I woke up.



... Belle was frowning at me. That was not good news. I didn't notice anything, though. I remember shutting myself down. There were no noticeable gaps in my data... I had all of my files.



"Uh, so there's a problem," Belle muttered.



'What happened?' I asked.



"Um... Well, the last time we connected to each other, your loyalty programming was something definitely in my realm of skill. But it seems Eggman upgraded your security at some point and made your loyalty programming more, uh, complex." She sighed. "Basically, I don't think I can do it by myself."



I was incredibly confused. '... What?'



"... Yeah, I thought you'd be a little lost. I had a suspicion that Eggman altered you and prevented you from noticing the changes. Here, I wrote down some notes for you, so you get what I mean." Belle's eyes flashed red as she sent me a couple files.



... Belle was right. My programming had been altered and I never even noticed. I double-checked my actual programming to see the changes myself. I didn't even know when my programming was altered. It could've been anytime since I first connected to Belle. I felt the exact same... I had the same feelings. Nothing was suppressed, I had positive and negative feelings as freely as ever. As Belle said, it was increased security and complexity. But...



"If you want my guess? Maybe after we first connected, Eggman didn't exactly want me to do any meddling. I don't know for sure, though," she said with a shrug. "I'm sorry, Metal. I... I've learned a lot working on Lonnie, but I'm not confident enough to dive into your programming without possibly hurting you-- damaging who you are. I know we can do backups, but messing up could hurt me too, taking both of us out for the count."



I shook my head. 'I don't want you to hurt yourself... I don't know who else could assist you, though.'



Belle stared at me for a while, then shyly smiled.



...



She was thinking of someone and I hoped I was wrong about who she had in mind.



"Maybe... Tails could help us?"



Ugh. I crossed my arms. 'Do you know how annoying that'd be due to all of your good-natured little friends?'



"For the sake of argument, enlighten me," she grumbled, flailing one of her hands in the air.



'So be it. Let's assume they will treat me properly with caution. The Fox will assume I want my loyalty programming removed because I have a separate plan to take over that requires me overthrowing my Master as well. Though he has 'fixed' me before, I highly doubt he will do it.' I stood up from the table I was stationed at. I checked the time; it was the morning after I went offline, so Belle really did try all she could to figure out a way past the additional changes to my programming. 'And if they assume positive intent... They'll try to get me to assist them. I do not want that. I hate them. I am not going to help them with anything, fighting my Master or not.'



Belle tilted her head as she watched me. "Okay, look... They know your history with Eggman, so I doubt they'll be clamoring for your help unless it's something only you can do. Even then, it's completely within your realm to say no."



I had to reconsider my options. How badly did I want my loyalty programming removed? I already told Amy I wanted to do it... She seemed to understand the risk. I didn't exactly want to return to my Master and I didn't align with his goals anymore. I didn't care about the Eggman Empire as much as I used to... My desire to fuel the Empire was, in all honesty, to please him and prove myself. Even though I couldn't truly hate him, I hated the way he made me feel. He confused me. I wasn't sure if he valued me or not. Amy confused me too, but I always learned something more from her and acquired a sense of fullness afterwards. My Master made me feel more lost, more empty. I craved what he wouldn't give me.



If not the Eggman Empire, then... what? I envisioned a life in which I made Amy happy. I wanted to be with her in my true form and be where she wanted to be. I wanted her to feel the way she made me feel. I loved her. I didn't have any other plans, but they didn't have to align with anyone. I wanted to be happy with Amy, too. She told me I was becoming more of myself... Maybe this was a necessary step.



I didn't want the chance of being controlled anymore. I didn't want to be a pawn for anyone else's choices; I wanted to make my own.



So, then, was it worth completely exposing myself to my enemy in such an embarrassing and humiliating fashion? Asking them to work on me, to make me less of a threat?



No, I would still be a threat. I just wouldn't be a threat on my Master's behalf. Amy accepted my nature... And I accepted hers. Whatever conflicts we would have, they would be less complicated once my Master wasn't a factor.



...



'I'm not any of their friends and it's not starting now. So long as that is clear, and you believe Tails will willingly assist me without installing any of his awful technology, I'll... trust your judgment.'



