#amy's there for him as he's there for her

[itz-pandora]

Thanks Anon, Shadamy is now something that happens in the misc AU, albeit brief.

[antirepurp]

delivering controversial takes to the "the gang plays minecraft" discussion

[withahappyrefrain]

Can you please do meet cute 45) A owns a flower shop and B just needs the courage to go inside and say hello. For Rhett Abbott?

THIS ONE SCREAMS RHETT!! I'm so glad someone requested it with him!

Rhett Abbott had never felt more ridiculous in his entire life. 

He was told they just needed a few things from the grocery store. Rhett hated going to the grocery store. It meant people and people judged and whispered things about him, regardless of if it was true (majority of the time it wasn’t). 

But the grocery store was on the same street as The Wild Rose, Wabang’s brand new flower shop. And inside was you, the owner. 

Rhett scoffed at the idea at first. There was no way Wabang had enough people to warrant a flower shop. Plus, folks had plenty of land, they could make their damn bouquets if they wanted. 

Apparently people were lazy. It also helped that you sold wine and little knick knacks in addition to floral arrangements. Jars of speciality honey from a local farm, the wine from a nearby vineyard. Dish towels with funny sayings and food related puns. 

It wasn’t a store Rhett would go into, nevertheless pay attention to. But Amy wanted to go and it wasn’t like Perry was going to take her. 

There was a decent sized crowd outside the store, listening to the mayor drone on about how great this was going to be for the town, not just for Wabang but also for the surrounding area. Out of all the places to be on the ‘precipice of an economic boom’, Wabang did not come to Rhett’s mind. 

Before he could roll his eyes anymore, the mayor introduced the owner of the shop, you. 

God, you were beautiful with your bright eyes and dazzling smile as you spoke about how welcoming Wabang had been to you and how helpful when it came to making your dream a reality. Rhett was instantly smittened. 

But he couldn’t just go up and talk to you. For one, you were busy cutting a red ribbon with stupidly giant scissors. 

Second, you were luminous, vivid. Everything he wasn't. 

Rhett knew he didn't offer much, if anything. His life was directionless; all he did was work on the ranch and ride bulls when he could (when his right shoulder wasn't acting up). He would just drag you down. So instead, he settled for the chances he could walk past your shop and peek into the window for a glimpse of you. 

It was fucking pathetic. His family would give him so much shit if they found out. And yet, it was the highlight of his day, seeing you arrange a case, talk to customers. Rhett especially loved it when he caught you giving the floral arrangements to clients. The corners of your eyes would crease and the bridge of your nose scrunched up when you revealed your creation. It also allowed him to linger by the store window, to bask in your warmth for a little bit longer. 

“Do you think they're pretty?” Amy asked one day while they were walking down the street. 

Rhett let out a confused hum, turning his attention from your store window to his niece. 

“The owner. You always look in their window when we pass by,” Amy explained with a giggle. 

“It's just an interesting store,” Rhett grumbled, shoving his hands into his pockets as he began walking again. 

“Then you should go inside!” Amy called out as she ran after him. 

If only it was that easy. 

—----------

Several months later Rhett was now standing in front of your door, rather than your window. 

He should go in. He had zero reason to not go in. Rhett actually required your services. So it wasn't as if he was just going to stroll in there with no plan. Or worse, use Amy as a guise (God, he hated when Perry did that). 

It was just….the thought of being in your presence, speaking to you. Having a conversation. Rhett wasn't much of a talker, never had been. Why would he, when hardly anyone was interested in what he had to say? 

And the truth was, he didn't have to go in. He could figure this out on his own. 

But when would his next chance come along? 

It was the unclear answer that gave him the courage to turn the handle and open the door. 

Your shop felt warm and inviting. One wall was filled with shelves, dedicated to displaying various colorful vases. In the middle, a designated ‘flower bar’ where folks could create their own bouquets. Amongst the store were various house plants and knick knacks. 

“Hi! Can I help you?” A sweet voice caused Rhett to turn around, the air exiting his lungs upon seeing you. 

He could only nod, at a complete loss for words. 

You waited for him, to see if he would expand. When he didn’t, you simply smiled and asked, “What can I do for ya?”

With fumbling hands, Rhett got out the photo from his jacket, “Um…I need help identifying these flowers. They’re the wedding flowers she had and I wanna draw the bouquet as like a….like a gift. Figured it would last longer than getting a bouquet but I uh…I need help identifying them. I wanna look them up so I can get the details right.”

This was going horribly. He should have just bought a magnifying glass off of Amazon or find someone who could digitally restore photos. 

“Do you know where they got married?” You asked, extending your hand out for the photo. 

“Yeah, uh, here in Wabang,” Rhett answered, running a hand up and down the back of his neck, hoping his body was just warm and not turning a bright red. 

“Oh, well that makes it much easier!” Rhett gave you the photo and you motioned for him to follow you to the counter. You got out a book that had a beautiful embossed floral design on the cover.

“I’m glad you know where they got married. It makes it much easier to identify. Also, considering WaBang has hadn’t a floral shop until this year and the nearest one was over an hour away, I’m assuming these are flowers native to Wyoming,” you explained, flipping through the pages. 

You looked up through your lashes, “I can tell you what flowers they are and you can look them up. But am I safe to assume that as an artist, you’d rather have your references in person?”

“Oh uh, I’m not…I’m not an artist,” He mumbled, shaking his head as he shoved his hands into his pockets. A nervous habit he couldn’t seem to break. 

“You’re creating art. Last time I checked, that makes you an artist…..” your voice trailed off, waiting to hear a name. 

“Oh! I’m Rhett. Sorry.” How could he forget to introduce himself? “Yeah, having something I could look at and observe up close would be great.” 

