Disclaimer: Sonic the Hedgehog etc doesn't belong to me.

Rating: K+

Summary: One-shot. SonAmy Week on Tumblr prompt: Family. Sonic finds Amy heart-broken and has to find the strength he normally gets from his beloved pink hedgehog, to help her through the pain...

A/N: Whew, I actually feel a lot happier with this chapter for the prompt and I hope you guys do too. Apologies for any spelling, grammar mistakes. I can only re-read my own writing so much before I begin to loathe it, so can sometimes skip things I might have intially missed. Love! x

Family

Sonic the Hedgehog never thought he would put himself in the category of having a crush. Yet, there he was in the same place as he had found himself for the last couple of months, standing in front of Amy Rose's door waiting for her to invite him inside. A crush would mean wanting to spend time with that person, right? Thinking about them during lapses in activity or thought. Finding your-self staring at them more than normal. Wanting to be able to have some kind of physical contact with them, even if it's just moving a lock of hair over their shoulder or brushing against their arm. Worrying about their safety and feeling what they feel. . .

Then again, you could call that love too.

So if you look at it that way then yes, Sonic the Hedgehog is definitely in love with Amy Rose.

He'd already suspected he was in deeper than he could handle the night he bravely fought a Chao for her safety; when he curled up on that bed with her with her little intruder between them. When he'd woken up the next morning it was to find his arm wrapped tight around her waist, holding him to her while the Chao slept on his chest, rising and falling with his breaths. Looking at the two of them he'd felt his heart swell to the point of pain, everything feeling so natural and perfect to him. The peaceful look on Amy's face made his fingers twitch to run them through her loose, crazy quills to wake her up.

He didn't of course; he knows what kind of damage that hammer can do.

But still, it was enough to make him move the Chao and slip his arm from her body to sneak out of the room. He was enjoying the company - maybe just a little too much. Staying in her house to defend her against what was scaring her was one thing. But to spend the night on her bed - no matter how innocent it was - it would only lead to the opening of floodgates he would never have the strength to close. And until he truly knew what he was feeling, he wasn't going to pull Amy into his solar system just yet.

Only, little did he know that the dam of emotion that held everything back for him had a crack in it and a little of that water was leaking through. Because over the next few months the crack had turned into a spider web, the water gaining strength, threatening to bust his whole damn wall down around him.

Mostly because of that little Chao, Boo.

Who knew it would be a tiny creature - capable of biting hard enough to draw blood - that would pull them closer together than ever before? You see, Sonic the Hedgehog is just as guilty for helping defenceless animals as Amy is. His may normally be in the form of fighting Eggman, but it went just as deep for him too. And that little Chao had wormed his way into Sonic's affections right about the time he woke to find him laying on his chest. The same little Chao that would chirrup and follow Sonic around like a little lamb every chance he got. Sonic gave in easily of course. Who could refuse the tiny sounds of their Boo? He'd have to be pretty heartless to ignore his plea for Sonic to play with him.

That wasn't the only thing Sonic and the Chao did though. Some days they helped Amy weed and tend to her garden. Others Sonic took him on his runs, Boo clinging to him in a way that made Sonic feel pride and happiness that such a small creature could have so much faith and trust in him. He's rescued people who have done the same thing of course; it's all part of being a hero. But there was something different about this Chao and the trust it placed in certain people. Namely, him and Amy. Maybe it was because it was abandoned or maybe it just reminded him a little of himself. He didn't know Sonic just understood that it felt amazing and he never wanted to lose the feeling.

Towards the end of his visiting Amy and Boo he would help her cook dinner and then sit down at her table together to eat before he left them for the rest of the evening. Neither hedgehogs aware that their set-up was so natural and easy that it made them seem like a little family unit, secure in their routine. To an outsider they would assume Sonic and Amy were dating with the way she would hug him goodbye and he would kiss her cheek in a chaste but loving way. Both had slipped into the roles so effortlessly they didn't even see it.

Others did of course when they were privy to the few times of witnessing them. But they never said anything. When it comes to matters of the heart you're best letting Sonic discover that one for himself in his own time.

So just like any other day that's where Sonic found himself, waiting at the front door for someone to answer.

Normally by now Boo would have opened it, flying into Sonic's face with a chirrup of welcome. But nothing happened so he knocked again. It wasn't as though Amy couldn't have gone out, Sonic's not her keeper. But she normally tells him of her plans in-case he wanted to tag alone or postpone a visit. Neither had been mentioned so he reached out and tested the door handle, curious when it opened for him.

