𝕿𝖍𝖊 𝖘𝖙𝖔𝖗𝖞 𝖔𝖋 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖘𝖊𝖆 𝖘𝖍𝖊-𝖍𝖊𝖉𝖌𝖊𝖍𝖔𝖌

      Outside the window of the bedroom, or rather the living room, where Amy slept in her own bed on dry land, the sun slowly rose and a new morning came. The rays and light of the sun fell right into the hedgehog’s eyes, and she immediately woke up and yawned. The former little mermaid herself could not believe that for the first time in her life she was sleeping on land, like people and Mobians, and also getting up with the sunrise and even doing exercises in the morning to cheer up and finally wake up. Because, as always, you don’t want to get out of bed when you’re asleep and want to lie in bed longer. Stretching her arms up and down, squatting and bending to the sides several times, the hedgehog goes to the mirror, takes the comb in her hands and puts her needles on her head in order. To fully comply with the morning image of all the inhabitants of the land, she even opened the window wide, leaned out slightly and looked around. Even people began to get up in the morning and go to work. And she has nowhere to work, as she herself was convinced. Without thinking about it, the hedgehog leaves her bedroom and goes out through the door into the hall. She heard the voices of Uncle Robotnik, Prince Sonic and the witch Rouge herself, who were communicating with each other. Rose was shocked by this. Has Rouge really made contact with them? Quickly going down the stairs and running into the kitchen, she notices the sea witch. True, for some reason she was without tentacles. She herself wore a very long and black dress, under which her legs were probably hidden. True, one tip of one tentacle still slightly came out from behind under the dress. It seems that she decided not to take risks like her and not to lose her own voice in vain, but just played it safe by simply hiding her tentacles. She is lucky that at least with the help of tentacles she can stand and walk, like people with Mobians. The bat turns his gaze towards Amy and, with a smile on his face, says: — Ah! Where are you! — she said, stood up and quickly crawled towards her on her tentacles. True, because of the dress that covered her tentacles, it seemed as if she ran up to her on her feet. The witch hugs the hedgehog and kisses her on both cheeks. — How I missed you and worried about you, my baby! Where have you been for so many days? Rose, on the other hand, widened her eyes and did not understand anything; she could not even speak out on this topic without a voice. — Amy, why didn’t you tell us that you have an aunt? — Sally asked, sitting next to Sonic and spreading a jam sandwich on the bottom. — She’s mute, because she doesn’t have a voice. Forgot? — Sonic turned to her. — Oh! Sorry! I forgot. We only met her last night. — It’s okay, Princess Acorn. — Uncle Robotnik answers and serves the prince and princess two cups of tea. — In general, it can be understood. Since she can’t say anything, how could she explain to us that she still had one of her relatives alive, who had been looking for her all her life and was yearning for her. Even I wouldn't know how to live if I lost Sonic. — he said with tears and a smile, pressing the tray to his stomach. — Well, she could just take a piece of paper and write. Sally suggested, taking a bite of her sandwich, holding it upside down. — Sally! — Sonic looked at her sternly, but then became thoughtful. - Yes, though. She also introduced herself to me when I first met her in the meadow. She wrote her name on the ground with a stick. And besides, we bought her a notebook, if I’m not mistaken. This means that now she will be able to speak to us somehow. If, of course, she wants to. — Sonic explained with a grin and winked at Amy herself. Now Amy understood everything. The sea witch introduced herself to them as her aunt and that she was her favorite niece, which means they should play along with her as if they knew each other. Of course, she realized it too late, but she still pretended to smile and hug the bat back. After the hug, Rouge was the first to let Amy go, and she took out her notebook and pen and wrote a question on one page, which she gave to the witch herself. The latter read it out loud: — I am also very glad to see you. But where have you been and disappeared? — After reading the question, she explains: — Oh, this is a very long story, Amy. I only shed tears while I was looking for you. Where have I been and what countries have I seen? But I'm so glad that you're okay and that you've finally been found. Now we will