“Well Rhett, I’m more than happy to recreate that bouquet for ya. But I don’t have some of these flowers in stock, so it’ll take some time to order them,” you explained, “Probably like a week or so? If I have your number, I can let you know when they arrive.”

Rhett looked up, eyes wide in disbelief, “You want my number?”

Your nose scrunched up as you nodded, “Yes. I would love to have your number Rhett. Would hate for you to come in and I don’t have what you need.”

Rhett would do it. In fact, he even tried to assure you so. 

“Well, I might need another photo just to ensure I’m accurate. How will I let you know?” You countered. Fuck, you had a great point. 

So Rhett fumbled with getting out his phone, hands shaking as he passed it off to you. 

“I’ll give you my number too if that’s alright. Just so you aren’t wondering who’s texting you.” Your giggle was so endearing, Rhett couldn’t help but smile, couldn’t help but feel his shoulders drop and relax. 

He nodded, a small, slightly lopsided and totally sweet smile, “Yeah, that’s fine.”

You handed Rhett back his phone, “I’ll let you know if I need more info! And when I get them in.”

Rhett nodded, secretly (and seriously) hoping he didn’t look like an idiot with how hard he was smoking. 

“I'll uh, see ya around?” He practically asked. You nodded eagerly, saying your goodbyes as he quickly got out of the store. 

Rhett felt like he could finally breathe again once he was out of your store. That went well, right? He had your number, though it was intended to give updates regarding a gift for his mom. But he also had another chance to see you. Granted, once he was done with this project, he wouldn't have a reason to go into your shop. Maybe for Amy’s birthday, he could get her flowers. 

The vibration of his phone broke Rhett out of his thoughts. It couldn't be….could it? 

His eyes widened when he saw your name attached to the text. He nearly dropped his phone when he read your message. 

I'm glad you finally came in! I've been wanting to meet you ever since the store opened :) 

[minty-thereader]

SANJI X READER

“Stupid Boyfriend Cook.”

POV: Sanji is out here just being Sanji, until he realizes his behavior can make any other guy swoop you off your feet. Like a rival.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

When you first came into the crew as a member of the straw hats you started off as their chore girl, but you didn’t mind because you didn’t have to do a lot of combat. Unfortunately for you that changed when one night you were mopping the deck and a few thieves came on board to rob the place. As usual Zoro was sleeping so he didn’t notice, the one that did come to your rescue however was the cook, Sanji, who you didn’t entirely like because he’s a pervert.

Sanji saved your life, and stole your heart.

That’s your love story.

So why is it must you sit and endure this feeling of worthlessness as you watched your supposedly great boyfriend Sanji, chat it up with like 3 women, all triplets. Your stomach clenched every time you saw him gently rub one of their cheeks or when one of these women would twirl with a strand of his hair. “Oh Sanji, you’re so funny!~” The short haired triplet said as she cupped his chin. Sanji smiled with rosy cheeks, “ah? Well thank you doll. You have the most beautiful baby green eyes I’ve ever seen.”

You tried your best to not roll your eyes. It’s the same compliment he’d give you! I love your beautiful e/c eyes. What? Was that a lie? Seeing your stressed out displeased face a familiar teammate decided that he would stroll over your way. Zoro slid into the seat across from you, deliberately blocking your view of Sanji. He leaned forward, resting his chin on his hand, eyes narrowing as he took in your sulking expression.

“What’re you sulking over?” He asked with a tone like he didn’t wanna know but he was still curious. “Nothing..” you lie to his face. Like hell it was nothing. Your eyes were right stuck on the blonde flirt! “Yeah I’m not Luffy. I can tell when someone’s lying,” he tells you, picking up the glass of alcohol that sat in front of you. “Oh! Um Sanji made that for me—” “I don’t care.” He took a swing at it and placed the drink back down. “It’s mine now. Why would you sit and take shit from that stupid cook? Demand his attention or look like a fool. I know which option I’d pick.” This was the longest Zoro ever spoke to you! He never even looked your way much especially since you’re dating the guy he hated the most.

“Zoro..” He stayed silent, his eyes low and wandering. Way in the back (barely like 3 feet away) Sanji stopped paying attention to the three beauties that he let stray him away, turning around to talk to you only to see the moss headed rival of his blocking your view. The way Zoro’s body language wasn’t as hostile as he usually was made the cook cautious. What could you two be talking about?

Why is he even talking to you?

A strange dark emotion of jealousy tickled his veins and Sanji pulled his hand away from the long haired triplet’s grip. “Excuse me madam, I have a quick matter to attend to before I return to you.” The women giggled again and Sanji fixed his sky blue shirt before he strolled over to your table.

He attacked Zoro right away without holding back, his leg flying at him with dangerous speed, but the skilled swordsman saw that coming a mile away. Zoro was able to stop his kick without so much as looking back. “What’re you doing near my girl?” Sanji asked, putting his foot back down. “Keeping her company since you weren’t.” Zoro stood toe to toe with the cook before they both grunted and Zoro walked away.

“Gosh isn’t he a weirdo,” Sanji remarked sitting where Zoro was. At this point you didn’t even bother to pay attention to the blonde. “Y/n,” he reaches to grab your hand but you pull back with the same speed. “Go talk to your other bitches.” “Psh?! Other? HUH? Other bitches? Mon ami I have no such things!” Sanji grabs your hand preventing you from pulling away this time. “What’s wrong? Why are you acting like I’m the one person you don’t wanna be seen next to right now?” “Because you are Sanji. You’re so disrespectful, you know that? You left to get me some ice, I said okay cool! Sure! Then you got distracted like the man that you truly are and you start flirting with three women right in front of me. Not one but three. You can’t help yourself can you? You don’t care enough about me, clearly, if you can easily flirt with other women.” You pulled your arms to yourself, turning your head to the side so you didn’t face the man in front of you.