"Amy?" Sonic called out just before walking in to her living room, closing the door behind him. He didn't get a reply or a Chao to the face then either. Frowning Sonic listened carefully expecting to hear the sounds of lunch being made in the kitchen. Still not hearing anything he started to think about looking around. That was when he spotted Amy on the couch, curled up in the foetal position with a pillow tucked against her chest, her eyes closed. Sighing with relief he stepped closer to her, surprised she hadn't heard him calling out.

Then he realised why.

The closer he stepped the more he saw her and the way her eyes weren't just shut, they were squeezed closed like she was trying to make herself invisible. Sonic's heart thumped once hard in his chest, his protective instincts kicking in to high gear because there is nothing worse in his life than seeing Amy Rose in distress. Not his Amy, never his pink friend. Dropping to his knees before her Sonic never said a word, just hesitated on reaching out for her.

That hesitation disappeared the moment he heard her soft, heart-breaking whimper.

"Amy?" Sonic asked, his hand jerking forward to rest on her slightly trembling shoulder. "Ames, what's going on?"

Leaning forward Sonic studied her intently, waiting for her to open her eyes. The second she did and caught a glimpse of the stunning blue hedgehog in front of her she didn't hold back her whimpers as they turned into full fledged sobbing, great fat tears falling from her eyes as she begged him with just a broken down look to take away the pain she was in. The agony that was shredding apart her heart, tearing it up as though it wasn't the most important part of her. The pain that stemmed from a very long time ago was now an open wound that refused to be stitched shut again.

She thought she would have to suffer alone with it, stay there on her couch for days until someone found her all shrivelled up and spent from crying so much. But she didn't, because he was there. Sonic, her hero, her love, her friend and the one other person most likely to understand the most about how she felt. Sonic was there to look at her like she was breaking his heart into pieces along with hers. The one who stroked her quills as she buried her head into her pillow and let out all the anguish she has carried around for far, far too long.

Even the strongest people have to break eventually, and this was Amy Rose's time.

Amy had no idea how long she stayed on her couch that way, or how long Sonic had been kneeling before her uncharacteristically waiting for her to compose herself before she could talk. His look was the only thing about him that changed, going from painful to confused, settling on worried with a hint of anger. Of course he wanted to confront whoever had made his Amy cry with such broken-hearted abandon. After he somehow helped her through whatever it was that had made her cry so much in the first place.

Eventually though her sobbing stopped and the tears slowed to a trickle, tickling her cheeks as they fell. She still lay where she was, save for turning her soggy pillow over to the dry, cool side. But the pain in her eyes never left and Sonic was desperate to know what had upset her so much. It never occurred to him that Boo, who has been a constant at Amy's side when he wasn't following Sonic around, wasn't present. His only focus was on Amy and somehow making her feel better.

In the past he usually gave her an awkward pat on the back and silently begged Tails to help him out.

But this isn't the past, this is now with a lot more feelings involved and much more at stake then when he was a teenager and couldn't run fast enough from the idea of love. This was a time for him to prove to himself as well as Amy, that he could do this. Could be the rock in emotional times that she needs. Not just the hero to rescue her from Eggman. But her hero for everything else too. Even if the idea of it did make him more nervous than he'd ever felt in his life.

"What's up, Ames?" Sonic quietly asked again, subconsciously keeping his voice low in case he set her off again or maybe scared her away. It's not as though his track record was great with comforting her after-all, he wouldn't have blamed her if she chose to shove him away and tell him to leave her alone.

Thankfully she didn't - she just took a shuddering breath as she looked at him sadly.

"Boo's gone, Sonic. They took him away this morning," her voice cracked on the last word and a few extra tears leaked from her eyes. Amy watched as comprehension and confusion criss-crossed Sonic's handsome features, making her heart shatter a little bit more as she thought about how much he would miss Boo too. "I'm s - s - sorry you didn't get t - to say goodbye." Amy choked, trying as hard as she could to not break down into body-wrenching sobs yet again.

Sonic leaned back from Amy, his shock riddling his body with tension. How could Boo be gone?Where had he gone? Who took him?

Amy, one of the only people to be able to decipher some of Sonic's expressions reached out to take his hand in comfort. "Someone came to my house and told me he was their Chao, but that he'd been stolen and then abandoned. They've been looking for him for almost a year. Somehow they found out he was here. They had photos to prove it, Sonic. There was nothing I could do. Boo's gone back to his for - forever family now. He's not coming back." Saying the words out loud was like a stab to her soul as she sighed completely exhausted from her emotional upheaval.

