozy enough being curled up in a tight little ball, but I bet it’d be uncomfortable for anyone else. But it’s still better than risking being attacked by the golems. Yolk controls them in this Zone, but he can’t seem to see me when I’m held in one and the golems never attack them. The best part is though, I don’t hear his voice when I’m trapped in one.~

         Having clasped her hands behind her back as she watched Sonic sleep, Rosy stopped swaying her body back and forth and reached into one of the shoulder puffs of her leotard. After a moment of digging around through who knows what, she extracted a waterproof case and sat down with her legs forming a “W” shape.

         Humming to herself with a bright smile, Rosy also called a Ring out of herself and into her hand. Placing it down on the ground before her, Rosy opened the case she held and extracted a deck of tarot cards. Carefully, she shuffled them and began to lay a number down in a pattern around the Ring.

         ~Typically, I always wake up before Sonic. He likes to sleep as it is when he isn’t running, and that is the perfect opportunity for me to read my cards and get an idea of what to expect from the day. Though, this time I’m preparing a Ring for dowsing. This whole Zone is corrupted by a Red Gear Ring a lot smaller than the one in the sky behind the little planet that share’s Yolk’s name. It’s bigger than the one that replaces my left iris though when you can see the one behind Yolk. But, thanks to the one in my eye, if I can avoid dropping my Rings, I can try to find the one that’s corrupting the zone by pretty much turning myself into a dowsing rod. Tee-hee~♥ It feels kind of funny, but it’s worth it!~

         “You know,” Sonic’s voice pulled Rosy from her tarot reading and dowsing preparation, “that tune you’re humming is nice enough, but the constant thwapping of your tail against the ground is completely out of tune.”

         “Sonic!” Rosy harrumphed, her cheeks puffing up and her subconscious tail wagging ceasing. “I can’t help that my tail wags while I’m happy. And sure, this Zone is in trouble, but being able to save it if I try is more than enough reason to be happy.”

         “Whatever you say Amy,” Sonic stifled a yawn as he spoke, scratching at an itch in his ear with a finger as he did. Soon he was on his feet however and hopped down from the giant cog wheel that had served as his bed.

         “S-Sonic?” Rosy stammered as Sonic walked behind her and knelt down. With Sonic so close to her, her face flushed slightly, and her tail resumed wagging. Until Sonic pinched the very tip between his thumb and pointer finger.

         “KYA~! What are you doing, Sonic!”

         Ignoring Rosy, Sonic held a finger to his lips and shushed her tail gently. Smirking he spoke directly too it. “Alright you. You’ve had your fun, but try to keep it quiet for now.”

         “SONI~C! Rosy squeaked in embarrassed disbelief before bolting to her feet. With her energy though it was only for an instant as in the same breath she gathered up and put away her cards. In the next, she was running full speed away without direction. It was an awkward run though that was better described as scrambling as Rosy’s inward turned knee and pigeon-toed stance always made running look awkward at speeds matching Sonic’s. This time though was even more awkward as she tried to keep her hips and tail turned away from Sonic while covering her face to hide how flustered she was.

          ~What was that! Sonic has never done anything like that before! Everything was so normal too until that happened!

          ~Really! It was!

          ~No matter how long it is that we’ve been here in the Far Lands, which is hard to tell because we just can’t keep track of time here, Sonic has never done anything like that. I’m sure of it too, even if my memories keep being stolen by the Rings.

         ~What was Sonic thinking! KYA~!~

         “Why do I have a feeling that was a bad idea,” Sonic laughed nervously to himself and rubbed the underside of his nose as he watched Rosy flee from him desperately. “Heh! She sure is energetic though. What a rascal, flirting with me all the time when she can’t even handle a bit of fooling around like that.

         “…

         “That really wasn’t like me though, was it?” Sonic questioned himself as he looked down at his hand, rubbing his thumb and fore finger together. “Yeesh, all the times I’ve carried that girl though you’d think I’d notice how frail she feels. Heh, even her tail is scary strong though!

         “Now…,” Sonic started as he stood up and placed his hands on his hips, “how am I going to get her not to turn that against me when I’m not even sure why I did it. Maybe her playfulness is starting to rub off on me. Really, that rascal–”

         *SPLASH!*

         A sweat drop ran down the side of Sonic’s face as Rosy managed to fall into a deeper pool on a cliff borne shelf below. Smiling awkwardly, Sonic shrugged. “She really is a rascal. I guess I better go save her from herself before she gets hurt. Being my usual cool self should be enough to calm her down though.”

         Flustered as she was, Sonic coming to her rescue with his confident smirk did not calm her down at all. Instead, Sonic’s plan backfired and Rosy was soon swooning and chasing after him.

         Off as Sonic’s actions had made Rosy’s waking routine, things returned to normal with the two of them again running together through another Zone of the Far Lands.