Sanji looked shocked, like he truly didn’t know what he was doing was wrong.

“I..I hurt you?” He asked with his hand running over his face. “Come on Sanji focus, you did hurt her,” he talked to himself. “Y/n, honey. I would never intentionally hurt you. I tell you this on my heart and if I’m lying may lightening strike me.” He raised his hand to his heart. “Baby I didn’t mean to do that to you, you have to believe me.”

Sanji was a flirt, that’s for sure, but one thing he wasn’t was a liar and a man to hurt women.

“You have to stop talking to other women. You’re with me now, you can’t go around flirting with every woman you meet.” You explained yourself. “It makes me feel small—” you were cut off by Sanji pulling you into a tight hug. “You are not small my love. I’m so sorry for being so dense and mindless in my actions. I will never talk to another woman ever again! No matter how beautiful!” He smiled gently at you. “You’re the only beauty for me.” You smiled back at him, forgiving the stupid cook.

“Okay…but you still have to interact with Nami.” “Oh yeah! Of course! I never meant EVERY woman!” He says with a laugh, and when the triplets approached him to talk again he immediately shooed them off with a, can’t you see me talking to this bombshell? Zoro watched from the sidelines too, shaking his head at his teammate.

[writingtraumaforever]

I just woke up from a dream where they went a COMPLETELY different direction with the Sonic 3 movie.

And instead of promising vengeance, Eggman promised to bring back Maria. So Shadow is essentially holding Eggman hostage on the ARK while Eggman works to bring back Maria by experimenting on an innocent hedgehog he captured— AMY ROSE.

And it was so dang dark and disturbing that it woke me up.

I remember Eggman asking Shadow to come meet her because he’s finished her now, and Shadow very hesitantly but cautiously hopefully walking down the hall to see her for the first time.

And you hear the door that Amy/Maria is behind open around a corner and you hear her take two steps and Shadow looks so hopeful and yet scared and then you hear her collapse and her heart beat on the monitor stops and Eggman curses and starts saying he’ll have to do more tests because the host keeps denying her new consciousness and Shadow just looks a little guilty and disturbed and turns and walks back to the window to watch space and wait.

Again. I woke up after that, but I still somehow know it ended with Sonic finding Amy and Amy is in fact Maria’s consciousness except Maria doesn’t remember ANYTHING so she’s really just a brand new person. And Sonic finds out what they’ve been doing to this poor girl and fights Shadow to take her away and Shadow ends up seeing how he’s wrong when Maria/Amy pleads with him to stop this cruelty and protect the earth and Shadow decides the ARK is too dangerous to be kept in tact with all that research and equipment there.

So he ends up sacrificing himself by blowing up the ARK with both him and Eggman on it while Sonic carries Amy back to earth and guys it was just REALLY WEIRD and REALLY GOREY and I’ve gotta stop watching horror game play through before bed, okay???

[noeggets]

part 3 of the aid-libs i didn't have time to draw out

here is part 1

Shadow android trying to hold blazes hand cause it was a running gag of people trying to hold her hand after silver did it

Blaze scolding Silver for being unsure if hes able to save them

When they went on this mission Sonic told Tangle they don't end lives they only defeat them and they were having a conversation earlier about being pacifist.

the rest that i didn't get screenshots of include

Lanolin: * Tries to pat Whisper on the back after she made up with Tangle

Whisper: Dont touch me, I dont know you like that yet

----

Eggman about blow up at the end

Eggman: I have any gift card I have all the gift cards you need to big box stores! - frantically - I-i have Walmart, I have Target, I have Best Buy, I have GameStop, I have Subway, I have any gift card I have all the gift cards! I can give you Netflix!

------

Eggman sending Metal sonic after them: Get em rodent! I mean, he might as well be a rodent - talking about metal sonic

-------

Silver: BECAUSE WE CAN DO THIS :)

Everyone: boos him

Silver: Im tryna breath life into these lines!

----

In the end at the tea party.

Rouge: You made a strawberry cake made of strawberries with strawberries on it?

Amy: Yes. And its heavy!

Rouge: It almost looks like it'll be to much to eat

Amy: You better eat, I slaved over a hot stove and honestly you don't deserve it

Tails: She doesnt have to have any! Also Wheres sonic?

Sonic flys into the sky

[liminalmemories21]

Seven (SIGH Fourteen) Sentence Sunday

tagged by: @heartstringsduet, @strandnreyes, @nisbanisba, @carlossreaders, @carlos-in-glasses, @lemonlyman-dotcom. Thank you@

Luisa calls as he’s driving home, and he picks up because he has three missed calls from her on his screen already, and if he doesn’t want her to call in reinforcements (Ana, his mother, TK - probably in that order) he needs to talk to her. Preempts any lecture she might want to give him by asking. "What did you give Rafe for your first wedding anniversary?"  Pauses and adds, "Or, what did he give you?" "And hello to you Carlos," she says dryly, "so good of you to finally answer my call." He makes an apologetic noise that she hmms at.  And then when she doesn't volunteer any particular urgent question she'd needed to ask him any of the three times she'd called this week he asks again, "So, first anniversary?" "We gave each other a mortgage and a deed to a house." He deflates a little.  "Right."  Sighs.  "Been there, done that."  Grimaces a little.  "Didn't actually work out all that well for me."

tagging @freneticfloetry, @fifthrideroftheapocalypse, @lightningboltreader, @reyesstrand, and @three-drink-amy