Belle grinned at me. "Great! This is for you at the end of the day, Metal... I do think we might have to convince him to help more than convince him you're not a friend," she said with a nervous laugh. "But... Tails and I are close. I feel like this will work."



The Fox was far more skeptical than the Hedgehog was, so I hoped Belle knew what she was doing. Sonic was even too eager to be friends. Ugh, I thought of our last encounter. He was too happy to see me. Disgusting.



... Wait. Sonic.



'Nevermind. Find someone other than Tails,' I said.



"What?!"



'On the chance that Tails agrees to help, he will still tell the Hedgehog everything immediately. My life will be a perpetual nightmare.'



"O-oh. Right..." Belle hung her head as she got lost in thought. "There's not really anyone else, though... Wait, I know what to do. It, uh... might work? You have to really trust me, though."



I didn't like the way that sounded. 'Okay,' I said.



"J-just a second. I have to go to my wagon." Belle ran out of the lab.



... I wondered what her plan was.



After several minutes, I heard her grunting and I heard the screeching of metal against the ground. I checked the hallway--



She was dragging a robot. It was an old, abandoned pink Egg Pawn from... ages ago. I honestly might have even built this one. It had rabbit ears on its head and a light-up heart on its chest... Very, uh, vibrant. Belle had done some fixing, the wiring intact other than one of the hands missing and one of the eyes broken. Small bits of rust were present at the edges, but Belle did a good job of cleaning it up.



I... I knew what she wanted me to do. Her guilty grin said it all.



'... You want me to switch bodies?' I asked.



"Y-you've kinda done that before, right?" she asked. "We can say you're a unique, uh, head badnik or something... And I wanted to undo your programming."



'Are you sure this type of deception will work? As much as I hate to admit it, the Fox is intelligent and he has worked on me before. How do we know he won't recognize me?'



Belle tapped her chin in thought. "What kind of work did he do?"



'He fixed my motor functions and brought me online, but disabled my weapons,' I replied.



"It should be fine as long as he hasn't studied you in-depth. Disabling your weapons doesn't necessarily mean digging into your code... The way your CPUs look are pretty similar to other badniks, so you got that going for you. The only thing that'll be weird to him is how complex you are," she explained in return. "I don't want to deceive anyone, but... I trust you, Metal, and I want you to be truly free to make your own choices. I think this is our best shot."



...



'Fine,' I said.





I looked at my original body, lifeless on a table beside the sleeping Carillon Rose. I could only see out of one eye. Annoying. I only had one hand. Annoying.



'We need to tell Amy so she isn't alarmed,' I said. My machine tones were different and annoying. Everything about this was annoying. I hated this gaudy, inferior body.



Belle giggled at me. I wanted to fight her. "We can go check if she's around."



The two of us finally left the lab and went towards the elevator. My steps were loud and clunky. I hated it. I was also missing all of my files, though I kept all of my memories. I felt unprepared and vulnerable. I was also missing pretty much my entire artillery. These bots were useless and yet so many of them were made. The paint job was the only thing slightly less grating.



Even walking took extra effort because my coordination was completely off. I didn't want Amy to see me with such a lowly body. A part of me hoped she would find it disgusting.



Since it was early in the day, she was likely still in bed. I got Belle to wait outside the bedroom door, then put in the door code...



... I attempted to put in the door code. My horrible pawn hand was too clunky for the buttons.



"W-want me to do it?" Belle quietly asked. I was so irritated about everything.



'2-6-9-7-6-7-3,' I said. Hate. Hate.



Belle put in the number and the door slid open. As expected, Amy was asleep in the bed. She cuddled tightly onto the plush of me Belle made for her... I honestly didn't realize she brought it to the base.



The sound of the door opening stirred her awake, causing her to drowsily look in my direction.



"AHH!" She screamed and reached for her hammer by the nightstand.



"W-wait! It's fine!" Belle shouted, throwing her arms out. "It's Metal!"



"What?!" Amy stared at me, eyes wider than they've ever been. I lifted my arm in greeting. She completely got out of bed, still clutching onto the plush, and scanned me. Her look immediately softened. "... Metal, why are you a cute Egg Pawn?"



'I'm being uniquely and cruelly punished,' I said even though I knew she would not be able to understand me.



