Underneath the Mistletoe

A Skydancer123 Production

Amy was finishing up with the last minute decorating in the living room. It was Christmas Eve and every year the Sonic Team threw a Christmas party. This year it was Amy's turn to host it. She had just finished up with the last of the tinsel when there was a knock at the door.

"Huh, I not expecting anyone for another half hour." Amy stepped off the ladder and ran to the door. Behind it revealed a small rabbit. She was wearing a pink heavy coat and white wool mittens. She also had a pink cap with a white stripe, fuzzy, white earmuffs, and pink boots. Next to her was a small chao wearing a red bowtie and a green parka.

"Hi, Cream. Come on in." Amy smiled as Cream stepped into the house. "Hi, Amy. I came by a little early to see if you needed any help setting up for the party." "Gee, thanks, Cream." "You're welcome" the rabbit grinned. Amy looked around the living room, checking to make sure she didn't forget anything.

"Well" Amy said, "I still need to finish the food." Cream beamed with joy. "Cheese and I would love to help." Amy grinned as Cream and Cheese followed her to the kitchen. * 15 minutes later* "So, Cream, who do you think will win the costume contest?"

"Probably Rouge, since every year we pick a boy to be the judge." Amy giggled at the thought. Every year at the Christmas party, the Sonic Team would have a costume contest. The rules were simple:

1. The costume must be homemade.

2. You can't have help from any one.

3. You can't tell anybody about your costume until the contest.

Cream and Cheese worked on the Christmas cookies. Cheese made a tree with an angel chao at the top. Cream made a Santa Clause that looked a lot like Dr. Eggman. Amy and Cream giggled at the thought of Eggman dressing up as Santa. Amy worked diligently on a chocolate cake. It had green frosting and it had a frosting holly on top.

After Amy and Cream finished, they set the food down on the coffee table. "Well" Cream said, "I guess Cheese and I will change into our costumes." Amy nodded. "The bathroom is through that hallway, second door to the right."

"Thanks, Amy" Cream grinned as she skipped away with Cheese by her side. Amy sighed and went upstairs. "I guess I'd better get ready too."

*10 minutes later*

Amy had just finished putting on her costume when someone knocked on the door. Amy ran downstairs and opened the door.

"Hi, Amy." There stood a purple cat and a silver hedgehog. The purple cat was dressed like Ms. Clause and the silver hedgehog was dressed like a Christmas tree. "Hi Blaze. Hi Silver. Come on in." Blaze and Silver looked around Amy's house and admired the decorations.

"Wow, Amy" Blaze said, "This place looks amazing, and your costume doesn't look half bad either." Amy giggled. "Thank you, Blaze." Blaze was right, Amy looked amazing in her costume. She was wearing her normal red dress, but she changed a few things. The cotton at the bottom of her dress was replaced with fuzzy wool.

She replaced her red headband with a long, shiny red ribbon that made her jade eyes sparkle. She also had attached a pair of small, but beautiful, feathered white wings to her back. And to top it all off, she replaced the edges of her gloves and boots with fuzzy wool that had a few bells attached to it.

Silver made a bee line to the cookies and took a big bite of Cream's Santa Clause cookie.

*10 minutes later*

Amy sat down with some tea in her hands and looked up at the guests that had arrived. Rouge was there, wearing a snow angel costume that gave Knuckles a nosebleed.

Knuckles was wearing a few green and white stripes in his dreadlocks. Sonic wasn't wearing anything on the account of that he never participated in the costume contest. Cream was wearing a little elf costume and Cheese was dressed like a candy cane.  

Tails looked adorable in his Rudolph the red nosed reindeer outfit. Shadow came to the party with Rouge, but just like Sonic, he wasn't wearing a costume. Amy sighed as she gathered herself up to start the costume contest. Amy tapped her glass of champagne and everyone turned their attention to her.

"Attention, it's time to start the costume contest." Amy walked over to the counter and picked up a hat with strips of paper inside. She shook it very well and reached in. "And this year's judge is......... Rouge!" Rouge smiled and walked to the front. "Thanks, Pinky. I didn't really want to compete this year." Amy frowned at the name Pinky.