[lewmagoo]

I love the idea of the blurbs, Leah! What do you think about Rhett + "You’re the best decision I’ve ever made" (fluff)? ❤️

rhett never really paid attention to the calendar that was on the fridge in the kitchen. it had been a fixture there since you’d moved in together, and over time, his brain sort of tuned it out, and he never stopped to observe the notes and reminders you wrote upon it. but for whatever reason, on this morning in particular, he paused to look at the calendar when he went to grab his lunch box out of the fridge.

today’s date was significant. when he saw the number circled in blue ink, he knew. you’d marked the one year anniversary of the day you left wabang together. a pivotal moment in rhett’s life. the day he finally gained the courage to spread his wings and find himself outside of his family. in just one year, so much had changed. he worked at a horse rehabilitation center, and he enjoyed going to work every day. he lived in a safe, comfortable environment that he looked forward to coming home to every evening. and most importantly, he had you.

you were everything. his biggest cheerleader. his anchor. his soulmate. you were patient and understanding as he navigated those first few months of life away from his family. it was difficult for him, because he struggled to rid himself of the guilt he felt for leaving. he knew it was the right decision, the necessary decision, but it broke him to say goodbye to his young niece, amy. her tearful eyes as he kissed her on the head never left his mind. yes, he could visit her and the rest of the family any time he wanted, but it was still hard to leave.

but he had made it through those first few months, and after that, the healing process began. you held his hand through it all. supporting him in everything that he did. encouraging him to take a leap of faith and apply at that rehabilitation center. buying him a congratulatory cake when he got the job. telling him you were so proud of him. he wasn’t sure how he got so lucky to be blessed by someone like you, but he was deeply grateful.

“mornin’, handsome,” your voice carried across the kitchen, pulling him from his reverie. his chest warmed at the sight of you, sleepy-eyed, still in your pajamas. you were smiling at him. and you were so beautiful. suddenly, he was overcome, and his eyes grew misty as a wave of tears came forth. concern creased upon your brow as you noticed this. “hey, what’s wrong?” you asked as you approached him, already reaching out to tilt his face toward you.

he shook his head, bottom lip quivering. “i…uh, i just noticed it’s been a year since we left wabang,” he managed to speak. “and i was just thinkin’…” god, he could hardly get the words out. he reached for you, hands resting gently upon your hips. “i’m so glad we did. it was the best decision i ever made. you’re the best decision i’ve ever made.” because without you, he wouldn’t have made it.

your own eyes grew soft with emotion, and you leaned in to kiss him sweetly. “oh, rhett. i’m glad we left, too. i’ve never seen you so happy. it does my heart good.” you hummed as he bent his head so that he could rest his forehead against yours.

“i’m a better man, because of you,” he confessed.

“we bring out the best in each other,” you echoed. another kissed pressed to his lips. “i love you, cowboy.”

with a smile, he nuzzled his nose against yours. “love y’ more.”

[universalzones]

"Took ya long enough," Surge said as Sonic came out. "Thought you would've just told Whisper to take it easy and get out here right away to solve this shit. Whatever, let's just find Lanolin and see what she wants us to do." The tenrec wasn't sure what to do about GUN, though was sure Lanolin already was doing something to try and get them to back off. Best to find her first and ask.

"Well, from what i gathered someone had shut down our servers and system. Knowing GUN it was most likely them so I can return the favor. My stuff was never hooked up to The Restoration's systems so it should be running. As long as I can get to it that is." Kitsunami wasn't sure what parts of the base had been cut off, though as long as he can get to the barracks he can reach his stuff.

"That'll piss them off, though having it at the ready ain't a bad idea. If they decided they wanna get forceful then we cut them off from their home base." Surge knew Sonic didn't want any fighting to break out, though if it did keeping them from asking for backup would be good. "Drippy, can you work with him on this?" The tenrec asked motioning to Tails.

"...Fine, I guess. I'm not happy about it." Kitsunami didn't want to be anywhere near Tails, though if Surge asked him he could handle it. The fennec turning his attention to the vulpine. "You'd better not touch any of my equipment." He didn't trust the other not to try and go through his files or various equipment, even if the logical side of him said there was no reason for him to snoop around his stuff.

"Easy Drippy, just relax a bit." Surge then looked at Tails. "Just, keep a few feet away from him or something." The tenrec was sure it went without saying Kitsunami still had Starline's programming in his head to hate Tails, even if it wasn't as bad as it was before seeing as he was allowing him to help. "Come on, let's head outside and find Lanolin." The speedster then dashed off.

===========================================================

"Hey, try not to worry about GUN, okay? Sonic and Surge can speed blitz anyone of those chumps. I'm sure Kitsunami and Tails are already coming up with a super brainy plan. Lanolin's out there too along with Belle. I'm sure Amy has shown up too." Tangle wished she could grip Whisper's hand back to try and put her at ease. The only thing she could barely move was her tail.

"Not to mention if things go crazy crazy then you're the only one here armed and able to defend here. Unless the doc can get me up and running quickly." Tangle would put her attention on the doctor now.

"At least I'm hoping you've got something to let me move again. I'll be honest doc, not being able to move really sucks. I also got a major itch on my nose and it's just killing me here." Tangle was hoping that was the case so she could help if need be, and the itch was making her lose her mind.

The Wolf remained silent as the other's discussed her own well being and she knew it came from a good place. But if they needed her, hurt and in pain or not she'd always be there for them. She was trained to deal with pain and how to manage her wounds. She effectively had multiple burns over her body and the little Violet wisp was resting on her head feeling responsible and, rather depressed because it got her hurt. But Whisper didn't blame them she practically did it to herself. She knew she couldn't use wisps without her body getting wrecked by it.