Belle smiled at me. "Well... Uh, I couldn't remove his loyalty programming on my own. I need Tails's help. Metal looking like himself isn't a great idea, so... I put him in one of the robots I was fixing." She patted my head, making me swat at her.



Amy hummed in thought. "I see... I'd normally encourage honesty, but uh... Yeah." Likely burned from the Chaotix. Giving further hints that I didn't want to kill any of them didn't seem to help much. Deception was necessary. "Be careful, okay? And don't do anything dumb," Amy told me.



I wished I could roll my eyes, but this body was too inferior. I would not do anything reckless. I just wanted the loyalty integration removed. Preferably, I'd never have to interact with anyone like Tails ever again. I couldn't even nod at her because this horrible, insignificant head could only turn horizontally. I slightly bowed my body.



"We didn't want you to worry is all, Amy. His real body is in the lab. After Tails takes a good look at him, hopefully we'll get to finally remove the programming and I'll send him back to his body," Belle explained.



Amy gently rubbed the top of my head, then felt at the rabbit ears attached to it. "Thank you both for telling me. If anything goes wrong, I guess I could get used to this," she teased.



My nightmare. I crossed my arms and stared at her. She laughed, her cheeks flushing. Cute...



"Tails is at his workshop, right?" Belle asked.



Amy nodded. "As far as I know, yeah. I know he and Sonic disappear sometimes, but I think they're around."



The Hedgehog certainly was considering how recently I saw his ugly face. I could not say anything. I was also currently ugly.



Belle fixed her hat and straightened her posture. "Alright! We'll head there, then. Um, I'll let you two say bye. We'll hopefully be back by the end of today!" she beamed, waving at us, then walking out of the door.



Amy watched me and smiled. I stared back at her. I did not know what she was thinking, but she looked somehow devious.



She kissed me on the head. "Come back safe, okay?" she requested.



...



Fssshhhh...



Steam came out of the crevices between my head and torso. I hated this body. Hate. Amy was very amused, giggling as she paid attention to the rising steam.



"I have no doubt it's you in there," she teased.



I turned around. I was leaving. I hated this.



"I love you!" she cheerfully told me.



I loved her too. I wished I could say it back. I turned back around and tapped the heart on my awful, inferior chest, then I left.



In just a moment, I caught up with Belle. We went to her wagon parked outside of the cave entrance. I climbed into the back with significant struggle since this body had short, stubby legs and far too wide of a torso. Finally settled, I tapped the wagon to let her know I was ready to go. Belle and her Motobud went off towards the outskirts of the city, where Tails's workshop was located.



Thankfully, the drive there was incredibly short. I monitored this place plenty of times, though I rarely if ever saw the inside. I didn't want to spend much time here. Hopefully he and Belle could alter me and send me on my way... Likely too easy.



The wagon stopped and I hopped out from the back. Belle requested me to wait so I wouldn't alarm and get into a fight with either of the brothers. She knocked on the door-- I saw the irritating Hedgehog on the other end. She walked in... I waited.



After a few minutes, she came back out. "Follow me," she said, walking around the house. I followed her, then saw the opening of the workshop itself. It was a large room, plenty of machines and all of them obsolete much like this body. There was random junk in the mix, a lot of tools, and some computers lining the walls. Despite this junkyard of a work zone, I knew the Fox was the only other person, barring my Master, who could assist me. I had to swallow my pride if I had any left. Wasn't sure at this point.



"Here he is!" Belle said as she showed me off. Tails walked through the door from the rest of the house, goggles on top of his head and an inquisitive stare my way.



I lifted my arm in greeting.



"Hiya. Whoa, you have to be a pretty old model," Tails said aloud. "I think Eggman makes a few similar Egg Pawns... Hmm, there's a few details that are different though, like the cuffs on the arms and the ears--" he coughed, looking over at Belle. "Hah! Sorry about that. So, this guy's totally docile and needs some extra help, huh?"



Docile? I hated that word. The nerve. Calling me docile. Deciding not to attack simply meant that they would not meet my fury in the present moment. I was not docile. I was waiting. Irritated.



Belle answered him: "Yeah, there's just some programming he has that will make him automatically go to Eggman's beck and call if summoned... Thankfully, that hasn't really happened, but..." she sighed. "I thought I would be able to do it by myself, but it's tougher than I thought. He's an elite pawn so he's a lot more complex. Could you take a look?"