It was all made so much worse by the sad, steely look in Sonic's eyes. He was doing a damn good job of hiding how he really felt from her, but she felt the trembling in his hands. He couldn't hide that and she squeezed his fingers to offer some kind of half-hearted comfort. Part of her was scared he would just walk out on her; another part of her wanted him to. She didn't want to be reliant on him emotionally if he wasn't going to stick around as anymore then a friend. Boo was - had been - her family, for as short a time as it was and now he was gone.

Amy couldn't possibly take anymore heart-ache.

"I wish," Sonic started, his voice wobbling a bit. It was the most emotion Amy had witnessed from him, possibly ever. She dared not breathe in case she shattered the moment and he held himself back. She wanted Sonic to open up to her, to lean on her like she does with him. "I wish he didn't have to go, Ames. I'm - I'm really gonna miss the lil' guy." His hand squeezed Amy's back before letting it go, reaching up to wipe away the fresh tears still slipping from her eyes. Holding her breath Amy never broke away from Sonic's gaze, though she knew he could see every raw emotion she was revealing right then. She was totally open to him, right there for him to do as he wished.

She'd never been in such a vulnerable position before.

Her lips trembling with the threat of more sobbing, Amy swallowed down the spiked lump in her throat. "Boo and I were our own little family for a little while," she whispered, voicing just how she felt because why not? She'd already showed Sonic everything, why not throw down the gauntlet and toss herself into the flames. She had nothing left to lose. "I - I know our friends are our family. But this - this was different. So much more special. But now I've lost that too, all over again. Why couldn't I have kept that?" Unable to say anymore Amy closed her eyes and buried her head, trying hard to take deep breathes and not let the tears take over again.

She lost her biological family once before. Now she's lost her adopted Chao that used to sleep on her bed every night; who was there to greet her every morning; who cuddled her when she cried at a film; helped her make cookies for her friends; was her companion in the after-math of her nightmares, offering her unconditional love and devotion, even for just those few short months of having him.

I deserve to be loved, don't I? She asked herself, trying hard to believe it.

Sonic had never felt so helpless and there have been many times when it had seemed like the odds were stacked against him in his life, when he was close to giving up because he didn't know what to do. Except this was worse because Amy was the one who had gotten him through those times he'd felt lost, whether she knew it or not. And now, the one time he needed her to give him that strength again, she couldn't because it was for her. It was all the wrong way around, it didn't fit together properly. How could he possibly express to her in the words she needed to hear how loved she was? Not just by him but by their friends, their family out there who would do anything for her without a second thought. How could he tell her the words he wanted to say but couldn't?

Where do you find the power, Amy? Sonic wanted to ask her.

He was close to panicking, his fur getting clammy, his head buzzing with thoughts and words, all a jumbled mess that made no sense to him. Nothing was clear or precise. He hated when he couldn't focus, especially if he wasn't able to run to try and clear it. The worst thing he could do right then was run out on Amy, she would never forgive him for that. Chaos, Sonic would never forgive himself!

It was just as he was going to open his mouth and say the first thing that came to mind when Amy opened her clear, Jade green eyes. As though she could hear his inner turmoil about what to do to help her. The gentleness of her gaze felt like she was staring straight into his very soul. Sonic may not be the most religious or philosophical hedgehog, but he believed in souls. It felt like Amy was connecting them together, the feather light touch reminding him of how he feels while he's running - it was exhilarating, peaceful and freeing.

Just like that, Sonic the Hedgehog found the strength he was looking for.

Clumsily leaning forward again Sonic cupped Amy's cheek with his hand, his eyes boring into hers letting that dam break and everything held back to come flooding to the surface for her to see. It made her gasp but he didn't stop or hide anything as he brokenly murmured to her, "I'll be your family, Ames. Always, you and me, our own family like what we were with Boo."

It wasn't a marriage proposal; it wasn't a promise of children. It wasn't even an, 'I love you.' It was something Amy has never had but always longed for.

Before Amy had a chance to react let alone process what Sonic had told her he had closed the gap between them and caught her lips with his at long last. It was everything both of them had been waiting for. Loving, sensual and like coming home again. The pain from losing Boo dropped away; the agony of her childhood buried itself back down where it belonged, replaced by the most amazing bright light. The warmth from Sonic's body pressed against her was like a fire to her fur, sparks leaping from her touch. His lips moving slow and passionately against hers made her go limp as she sunk further back against the couch with him. Sonic showed Amy what she does to him, how she makes him feel. Where she belongs.

Sonic the Hedgehog wants to be my family, Amy thought to herself, again and again as she lost herself to his loving touch.

Boo was gone and that hurt them both more than they ever expected. But they both knew that without him entering their lives in the first place neither hedgehog would have realised what a family for them really is.

Two hedgehogs deeply in love. The beginning . . .