Whisper was about to stand up ready to go back in the field but, Tangle's words made her falter. The doctor giving her a glance over from where he stood though she could only assume it was a judgmental stare. She did want to help but also she didn't want to worry Tangle. Yet her stubborn nature as a soldier bled through as she still grabbed her rifle and stood up, despite the hesitation she could still shoot and that was enough to provide cover for the others.

The Snake pushed his way into the room and gave Tangle a long stare at her request.

" She's in obvious pain if that's what you want me to say, but i could tell you lot you were about to fall apart and you'd still march into danger with your head held high. "

Altiss gave Tangle a long stare

" She should stay... but having cared for my share of soldiers in the War i can tell you none of you ever listen to me. But i get why, so you won't her me badger you about it... "

He tugged high calorie energy bar from his jacket and offered one to Surge and Sonic with a steady gaze. Showing that on some level he understood how there bodies required more energy then any normal person and all that speed burned through there calories like wild grass fire. This was his way of trying to help balance there energy levels and keep them healthy.

" ... Someone has to play the Hero... i suppose that falls to you two. Try not to be to wreckless... i can only stitch so much of you back together... and You miss Whisper, sit... you aren't going to do anyone any good in your condition..."

Sonic took the bar curiously as very few knew why he ate so many chilidogs. It was packed with calories and kept him moving without burning his body out. He wasn't sure Surge had the same issue, though he guessed it was possible? he bet the Doc made that assumption based on his physiology since Surges was mostly unknown.

" Doc's know best, besides between Surge and I, if GUN does try anything they are in for a bad time. I'm honestly hopin' it don't come to that! besides i bet Amys already on her way back... and the Chaotix ain't to far away either... push comes to shove we'll be fine. Sorry to bug ya doc--- an thanks for the pick me up. "

He turned but paused to give Tangle a smile as he had always thought those two were a cute couple.

" Yo, Ring Tail! Get better quick ya hear? Miss havin' ya bouncin' around already! Alright gang let's bounce, and let the doc do his thing! "

Whisper had slowly sat back down when the Doc pointed out how hurt she was. She didn't want to worry Tangle either, but she did feel like she was letting everyone down. She placed her hand on blue until she heard it was GUN causing issues which made her blue eyes snap open. Her history with GUN only made her nostrils flare as she watched the others leave. She hated this... she hated being hurt and worse...

She had a bad feeling about all of it...

[shannonallaround]

When you love your friend's au so much that you write fanfic for it

Based on @punkinspice's @shadouge-family-au ***

Everyone froze as the glass shattered on the floor. 

Then little three-year-old Monty started crying because it scared him, quickly followed his twin sister Mabel, who cried because he was crying. Chase (who was five, almost six) simply looked at the glass mess and said “Oh oh.” 

Amy tiptoed around the kitchen table to reach the crying twins, soothing them with gentle hugs and soft words. She glanced up at her husband. 

Sonic stood exactly where he’d been when the glass had left his hand (by the kitchen sink). He stared at the floor, expression unreadable; a rare moment of him being perfectly still. 

He’s normally fast enough to catch things like that, Amy thought to herself. “Sonic?”

No answer. 

Any hid a worried purse of her lips, instead turning to her oldest. “Chase, you still have your shoes on—can you grab the broom for mama so she can clean up the mess?” 

Sonic then seemed to jerk awake. “Sorry. I’ll get it.” He quickly left the room, not meeting Amy’s eyes. Amy heard the shutting of a cupboard, followed by Sonic returning with a broom and dustpan in hand. 

“Let me help, Dad!” 

Chase had gotten down from his chair and now stood by his dad amid the mess. Sonic looked down into his son’s eyes, and managed a smile—small, but grateful. 

“Thanks, kiddo.” 

Chase chatted away about what he wanted to do after dinner while diligently holding the dustpan in place. He made Sonic chuckle once or twice, oblivious of the tightness in his dad’s shoulders. Eventually, he and his twin siblings left the room to play. Amy stood and took the broom from Sonic. 

“I’ll finish here,” she said, gesturing with her head at the living room. “Why don’t you go relax? It’s been a long day. I’ll join you in a minute.” 

Sonic looked at her, his eyes somewhat distant, but he gave her a half smile and nodded. Amy heard him sigh as he left, noticing him shove his hands behind his quills as he plopped down on their woven pink couch. 

A few minutes and a vacuuming job later (just to be safe), Amy came into the living room and sat beside Sonic. He stared up at the ceiling, frowning at nothing.

If Amy was going to get anything out of him, it was now or never. 

“What’s on your mind, Sonic?”

Sonic sighed through his nose. He closed his eyes as if thinking of what to say. In the end, he gave a defeated shrug. “You’ve seemed on edge for a few days, now,” Amy said carefully. “Ever since our last fight with Eggman.” 

Sonic’s eyes flew open. “I hate that man,” he spat out. He sat up, face scrunched with more choice, but unsaid, words. Amy stared at him, surprised at his strong language. Certainly it was universal knowledge that Sonic didn’t like Eggman (and frankly, Amy hated the man too), but to hear her husband say it outright in such frank terms was… unusual. 

“Are you upset about the forest he ruined?” Another sigh. “Yes… and no.” Sonic leaned forward, pressing his mouth against folded hands. He took a deep breath.  

“Do you… ever think about us as kids?”

Amy tilted her head. “How so?”

“You know… all the stuff we did.” Sonic stared at his shoes. “How… crazy it was that we were kids?” 