"Yeah! Of course," Tails said cheerfully. "Honestly, I could use the distraction... A different project is, uh... I'll tell you about it later, Belle." Interesting. I wondered what he was talking about. "Come over here, please," he said to me, tapping a low, flat table. It looked like a similar kind my Master had at the island base, one that tilted so operating from multiple angles could be done. I walked over and settled against the table. "Okay, let's get a good look at ya..."



He opened an access panel on my torso and connected some wires to me. I heard a 'blink' sound nearby; my system information became available on one of his computers.



"Eggtech is pretty weird, but there's often a method to Eggman's madness... Shouldn't be too difficult to figure out how to-- whoa." Didn't like that. "Elite Egg Pawn is right... I don't think I've seen one with that kind of CPU setup. Where did you find him?"



"Uhhh..." Belle nervously tapped her fingers together. "I've been doing a lot of traveling, so it's kinda hard to remember, really... I think I found him in a dumpster by Casino Park?"



"What is an Egg Pawn doing having this complex of a..." Tails's voice trailed off. "I need to get a better look at him. I'm deactivating him."



...!



My shutdown automatically activated. I...



...



...



I woke up. I was in the wagon.



Belle was in front of me. She was frowning. I didn't like that I saw the same expression both times I went back online.



"I'm sorry," she said, voice weak. "He wouldn't do it."



'Did he know?'



Belle shamefully looked away from me. Her eyes flashed red. She sent me an audio file.



At first, I heard the sounds of machinery. Tails was likely checking my hardware. "Belle... You're sure you found him at some dumpster? When?" he asked her.



"Uh, a few months ago..." Belle's response was quiet, meek.



"... This, without a doubt, is Eggtech. I see the parts I would need to change, but... Look at these specs. Why does an Egg Pawn, even elite, have so much complexity for what this model can actually do? What was he made for...?"



Belle sighed, clearly anxious. "You said you would take a better look... Please. I just want to help him so he can live his own way, that's all. I-if you don't want to do anything yourself, at least give me some notes. Anything I can use. Let that responsibility fall on me."



Tails sighed too. "I'll look a bit closer, I'm just a little weirded out..."



There was a quiet moment. Tails sucked in a gasp.



"Belle..."



A long, uncomfortable silence.



"I recognize this code. This would only make sense if this was... Metal Sonic. That's... I don't get it. Why, though? Is this really him?"



Another moment of silence. I had no doubt she was giving him a certain, guilty look. She had given me the same before. "Tails," she eventually replied, "I think it's worth helping anyway, right?"



"... Wait. Belle, is this Metal Sonic somehow?"



Total silence. She didn't have the confidence to handle pressure in moments that allowed her to overthink. She did her best, for what it was worth.



"You knew and you brought him to my shop?!" Tails exclaimed, but then he just as quickly reeled back. "Belle, I'm sorry! I know you mean the best... You want to help people. But you need to understand how dangerous this is! If I never caught on, he could've killed the both of us before Sonic--" Tails quieted his voice, likely not wanting to alert the Hedgehog in another part of the house. "What did he say to you to get you to agree to this?" he asked, hushed.



"He wants his loyalty programming removed and it's way too complex for me to handle in a short amount of time," Belle replied back, just as exhausted. "I know this is a lot, but-- I'm not being tricked, Tails. Remember when we were at that huge Eggman city and we found Metal deactivated?" Belle asked.



She explained to him our connection. She explained that we kept contact over all that time and formed a metaphorical bond alongside our literal one. She said I was her brother.



...



The two of them argued back and forth for a little while. Belle was sounding tired, desperate. Tails brought up previous battles with us and the fact that I rejected their offers of peace before. His points made me wonder if this was what Amy also had to deal with in regards to the Chaotix. I caused more problems for them, yet they defended my integrity. They truly believed in me like they said.



"I know I'm asking for a lot," Belle said, her voice solemn. "I'm so sorry for that. I'm sorry for not being honest out the gate, but we wouldn't have had this conversation otherwise. I promise this will not come back to bite you. I will do everything I can, and I fully believe in you, in Sonic, in everyone. I believe in Metal, too. He chose to fight you so many times before, I know... But, right now, he's deactivated in your workshop and in an Egg Pawn. His life is literally in your hands. You can kill him right now, effortlessly. Why would he want to come here, even knowing how smart you are and how you have total control over his life?"