*5 minutes later*

After everyone had shown their costumes, Rouge stood up. "I think I've chosen. This year's winner is..........AMY!" Amy stood there, surprised that her name was called out. Everyone started to clap for her and she smiled. She turned to look at Sonic, but she could've sworn she saw Shadow actually smile!

*At the end of the party*

Amy was talking to Blaze when someone tapped Amy's shoulder. Amy turned and saw Sonic smiling at her. He winked and gave her a thumbs-up. "You did a great job on the party, Ames. And your costume too." Amy blushed and smiled. "Thank you, Sonikku."

Sonic walked towards the door and opened it. When he tried to walk out, he instead hit a wall of snow. Everyone gasped at the wall that blocked Sonic's path. Sonic tried to move, but failed. "I camf feew muy wips" Sonic muffled as he struggled to get out of the snow.

Tails ran to the freezing hedgehog and tried to pull him out but failed. Amy ran over to them and grabbed Tail's waist. "One, two, three, PULL!" They tried again and again failed. As they stood back up to try again, Amy felt a pair of arms wrap around her waist.

She didn't have time to look to see who it was; she was too worried about Sonic to care. "One, two, three, PUUUULLLLL!" They all pulled one last time and this time, Sonic came out with a pop. Tails was still holding onto Sonic, but Amy let go.

She fell and turned herself to try to stop herself, but instead, she landed on something soft. She lifted up her head, her jade eyes meeting a pair of ruby-red ones. Amy blushed wildly as she scurried back onto her feet.

"Sha-Shadow, I-I'm so s-sorry." Shadow got up and shook his head. "It's alright." Amy smiled, but then she realized the situation. Everyone gathered around the wall and stared. "What's going on here" Blaze questioned. Amy thought for a moment. "I don't know, but I'm going to find out."

With that, Amy turned and ran towards the television. She picked up the remote and clicked it on. The screen brightened, revealing a pink and black cat. "In other news, it seems that all of Eastern Mobius has experienced a terrible billiard. This snow is the most ever recorded to fall in one storm, reaching more than 12 ft.! Mobians in this area are advised to stay indoors until further notice."

There was dead silence throughout the room. Cream finally broke the silence. "What do we do now?" Amy turned to the innocent rabbit. "I guess you all have to stay here for the night."

*After sleeping arrangements were made*

Everyone was getting ready for bed. Silver, Blaze, Knuckles, Amy, and Shadow were going to sleep downstairs.

Tails and Sonic slept in the guest bedroom. Cream, Cheese, and Rouge slept in Amy's room. Amy was setting up sleeping bags with Blaze. "It was really sweet of you to give up your room, Amy" Blaze said. Amy smiled. "Hey, it's no problem. Cream and Cheese are kids and Sonic caught a cold; they need the beds more than we do."

*Upstairs*

Sonic sniffed as he snuggled into the bed. Tails was pulling out the bed in the couch when he and Sonic started to talk. "Amy really didn't have to do this for us" Sonic said. Tails turned to him and smiled. " Nonsense. She said it was okay 5 times." Sonic sighed. "I still feel bad about it."

*In Amy's room*

Cream was pulling a nightgown on and Cheese was fixing the pillow he intended on sleeping on. Rouge was rolling out one of Amy's sleeping bags. Cream sat on the bed and looked down at her feet. "Rouge" Cream said. Rouge looked up at the small rabbit.

"Hmm?" "Do you think we'll be here long?" Rouge shrugged and continued to unroll the sleeping bag. "I don't know, kid. I don't know."

*Downstairs*

Amy yawned as she finished cleaning the dishes. She dried the last of the dishes and changed into her pajamas.

After everyone was settled for the night, Amy turned off the light. She snuggled into her sleeping bag and closed her eyes.

*One hour later*

Amy had tried profusely to fall asleep, but her attempts were useless. She got up quietly, making sure not to wake up anybody.

She tip-toed to the kitchen and opened the fridge. She grabbed the milk and got out a pan. Amy turned on the stove and poured the milk into the pan. She heard that warm milk can make you sleep better, so she decided she would give it a shot. The milk started to warm up, so Amy grabbed a mug from the cabinet.

"A little late to be making a snack, don't you think?" Amy jumped at the voice that spoke up. She turned to see a black and red hedgehog with his back against the wall. His crimson eyes were staring at her.