Amy took a small breath, understanding his meaning. She bit her lip. “Yes. All the time.” She waited for Sonic to continue, but he went quiet then. He began tapping his foot at the base of the couch—a nervous habit when he was thinking. 

“My earliest memories are running,” Sonic said finally. “I was, I dunno—maybe four? Five? Chase’s age. I didn’t know where I came from or where I was going, and I didn’t care. It didn’t matter. I thought I was fine. I was fine! I couldn’t even talk yet, and I was fine! I just ran wherever the wind took me.” He took a shaky breath. “But imagining our kids in the same position just-!” 

He cut himself off, burying his head in his hands. After a moment, he dropped them into his lap. 

“We were so young.”

Amy nodded slowly. “We were very young,” she echoed. After a moment, she asked “Does that scare you?” 

Sonic’s face scrunched again, but not in anger this time. “I was never afraid for myself growing up. I knew I’d be fine. But I was afraid for Tails, when he came into the picture. Some days I was so scared I didn’t know what to do with myself. And I guess, now… I’m afraid for them, too.” He ran a trembling hand down his face, forcing a laugh. “Heh… Guess things don’t change as much as you think they would, huh?” 

“No,” Amy said, watching him, “I guess they don’t.” She put a soft hand on Sonic’s knee, leaning into him. “But I think that’s a good thing. It means you love them.” 

Sonic sighed, his hand going to his forehead. “I just… I don’t know how to do this.” 

“Do what?”

“Raise our kids! Especially when we’re practically badnik magnets! It’s a miracle Eggman doesn’t send a squadron after us every week!” 

Amy rubbed his knee reassuringly. “Even if he did, you know Tails’ security system would warn us long before anyone was in danger.” 

“I know…” 

Amy thought a moment, then she leaned forward, trying to see her husband’s face. “You know, you know how to do this better than you think you do. You forget that you raised Tails.” 

A husky laugh, almost desperate. “I didn’t know what I was doing then, either! It's a miracle that kid's even alive! I pulled him into so many things without even a second thought, and I had no idea how to raise a kid, I—!” 

Sonic felt Amy’s hand on his chin then. It rested there for a moment, and then he relaxed just enough to let it guide him, lifting and turning his head so he could meet her gaze. Amy beamed at him, eyes soft and gentle. “And look how well Tails turned out.” 

Sonic stared at her. Then suddenly he realized his cheeks were wet, and he went to wipe them with his gloves. Instead, Sonic found himself sinking into his hands. He gasped. 

Amy started as her husband began to sob. A second later, she slid over again on the couch and encircled him in her arms, leaning her cheek against the side of his head, rubbing a soothing hand along his back between his quills. 

“I don’t deserve you,” Sonic coughed out from behind his hands. 

“I don’t deserve you,” Amy whispered back. She continued to rub between his quills. Then she kissed his head, feeling him tremble beneath her touch.

“Do any of us really know what we’re doing?” she eventually murmured in his ear. “We’ve never done this before, and that’s scary. I’ll admit, I worry about our kids sometimes too.” 

She continued as Sonic struggled to catch his breath. “We don’t know what the future holds. But,” she said, a soft smile in her voice, “you don’t have to do this alone. You won’t be alone—I’ll be with you every step of the way. We’re in this together.” She kissed his head again. “It’ll be another grand adventure.” 

A few more shuddering breaths from Sonic, and he gradually began to still. Then he nodded, though his head still rested in his hands. “Another adventure,” he whispered. “Like it’s always been.” 

“Like it’s always been,” Amy nodded affirmative. She moved her hands to hug him around his shoulders. 

They sat there for a few minutes, neither willing to move. They could hear their three little ones playing in the other room. Monty laughed. 

“You know what I think?” Amy eventually asked. “I think that, with our kids along for the ride, it’ll be even more fun. More so than it’s ever been before.”

At that, Sonic finally smiled. “Yeah…” He lowered his hands, revealing it, then he glanced her way. “The more the merrier, right?” 

Amy giggled. “Right!” 

She stroked Sonic’s cheek for a moment. Then she stood and took Sonic’s hand. Surprised, he followed her outside onto their balcony. It had been built directly onto the tree that had become their literal treehouse, overlooking their backyard. Sonic stopped beside Amy. 

“Woah…”

A vibrant explosion of oranges and deep pinks greeted them as the sun set over the distant mountains. They stared at the glorious sight, still holding hands. 

“The beauty still gets me every time,” said Sonic.

“Yes,” Amy sighed. 

After a moment, Sonic cleared his throat. "Sorry that I—" 

“No. It’s ok.” Amy looked away from the sky and into her husband’s eyes. She squeezed his hand. “I’m glad you told me.”

Sonic’s cheeks tinged pink as he smiled, rubbing the back of his head with his free hand. “Tryin’ to be better.” Then he met her eyes. “Thanks for listening.” 

Amy grinned. “Like I said: we’re in this together.” Then she pecked him on the cheek, which made Sonic laugh and blush harder. He squeezed her hand in return. He pulled her into a hug, his arms around her waist, head resting on hers while facing the sunset. 

“You know… I may still be scared silly,” he said, “but there’s no one else I’d rather be with on this crazy new family adventure than with you.”

Amy now felt herself blush. “Oh, Sonic.” She leaned into the fur on his chest, smiling as the sun ducked behind the horizon. “Me too.” 

[sparkles-rule-4eva]

I LOVE that this is a completely normal way for Sonic to make friends, to the point where his buddies either laugh about it or are just like "Not again, Sonic," every time he does it nowadays 🤣

[nobleriver]

Doctor Who Season 7 Minisodes

Rain Gods

[idle-flower]

Amy Madison is one of those things which, like some of the subplots of DS9, I assumed that I'd missed something the first time around and that there was a lot more to it, and was disappointed on a rewatch to find that... no, not really.