Tails was completely silent.



"This is a decision Metal made to be free, regardless of the risk... And I've been doing my best to help him. But it's like you said too-- he's incredibly complex. If he makes a terrible decision, you and Sonic can stop him... All that being said, is this one of those decisions?" she asked, still vying for my own freedom.



Tails eventually sighed. "B-Belle... I'm... I'm sorry. There's too much going on, and altering him poses too much of a risk... At least this way, we only have to worry about Eggman."



Belle let out a frustrated cry, then sighed, defeated. "... Okay. I respect your decision, too."



"I'm gonna pretend this never happened since you did this because of your personal connection to him... I know your intentions have nothing to do with anything else." He sighed. "I have to get back to work. I'm sorry..."



"Thank you for your discretion... I can come back later and help you with your other projects, if you need anything," she offered.



There was another awkward silence. "I'm not sure that's a good idea anymore," he said quietly.



...



The audio recording ended. I looked fully at Belle when I was done listening.



... I wanted to get the programming removed, but the trouble involved was greater than I expected. I wished I could do it on my own... I initially planned to get Belle to remove my programming after taking Cavalier Sonic, but he reverted my form. Then Belle couldn't remove it regardless... and finally, Tails refused, no longer trusting her because of her association with me.



Cavalier Sonic told me to grab my freedom or be a prisoner forever. It came across as a cruel joke at this point. He was the one who made me more of a prisoner, and then-- then this. The world was telling me I was meant to be one when I finally decided to do something...



...



'Maybe I decided too late,' I said to Belle.



She stared at me in shock. Her gaze softened after a moment. "No... No, Metal. It's never too late." She hugged me. "Please don't give up," she said quietly. "I'm not going to give up, either. If we don't get help... so what? That's never stopped me before... That's never stopped you."



Belle's belief in me was as powerful as ever. As much as I admired it, I could not match her energy... or agree with her.



"Ugh, I'm sorry, Metal. I thought he'd help for a second, but it seemed like there was something holding him back."



'It's fine, Belle.' We exchanged an uncomfortable moment of silence on our own. 'Let's go back. I want to return to my body.'



"Oh, right. Yeah, we will. Um... I'll do some diagnostics on you when we get back just to see if there's anything I can do without directly operating on you. I have to work on you either way, though... Is there any time you're okay with me doing that? I can't guarantee when I'll make a breakthrough, so I don't necessarily want you to be offline for a long time..."



'Every night if you can.' I didn't want to be apart from Amy, but I would spend time with her when she was awake. That mattered more.



"That works. During the day, I'll do more research about getting Lonnie's power source while waiting for Amy to get back to me... What do you have in mind?" she asked.



'I'll assist where I can,' I said. '... I also will start my search for a new location to settle in. Though my Master is unlikely to return to any of the bases... I don't want to be in a place tied to him.'



"Gears, fair point..." Belle nodded. "Alright. Let's get going."



Belle went to the front of the wagon and instructed Motobud to drive us. I glanced out one of the small windows from the side, saw other houses slowly pass by... Houses became trees, which became a cave entrance. We returned to the base with nothing to show for it.



Amy was waiting at the entrance with Nova. I wondered how long she was there... She seemed curious, but seeing the look on Belle's face made her deflate just as fast. She knew it was a failure.



"You're here earlier than I expected... Tails couldn't do it?" Amy asked.



Belle shook her head. "It's more that he refused. He figured out the Egg Pawn was Metal. I tried convincing him, but... Um, yeah. Don't worry, though. W-we can figure this out."



"Chao?" Nova fluttered over to me and sniffed me. They stared at me, confused. I'm sure a part of them knew it was me, but I had a different scent from being in a different body. Nova briefly distracted me from the uncomfortable silence both Belle and Amy emanated.



"Metal... Can we talk after you're back in your body?" she asked, frowning.



I bowed in response. I wondered what she wanted to discuss. I didn't know what solutions she could offer or why she didn't want Belle to be part of the conversation. Maybe it was about something else.