never be apart. I promise you. — during this conversation she hugs her again. — What a gentle and beloved mother she is. Well, that is, you niece. It’s a pity that my uncle almost never talked to me and didn’t hug me. — Sonic dreamed and realizing that he had blurted out such a thing in vain, he asked his uncle for forgiveness: — Um... No offense! — Everything is fine! — Robotnik answered, smiling. The dog Yuki ran into the kitchen and looked at the sea witch herself. He immediately understood that this was a sea witch and that she and that hedgehog were for one thing. Therefore, he did not give it away, but only looked and breathed with his tongue hanging out. — O! You didn't say you have a dog. Doesn't bite? — Rouge asked, sat down on her knees and stroked the dog’s head. — No, despite his appearance, he is quite friendly and loves guests. Even uninvited ones. — Robotnik explained. Silver came to the dining room and brought new dishes for the new guest. — Monte Crista sandwiches and coffee. — he says and looking around, he notices Amy herself. Seeing her, his cheeks turned red. Of course Rose noticed this on him. — “This servant is quite funny, but unhappy, like me. I understand him perfectly.” — she thought about him. — Thank you. — Rouge said and sat down at the table, starting to eat her lunch. She just took the sandwich in her hands, but before taking a bite, she asked: — prince and princess, are you late for not anything today? — Ah! Exactly! — Sally widened her eyes, got up from the table and ran out of the kitchen. — Sorry, I’ll finish the rest later, but for now we need to go to the store to buy a wedding dress. — And I need a beautiful tuxedo. — Sonic said and ran with Sally. Robotnik remained in place for now, and Rouge looked at him a little suspiciously, and he immediately realized that he and his niece probably wanted to be alone. — Ah!... Wait! I will help you! — he turned to the prince and princess, running after them. — Silver, sweep the kitchen floor after you when you leave. — Yes, Robotnik. — the white hedgehog saluted and frowned, taking out a mop, snapping out loud: — I saw your mop in the coffin. — I HEAR EVERYTHING!!! — the chef shouted from somewhere. — “Poor thing!” — Amy thought, looking sadly at this servant, whom everyone treated like a thing. — Oh! Please forgive me for being so rude to them. They annoyed me so much. This is how I am treated every day. — he calmly explained to the hedgehog with the mouse. — Don't worry, buddy! We are from the trade union. — the witch lied slightly. — From the trade union? — Silver looked questioningly at Rouge. — In the distant kingdom where my Amy and I are from, we represented workers in the witchcraft industry in black and white magic, as well as janitors and dishwashers. — O! What are you saying! — Silver didn’t believe it, sweeping the floor. — I'm serious! We ourselves see that your rights are being violated here. — the witch explained. Silver thought about it: — "Hm. I guess they are right. Maybe they will help me deal with that fat man with a mustache, the prince and that cook who treat me so brazenly?” — he thought and said out loud: — Yes. This is true. Here my rights are being violated. I’m already trying to please these impudent people and prove that I’m capable of more than just washing dishes and sweeping the floors, and they... — Silver immediately began to cry. — They don’t appreciate my work. And so every day. Amy took pity on the white hedgehog and hugged him, which he was even happy about. Smiling at her, he also hugs her. He also whispers in Amy’s ear: — And I’ve also had a complaint against them for a long time, which I’ve been afraid to express to them for a long time. Our insurance does not include dental services, and I am ambitious and prefer to brush my teeth every day first. — Yep. We will take this into account! Well. Don't worry, Sylvie. We will seriously talk to the chef, uncle and prince so that they will be more polite to you. We promise and guarantee, because we have never let anyone down. — Rouge answers and walks through the door into the royal kitchen. Amy follows the witch, and Silver continues to sweep the floor, but thinks: — "Stop! How did she know my name was Silver? I didn’t introduce myself to her.” While he was thinking about this and sweeping further, the crab Lomar, who was hiding under the legs of the cabinet, climbed onto the table, took a lightly bitten sandwich, put it in his mouth and crawled away, hiding under the nightstand. At the same time, he looked sternly at where Rouge and Amy had gone.