Like, I thought it was super-cool that there was this tiny minor character with stuff going on in the background who would resurface seasons later instead of a "remember the new guy" plot! And obviously Willow cared about this girl and there was a whole story there, right? I wasn't religiously watching the show when it first aired so I'd probably just missed whatever her story was!

So then I did a big rewatch with a friend who'd never seen Buffy before and... ehh.

(Now, I never watched season 7 and have stricken it from my personal canon, so that already limits me.) I want Amy to make more sense and to have more story. In those few appearances there are just enough threads of a story that I can totally build a bunch of ideas, but they rapidly diverge from canon.

Because yeah, there's the "Amy decides to delve into witchcraft". Many good reasons why she might, protection from someone messing with her again being an obvious one, dark fascination and love/hate with her mother being another, but she's never given the chance to tell that story.

There's the "Amy back from the dead" which was HORRIBLY disappointing how glossed-over it was. Amy's real-world situation is more fucked-up than Buffy's was! Was she declared legally dead? How many people had any idea what had happened to her? (What happened to that Michael kid who was also in their witch circle? He knew, right? Did he used to visit Rat-Amy?) When she finally went to find her father how did she explain this to him, or did she panic and mind-whammy him because she *couldn't* explain? There could have been more detailed connections here with both Buffy's problems and Willow's problems, without having to go the ridiculous route of...

"Amy's magic druggie problem" Even leaving aside that this entire plotline is horrible, stupid, and horribly stupid, I don't for a second believe that a girl who's been stuck as a rat for years could instantly find the super-secret floating lair of the local druglord. She clearly didn't have that sort of hookup before and it wouldn't be that easy for her to find it now. She's years out of touch! And she should be struggling with magic now. She was not as powerful as fully-juiced Willow to begin with and the trauma of being ratted ought to be giving her the yips. Even if she knew this guy existed and never told Willow about it in high school for some reason, it ought to be a difficult quest on her part to find a way in.

"Amy wants revenge on Willow" A perfectly good plotline idea if they'd actually worked with it in the show, which would require making her more of a major character for a while. Because yeah, getting mad at Willow for 'ruining' her life is plausible, but we need to see Amy's life falling apart first. Even if it's almost-all offscreen because she's not a Real Scooby, it should take time for her to develop this hate-on for Willow. Because at first she'd be grateful for being saved, and then as she slowly realised how screwed she was, then she becomes resentful. Sort of an inverse of Buffy who wasn't happy about being saved and then comes to terms with it, Amy slowly gives up on trying to have her life back and decides to throw in with the dark side.

Just spitballing here. Willow, desperate to prove that she can do good things with her magic powers, de-rats Amy. Amy is thrilled at first but becomes more and more distressed as she realises that life has left her behind. How's she going to fix things with her dad? And Willow suggests magic. Willow takes her home, makes her dad accept everything with a mind-whammy, zap-zap-zap's Amy's long-turned-into-storage bedroom into something cool and modern and witchy, and leaves Amy there, feeling super proud of herself. See, it's easy! Magic really can fix everything! Cut back to Amy, alone in the dark, twitching in terror at the sounds of cats, trying to cast little spells and having them go wrong...

Reverse Unpopular Opinion: Amy Madison

[Reverse unpopular opinion meme.]

This is an interesting one because I think there’s a solid argument to be made that the character of “Amy Madison” does not, in fact, actually exist on the show Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

By which I mean … look, okay, yes, obviously, there is a character in an early Season 1 episode called Amy Madison, played by Elizabeth Anne Allen.  And there’s a character with the same name in a Season 2 episode, and [in an admittedly weird coincidence] she’s also played by Elizabeth Anne Allen.  And there’s one in Season 3, and a one in a few episodes of Season 6, and one in an episode of Season 7, and all of them are played by the same actor.

But … I mean, come on.  There’s no way these can all be the same character, right?  They don’t have the same basic back story or the same relationship to magic or to Willow; they certainly don’t have anything resembling a definite personality or set of motivations or a consistent character arc.  No, surely what’s going on here is that there are several different “Amy Madisons” in Sunnydale – just like there are several different characters called Anne or Nancy on the show – and in a bizarre in-joke the writers simply decided to cast the same woman to play all of them.

Now, ordinarily, simply being written inconsistently over a handful of episodes and not having anything resembling the same personality from week to week would be no obstacle to having a few die-hard fans.  But – as far as I can tell, anyway? – there’s no “fandom Amy” either.  She never really gets mentioned when people want to talk about how all the Scooby Gang had awful mothers [even though Amy actually did, explicitly and inarguably, have a very, very awful and openly abusive mother!].  There’s very little in the way of Amy/Willow shipping going on here or on AO3 [even though witchcraft is heavily coded as a metaphor for being a lesbian and Amy, one of the first witches we meet on the show, is repeatedly linked to Willow throughout the show’s run].  There are no adorable drawings of Amy as a rat staring out of her cage at Willow and Tara (or if there are, they aren’t getting as many notes as they should be getting).  

No, it looks like most people who are still watching and talking about the show twenty-five years later have about as much interest in poor Amy Madison as the writers did.  She’s a plot device.  A punchline.  A cipher.  A blank slate.  She’s whatever the plot requires her to be to further the stories of the actual characters on the show, and she’ll never ever be anything else.  Which is a little sad, if you think about it.  I think Amy – or, well, most of the different Amys: The Killer In Me’s smirking evil-for-evil’s-sake Amy I’m not so sure about – deserved better.