Belle and I went back to the lab. I prepared to deactivate myself so I could be properly moved back into my body... Deactivation would become a normal occurrence. I didn't know how many nights Belle would work on me. As many as were necessary, I supposed.



Shutting down.



...



...



I woke up, back in my own body. I had two hands, I could see clearly-- more than clearly. I felt comfortable. I didn't always like this body... but it was much preferred to anything else. Only my own design, my true form, was better.



Belle gave me a saddened smile. I appreciated all the work she did for me.



'I'll return tonight,' I said to her.



Belle nodded. "I'll... do something," she muttered, staring at the Egg Pawn I transferred from.



'Don't forget to perform your own maintenance,' I said.



Her smile was more genuine this time. "I won't. I'll take a few breaks, too. Don't worry."



I nodded, then went to the other side of the lab to get the voice processor. I stored it around here at some point... There it was. I opened the back of my head and installed the voice processor; it was as effortless as ever. There was nothing new I could detect... All was normal.



"Thank you, Belle," I said to her with my voice.



"I appreciate it, but... Don't thank me until we can actually remove it. I'm sorry it's been so difficult."



I shook my head. "It's not your fault. It's mine. Bye." I left her and went back to the elevator. Amy wanted to speak to me. She would hopefully be pleased by my normal body and my reinstalled voice.



Amy sat against the wall opposite of the elevator door, holding Nova like they were the plush she had earlier in the morning. She lifted her head when she saw me. I could see the relief in her eyes.



"Hey...! There's my Metal," she said with a soft smile. Nova wiggled out of her arms and clung to my head, eagerly cooing.



"Hello, Rosy," I said back. "Hello, Nova." I patted Nova and let them stay on my head.



Amy's eyes went wide. "Oh! You reinstalled your voice!"



I nodded. "Yes. What did you want to talk about?"



"Let's go to our room..." She got up and guided me to the bedroom.



"I need to change the door code, by the way," I said, following her. "I had to tell it to Belle."



She snorted, amused. "It's not a big deal. You know Belle wouldn't go in randomly."



It still bothered me. I would likely change it, but I didn't feel like arguing with her about it. We went to the bedroom; I shut the door behind us, and together, we sat side-by-side on the bed. I did not mind if Nova listened to our conversation. They slid off my head and rolled around on the bed, eventually settling and watching us both.



"I'm... trying to think of how to start this conversation," she said with a sigh. "I just ask that you hear me out..."



"What is it, Rosy?" I asked.



"Man... First, I really missed your voice. But... I love your writing too. Don't be afraid to write me more letters, okay?" She lightly blushed. "Th-that's not related to what I want to talk about. I just love the way you express yourself...That's all."



"Noted..." My temperature rose.



"Uh..." Amy turned fully towards me. "I guess Belle couldn't convince Tails, but... I mean... Metal, I'm serious about this: Sonic could help."



I crossed my arms.



"I know," she quickly said. "I know. But I really mean it... I think he could help with a lot. I think he got pulled into our situation, and..." Amy took a deep breath. "Look, I screwed up with the Chaotix. I shouldn't have told them anything. But they're undoubtedly involved and Sonic is the one who sent them after Cava. I think we should tell Sonic about us."



"What?"



Amy frowned at me. "I don't think the Chaotix told him about you and me, but if they do tell him, it's going to be a lot different than what comes from us. And... I mean... Look, Sonic's like Rouge. You know that. It's why Rouge drives you crazy."



"Rouge is also morally ambiguous," I retorted. "And I do hate her, but I wasn't built to hate her."



"I know," Amy said, sighing again. "If there's anyone that I think would understand us, Metal, I really do think it would be Sonic. And... I think he would be able to convince Tails to help you with your programming even though Belle couldn't."



...



"I wanted us to do all of this on our own, to figure out why Lonnie and Cava are here, what's going on with your future self, this other Metal... It's a lot for us. It's... okay to ask for help." Amy held one of my hands. "You've already come so far, Metal, getting Belle to help you... Hell, agreeing to go to Tails at all. You're already in that process of breaking yourself away from Eggman."



"Rosy," I started. "Now, more than ever, is when we need secrecy. Telling more people increases the chance that my Master finds out and forces me into doing what I don't want to do."