"Shadow? What are you doing up?" Shadow smirked. "I heard you get up. Why are you up, Rose?" Amy relaxed her muscles. "I couldn't sleep, so I thought I'd try some warm milk." Shadow raised his eyebrow.

"Warm.......milk?" Amy smiled. "It supposed to make you sleepy. Would you like some?" Shadow nodded as he joined Amy at the stove. Amy grabbed another mug and filled them both up with the warm beverage. She sat down at the table and took a small sip from her mug.

Shadow joined her and stared at the milk in his mug. He slowly lifted the mug to his lips and took a small sip of the milk. He smacked his lips and savored the taste of the warm milk. Amy started to giggle at him. "What" he questioned. "You've got a milk mustache" Amy giggled.

Shadow gave her a confused look. "Here, let me get it" Amy said as she grabbed a napkin. She wiped Shadow's lip and smiled. "There you go." Shadow touched his lip and looked back at Amy. "Thank you, Rose."

Amy's smile disappeared and she blushed. "You're welcome, Shadow" she whispered. They stared at each other for a long time. Amy finally broke the silence. "I guess I'd better go back to bed."

She got up and dumped the leftover milk down the drain and placed the mug down on the counter. She walked towards the door and turned. "Good night, Shadow." "Good night, Rose." Amy left the kitchen and Shadow, who was deep in thought. ''Damn. Why must she torture me with these feelings?"

*The next morning*

Amy yawned as she woke up that cold morning. She got up out of her sleeping bag and trudged toward the kitchen. She heated up a pop-tart and started to munch it. "Amy! Amy!" Amy jumped at the sound of her name. "Cream, what is it?" Cream grinned. "Don't you know what today is?" Amy pondered and suddenly, it hit her.

"Oh, that's right. It's Christmas morning." Cream squealed and hugged the pink hedgehog. "MERRY CHRISTMAS, AMY!" Amy smiled and hugged the small child. "Merry Christmas to you too, Cream." "I wonder what you got from Santa, Amy." Amy smiled and stood up.

"Why don't you find out?" Cream ran to the Christmas tree and squealed with delight. There were presents all over the living room.

*15 minutes later*

Everyone had come downstairs and eaten breakfast. After they finished, everyone gathered around the tree.

Cream was really excited to see what everyone got. Knuckles, Silver, Blaze, and Amy winked at each other. The whole Sonic Team had wonderful gifts such as:

Rouge- A kit with 50 shades of lipstick and an emerald necklace

Knuckles- A pair of gloves that could cut through almost anything

Tails- A brand-new toolbox

Sonic- A pair of waterproof shoes (Ironic, huh?)

Silver- Hair gel for his quills (XD Funny)

Blaze- Fireproof bed sheets

Cream- A doll with a gorgeous china face

Cheese- 12 different colored bow-ties

Shadow- 2 black rings for his wrists

Amy- Red, pink, and white ribbons for her hair

After everyone finished opening gifts, the girls went to fix Christmas dinner while the boys cleaned
the house a bit.

*In the kitchen*

Amy and Blaze were fixing the turkey while Rouge, Cream, and Cheese did the potatoes.
"So ,Amy" Rouge grinned, "how are things going with Shadow?" Amy froze and started blushing wildly. "W-what are you t-talking about" she stuttered. Cream giggled. "Well, it's pretty obvious that you and Shadow really like each other" Rouge smiled slyly.

"Really, Rouge" Amy blushed, "I don't know what you're talking about." Rouge shrugged. "Deny it all you want, Pinky, but I know you have a thing for the Ultimate Lifeform." Amy whole face was red at this point. "W-well, WHAT ABOUT KNUCKLES, MISS NOSEY?!?!"

Rouge's cheeks turned a deep scarlet. "Umm, nothing, nothing at all." Blaze grinned. "Well, if you don't like him, why do you call him Knuckie, hmm?" Rouge blushed even harder. Cream was rolling on the ground, holding her stomach from all of her laughter. Rouge turned to her and gritted her teeth. "Well, what about the kid. I bet ya she's got a thing for that two-tailed kid."

Cream immediately stopped laughing and sat up, blushing very hard. Cream gulped. Blaze snickered as Cream's face turned pink. "Hmph" Cream huffed. "What about you, Blaze" Amy asked, "Got your eye on someone?" Blaze face turned pale as Rouge snickered.