[As I write this the thought occurs to me, belatedly, that I might be one of Amy Madison’s biggest fans.  Pretty grim news for her if so.]

OK. Enough stalling.  Five positive things about Amy Madison [with, as ever, the usual caveat about the comics, which I’ve still not read anything about and still don’t exist].

Witch, Amy’s debut appearance, is a solid episode!  One of that season’s best, I think (though not, of course, one of its very best).  And I think the duo of Elizabeth Anne Allen's Amy Madison (and Robin Riker as her mom Catherine) is a big part of why that episode works: no, they haven’t got a huge amount to work with, but I think they both do a pretty good job switching between evil witch Catherine and innocent victim Amy.  Catherine’s bodyswap spell foreshadows (albeit unintentionally) the bodyswap artifact that the Mayor gifts Faith in This Year’s Girl / Who Are You? and I’ll always have a soft sport for it because of that.  And I really like that the episode ends with Amy alive and hanging out with Buffy in a way that suggests that they are going to stay friends, even if we don’t see any evidence on screen that that happened.

Sarcasm aside, I’m really glad the writers brought Amy back in the second season.  To me, part of the appeal of the high school years are the recurring minor characters – I talked about Principal Snyder before, but also Jonathan and Devon and Percy and Harmony and … yes, Amy too.  The show obviously doesn’t care about her very much, and you have to do a lot of mental gymnastics to fill in the missing pieces of her story and make her arc make sense (why is she starting to do magic in Season 2?  When does she start hanging out with Willow?), but … well, I do care and I have done those gymnastics.  At least Amy didn’t end up like Marcie Ross or Buffy’s old flame Owen or any of those poor kids who must remember eating Principal Flutie. 

I’ve been reading a few old interviews Elizabeth Anne Allen gave recently (here and here, for example) which I think have some pretty interesting insights into how the character of Amy developed.  Had you ever heard there were persistent rumors at one point that Amy was going to be one of the starting regulars on Angel?  It’s mind-boggling to think about a world where that happened.  Allen seems to have put a huge amount of thought into her character, too, at least for her first few appearances, which … uh, I guess makes me feel a bit shitty about those opening paragraphs. [Not enough to delete them though…]  Also in one of the linked interviews she says that she “hopes she won’t be a rat much longer” – and that’s an interview she gave before the Season 3 finale had even made it to air, which made me pretty sad to read.  Forget appearing on Angel, imagine if Amy had been de-ratted in Season 4.  Imagine if Superstar was about Amy instead of Jonathan.

There is a second or two in Season 6’s Smashed – no more than that – when Buffy and Amy are catching up again (“How have you been?”  “Rat.  You?”  “Dead.”  “Oh.”) and you can, if you’re quick, delude yourself into thinking that the show is going to do something interesting with the obvious parallel it’s just set up. Willow has now not only brought Buffy back into the regular human world [and left her struggling to live and find meaning as a college drop out with a dead mother and an absent father last seen on screen about five years ago], she’s also brought Amy back into the regular human world [and left her struggling to live and find meaning as a de facto high school drop out with a presumed-dead mother and a presumably-now-absent father last mentioned about five years ago].  Surely this must be deliberate?  Well, no: the show doesn’t do anything with this idea ever again, because Marti Noxon had very different [worse] ideas for Amy’s character this season, but if you pretend it might be about do something like that it’s a pretty exciting couple of seconds.

The fact that “Amy Madison” exists as a (technically!) canon character means that I can write (or daydream about writing) fanfiction in which Willow has a friend in high school who is also a practising witch. One with a vague but miserable home life, who is secretly in love with Willow but too afraid to admit it (and so she keeps professing to be interested in men who she can’t possibly ever expect to date, either because they’re unpleasantly vile toward women or openly gay or both). And I can do that while, just about, pretending that I have not created the most embarrasingly psychologically revealing OC you ever heard about in your life.  Thanks Amy!

[metal-harbor]

I am so fond of my headcanon that shadow has no idea how money works

Like he knows he exchanges money for goods, but he has no idea of the value anything holds

G.U.N issued him a bank account that they pay into, but he has absolutely no way of quantifying the amount in there. He was just told that he was not to give the numbers on the card to Rogue.

He once bought a $300 bag of coffee because he liked the packaging. He has a designer jacket that cost thousands and it was only when Amy pointed out that she knew the brand that he realised it must have been expensive. He’s bought VIP tickets for their concert trips more than once by mistake, then got frustrated when they tried to bring him backstage to meet the band (which he accidentally paid to do).

A few of his friends have described him as ‘surprisingly generous’ but truly he just has no idea what things cost

[cupothi]

hiiii everypony

[elsannej]

He got dragged into a wedding dress butique at the girls' night out.

As much as i like putting robots in dresses, i hc that Omega honestly kinda dislikes/doesn't care for women's/fem apparel. In his eyes they emphasize all the wrong things (looking soft/dainty/sweet). Not to mention how impractical e.g. dresses are.

It took a lot of convincing get him to try the stuff on:

Rouge (currently rocking a party dress herself): “Do i give off [any of the words on Omega's list] vibes? How about Blaze (in a light summer dress) over here?"

Omega (who hasn't & doesn't associate either of them with "softness" etc.,): "mmmmmmmmmmm" (If he answers truthfully he's gonna get roped into "Say Yes to The Dress")

And Omega finds out that he doesn't mind some of the dresses. That a select few actually... look quite good on him:

They either clash nicely (depicted dress) in a way that accentuates his form by putting something soft & light against his angular & heavyset build, or bring up other positive aspects - things Omega only now learned to look for/analyse in fashion - e.g. boldness/grandness/fierceness. He doesn't mind that at all.

@generic-sonic-fan