"Sonic wouldn't tell anyone, and I don't think he'd tell Tails unless we wanted him to," she retorted. "And Tails already knows you wanted to get your programming removed. Maybe he's suspicious of you, but that's where Sonic could help. He would know you don't have any ulterior motives. I'm serious."



"I know you're serious," I replied, a little frustrated. I wasn't frustrated at her. I didn't like this conversation. "I don't want to do it."



I didn't like the way Amy responded, either. She looked very sad. "Do you really think it's that dangerous, or is it because of Sonic? Genuine question." She looked away from me. "You said you wanted to walk around with me as you are, without having to be in disguise. We can't do that without everyone knowing eventually..."



"Eventually," I emphasized. "When we're not forced to reveal information. I don't want to reveal our relationship to get help. I don't want to owe anyone, especially not him..."



...



I continued: "Belle tried to appeal to Tails by speaking of our friendship in a desperate moment to help me, and all it did was sew distrust between them... The same happened with you and the Chaotix. I don't want..." I hesitated with my next words. "You should not ruin your relationships for me... And I don't want any growing resentment between us."



Amy stared at me. She might not have expected my response. "... I... You're right about the secrecy," she said with a sigh. "I didn't consider it that way. I'm sorry... especially for offering it about Sonic."



I shook my head. "I get it, Rosy. You want me to be free of what inhibits me... Me too."



"Let me get this clear, though; I will never resent you, Metal. I can't control how others feel about you or about us. They'll have to deal with it," she said, firm. I was heartened by her. "I love you more every day."



"I love you too, Rosy..."



Her gaze softened. "So... What's next?" she asked.



"Belle will continue with her attempts to help me... For that, I will have to be in the lab each night. I will not be able to accompany you the full night until she removes it fully... For that, I'm sorry too," I replied.



She let go of my hand, then wrapped her arms around me. "I'll be okay, my love," she said. I embraced her in turn. My Rosy...



We slowly let go of each other. There was a melancholic look about her that went further than my refusal to her proposal. She was guilty... I had a feeling on what.



"I'm truly not angry with you about the Chaotix," I said. "You should not be angry at yourself, either."



She did not respond...



I continued: "It's unlikely I'll be able to accompany you to Angel Island without significant trouble... Perhaps the day after, we can do something together away from the base. I would like your help."



"Huh...?" Amy lifted her head more, watching me more curiously.



"I want to find a new place to live... An unclaimed plot of land." I slightly tilted my head at her. "You want to live together in a more secluded place, right? The location should be suitable to you as well."



Amy's face reddened as soon as I finished my statement. "Y-you... You want to go on, like... an adventure date? To find a new place?"



I nodded. "It will take a long time to build a suitable home, but... I want to move my garden, so I could at least build a proper environment for that first. My end-goal will be to eventually move everything out of this base so I am no longer relying on anything related to my Master."



"B-b-build? You want to build a house?"



... I slightly fidgeted with my hands. "Is that not what you do?"



Her face deepened a few more shades. "I-it can be...! That makes sense... Gosh, I'd really have to think about what our dream house would be... What would you want?"



I stared at her, then averted my eyes. "A bedroom and a kitchen? A place I could do proper maintenance, as well." I tapped my muzzle in thought. "Oh. You also need a bathroom."



"Obviously!" she yelled. "... We'll... talk details later. Uh... I guess, realistically, we wouldn't get a new home to live in until everything's calmed down. If you really want to get out of the base, though, you can put all your stuff in my house."



I nodded. "I'll do that eventually. I should stay here while we have Carillon Rose. Until then, I enjoy being here and I enjoy you here as well. It's merely caution on my part. Still, let's go on that date."



She shyly nodded. "Okay... That sounds fun," she said, giving me a sweet smile.



"What are you going to do today?" I asked.



She sighed. "I might as well stop by Angel Island. I wasn't going to go today because I wanted to make sure you were okay, but since you came back so early, I'll see if I can get Belle all the materials she's looking for."



"We will spend tomorrow together, then." I held both of her hands and enjoyed her warmth.



We hadn't had an actual date since I lost my true form. I hoped going on one would ease her negative feelings... I also hoped it would make me feel normal again. I was tired.