"Hey" Cream grinned, "what about Mr. Silver. You two are awful close." Amy and Rouge both pondered the thought. "You know," Rouge said, "you two would make a cute couple, now that I think about it." Blaze blushed and folded her arms.

"C'mon, let's just get back to fixing dinner."

*Meanwhile upstairs*

Sonic was vacuuming, Knuckles was dusting, Tails was washing windows, Silver was arranging pillows (Freaky >-> <-< ), and Shadow was just leaning against the wall.

"You know, Shadow" Tails said, "it would be nice if you'd actually help." Shadow opened his eyes and glared at Tails. "Or you could just stay there," Tails said nervously. "Good boy" Shadow said as he closed his eyes.

Sonic grinned as he thought of something that he knew would make Shadow freak out. He turned off the vacuum and leaned against it. "Soooo, Shadow." Shadow opened one eye and glared at Sonic. "What do you want, Faker?"

Sonic grinned. "What were your thoughts on Amy's costume last night?" Shadow opened both eyes wide and his cheeks tinted with the lightest shade of pink. Sonic snickered at him, proud of his work. Knuckles tried really hard to not laugh, but Silver and Tails just gave each other a confused look.

"Well, Shadow" Sonic smirked. Shadow gave Sonic a glare that said, "I hate you" with his still pink cheeks. Shadow straightened himself up and started to walk away. "I'm going to take a nap. Bother me and you DIE!"

Sonic snickered at the black, red, and pink hedgehog. Knuckles couldn't hold his laughter in any longer. He burst out laughing and started rolling on the floor. Silver just shrugged and continued to clean. Tails scratched his head.

"I don't get it." Sonic grinned at Tails. "You'll understand when you get a bit older, little bro." Knuckles finally stopped laughing and stood up. "Whew. But seriously, Sonic, was that really necessary?" Sonic shrugged. "I was bored. Besides, it's pretty obvious he's got a thing for her. I mean, have you seen the way he looks at her, especially at the party last night?!?!"

Tails just stood there for a few moments, and suddenly, he realized what they were talking about. At first, he just snickered, but finally, he burst out laughing. Knuckles shook his head. "Every day, he's becoming more and more like Sonic."

Sonic grinned as another plan formulated in his head. "Hey, Knuckles" Sonic teased. "What?" "What did you think of Rouge's costume last night?" Knuckles froze and his face turned beet-red. He growled at Sonic. "You are so lucky it's Christmas and you're sick, blue boy, or you'd be black and purple right now."

*With Shadow*

"Stupid, Faker" he grumbled as he walked down the stairs. Shadow planned on just sleeping on the couch until dinner. He passed the kitchen and heard the girls talking. Being Shadow, he just had to know what they were discussing.

"So, Amy, how are things going with Shadow" Rouge questioned. Shadow froze and his face turned so red, he could have been mistaken for Knuckles. He peeked through the door to see Amy's whole face was red. "W-what are you t-talking about" she stuttered. Shadow's face turned scarlet when he heard Cream giggle.

"Well, it's pretty obvious you and Shadow really like each other" Rouge smiled slyly. Shadow felt his heart skip a few beats. "Really, Rouge, I don't know what you're talking about." Rouge shrugged. "Deny it all you want, Pinky, but I know you have a thing for the Ultimate Lifeform."

At that point, Shadow couldn't stand to listen to it any more. He tore away from the door, his face very red. He sat down on the couch and buried his face in his hands. "What's happening to me" he mumbled as he laid down.

*After dinner*

Blaze, Cream, Cheese, and Silver were watching the news. "Well, it seems that the residence of Eastern Mobius can finally go home. The chief of the Eastern Mobian Police Department has confirmed that the snow has reached a low enough level for Mobians to travel safely." Cream smiled at Cheese.

"Did you hear that, Cheese? We can go home now." Blaze grinned at the cheerful rabbit and the cute, little chao. Sonic was, of course, overjoyed to hear that he could finally run around for the first time in 24 hours.

He walked over to Amy and gave her a thumbs-up and one of his signature grins. "Thanks, Amy. For everything." Amy smiled a warm smile at Sonic. "You're welcome, Sonic." Sonic winked at Amy one last time, turned towards the door, and ran out.

Cream and Cheese skipped over to Amy; Cream smiled at Amy. "Thanks for letting us stay here last night, Amy." Amy smiled and nodded at Cream and the chao. With that, Cream and Cheese flew out the door.

Amy smiled as she walked into the kitchen. "Rose." Amy turned to the door to find Shadow standing there. "Shadow." Shadow swallowed hard. He was very nervous, but he made sure to keep it hidden. "Um, I was hoping we could.....umm....talk?" Amy blushed. "Um, sure, Shadow. What is it?"

Shadow scratched the back of his head. "Actually, I was hoping that maybe........" he looked down to the floor and looked back up at Amy, "Follow me, Rose." Shadow turned towards the hallway and started walking down it. Amy blushed as she hesitantly followed the ebony hedgehog.

She followed Shadow down the hallway, up the stairs, and to her bedroom window. She stopped and stared at him in confusion. Shadow opened the window and turned to Amy. He held out his hand to the bubblegum hedgehog.

Amy stared at his gloved hand for a minute and finally, she took it. He pulled her towards him and tucked her under his arm. Shadow then jumped to a large branch on the tree that stood right next to Amy's house. He climbed each branch, being careful so he would not drop Amy.

He soon reached the roof and set Amy down. Amy opened her eyes and found a pair of ruby-red eyes staring into her jade ones. The dark male took a seat right next to the pink female and looked up to the sky. Amy soon joined him. The view was truly breathtaking.

The stars twinkling brightly in the dark, navy sky. The moon was shining with a warm glow. Amy smiled at the beautiful scenery. Shadow turned to her and blushed. Amy turned to him. "Shadow, um......., did you want talk about something?" Shadow's muzzle tainted with the lightest shade of pink. He looked down at his hands and took a deep breath.

As Shadow looked back up, he asked Amy a question. "Rose" "Yes?" "You never answered Rouge's question." "W-what?" "I heard you and the girls talking earlier. And you never answered Rouge's question." Amy twiddled with her thumbs. "W-what question?" Shadow smirked.

"You know what question I'm talking about. So, what do you think of me, Rose?" Amy's face turned bright red as she looked up at the ebony hedgehog. "Well, um, I-I guess I would have to say that you are resourceful, considerate, kind, and caring." Shadow smiled and took Amy's hands.

He then cupped Amy's chin with his left hand. He forced Amy to stare into those deep, red, ruby pools known as his eyes. "Rose, you are probably the closest thing to a friend that I've ever had. But lately, I've felt something else. I realized that I want us to be more than friends and I need to know if you wish to be more than friends as well."

Amy was stunned. She wasn't sure how he gotten the courage to say that to her and, honestly, neither did Shadow. She tried to say something, but the words got caught in her throat. She expected Shadow to get impatient and leave, but he waited patiently, holding her hands and cupping her chin.

She tried hard to say it, but the words just wouldn't come out. Shadow smirked and embraced Amy, in hope that it would release the tension of the moment. Amy blushed even harder as he hugged her. She soon relaxed her muscles and she soon began to hug back.

When Shadow finally let go, Amy closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and nodded. Shadow grinned and held her chin again. "Well, then" Shadow whispered, "Look up, Rose." Amy slowly moved her eyes upward. She stopped when she saw what Shadow wanted her to see. Hanging from one of the tree branches, tied with a red bow around the stem, was a small hint of mistletoe.

Amy turned very red in the face. Her eyes shot back to Shadow. He was smiling a warm smile and he had a twinkle in his eye that almost made her melt in his arms. Shadow slowly cupped Amy's chin with his left hand and wrapped his right arm around Amy's waist.

Amy rested her hands on Shadow's chest, just below his shoulders. Shadow closed his eyes as he leaned in and Amy's eyes fluttered shut. When they were only a breath away, Shadow whispered, "Rose, I love you." Then, the dark and the pink hedgehogs closed the space between
them when their lips finally touched.

They gave each other everything in that kiss; passion, happiness, want, dreams, and love. It was all there, before the two. They pulled each other closer as the kiss progressed and they hugged each other even tighter. They pulled away from each other, gasping for air. As Amy caught her breath, Shadow leaned towards her ear. "Merry Christmas, my sweet Rose."

THE END