***

      Prince Sonic and Princess Sally sat on a horse cart and rode to the market. The gates from the castle were opened so they could pass through, and then closed behind them. They were looking for shops where they sell clothes and while they were looking, Sally only now decided to ask her future husband about that hedgehog, since before she was a little embarrassed to ask him: — So uh. Where did you say you met her? Sonic hesitated a little, but answered: — In the meadow. Just yesterday morning I went for a walk with Yuki and accidentally met her. By the way, Yuki, a fool, ran into the forest and got lost there. He even almost died there. Amy herself dared to run into the black forest. — Did she dare? Yes, no one has ever gotten out of there alive. — I know, but by some miracle she managed to find Yuki and get out with him. — she was even calm about it. — And you know, Sally... How can I explain it to you... She reminds me of someone. — Whom? — asked the chipmunk. — The same she-hedgehog who saved me from a shipwreck the day before yesterday. True, I don’t know for sure whether she is really the same or they are just similar, like twins, but... Tell me, do you think I’m crazy? — he asked her. — What you? — Sally stretched out her hands, not wanting to offend Sonic. — I trust you, Sonic. Just tell me, who was it, who saved you? — Well... Believe it or not, but... This one was not just a hedgehog, but a mermaid. She had a beautiful fish tail instead of legs. Red, like the dress of the one I met yesterday. And when she smiles, she looks like... — after a pause, Sonic smiled. — Angel. — Ou! — Sally had a sly grin. — Looks like you fell in love with her? Sonic immediately shook his head! — Don't be stupid, Sally. She's just a friend to me. After all, even our kingdoms know very well that I really love only you. And we promised that we would get married, which means we will keep our word. I will never trade you for anyone. — I understand, but what will she think? What if she also fell in love with you, for example. What if when she finds out that you and I are getting married, it breaks her heart? Sonic immediately became sad. — I didn’t think about this... I’ll probably need to talk to her about this topic sometime... I really don’t know if she will understand me? — I'm sure he will understand. After all, she listens to you carefully, believes you, and herself tries to enter your society and become equal to you. I know that the concept of such a life is quite controversial, that some may even hate it and not everyone is ready to accept it, but sometimes even this cannot be avoided. After all, the current life in which the whole world and many countries live sometimes destroys them and their peoples. For example, someone does not have enough money and he becomes poor, or even loses his home completely and they die on the street from hunger, and someone who has too much money becomes greedy, thinks only about himself and thinks about how he can still earn money, although he already has enough money. — Well, yes, I know. Even in my kingdom, some peoples are on strike over this issue... Look, just like now! — the prince pointed to the people and Mobians who were walking along the street with placards. These same posters featured dollar signs and fat rich men in business suits. Both pictures were crossed out with red crosses. There were also third drawings depicting free people and Mobians holding hammers and sickles in their hands. They walk down the street and shout: — DOWN WITH RICH AND GREEDY PEOPLE!!! DOWN WITH LOW SALARY AND HIGH PRICES!!! DOWN WITH THIS UNFAIR LIFE!!! DOWN WITH CAPITALISM!!! WE WANT FREEDOM, EASY AND GOOD JOB!!! WE DO NOT WANT TO LIVE SO THAT THERE ARE POOR, HUNGRY AND HOMELESS AMONG US!!! WE WANT AN HONEST AND FAIR LIFE!!! — And so every day. — Sonic says to Sally, rolling his eyes and pointing his hand at them. One of the knights approaches the prince and asks: — Your Highness, order us to get them out of the way and get rid of their strike? — No, captain, put away your sword. I'll try to come to an agreement with them. — the prince explained to the captain and was just about to address himself when he noticed that among the strikers was Knuckles himself, holding a sign with the inscription “Down with to world the greedy and selfish people who have too much money.” Noticing him, he turned to him: — KNUCLES!!! — A? Ah, Your Highness, and here I am... — the echidna hesitated, hiding his sign behind his back. — Isn't it your day off now? Why did you go on strike along with the rest of the dissatisfied people? And why did you join them? We seem to be taking good care of you. You have a good and easy job, we value you in the castle and pay you a little more than you want. — Yep, prince Hedgehog, I know, but... You see, it’s been painful for me lately to look at what’s happening to some of our peoples. We have more poor and hungry people, and some have even become homeless because their taxes are being increased. And some are completely tired of paying peasant taxes. So, since I had yesterday and today off, I thought, why don’t I join them and support them. — Yes, we understand everything, Knuckles. — said Sally. — But you see, my future king and I need to go buy wedding suits, and your crowd of strikers is preventing us from passing. Could you let us through and then continue on strike? — A! Well, it's possible! Now! — he answered her and shouted. — Everyone move to the sides! The prince and princess want to pass. The strikers fell silent for now and moved away. The prince and princess drove past them. Afterwards the crowd returned to their seats and continued to strike: — DOWN WITH THIS LIFE!!!

At the same time

      The old chef, who looked like Robotnik, was preparing a new soup and gave Maria a spoonful to try. — What do you say, daughter? — he asked her affectionately. — Hm. Something is missing. Maybe add some salt? — No, I don’t think so. I already added salt. Perhaps I should have added a pinch of sugar. — the chef thought and continued stirring, and Maria added a pinch of sugar to the soup. — Thank you. Now it looks like it should be delicious. At that moment, Rouge and Amy walked into their kitchen. Maria was the first to notice them. — Oh, hi! Perhaps you should bring something else? — No thanks. We didn't come here to ask for more, but to talk about something. If you agree to listen to us, of course. — No problem! — the chef did not argue and covered the pan with a lid. He picked up the pan itself with chef's mittens and carried it from the stove to the cool brick table. — Do you have any wishes regarding our royal food, complaints or suggestions? — he asked and Amy handed him a piece of paper from her notebook, on which she wrote “Complaint, but not about the food.” — No? What about then? — Don’t you think that you treat your assistant like a thing and are often rude to him? — asked the witch, and Amy nodded in confirmation of her question, folding her hands on her chest. — Are you talking about Silver? — the chef asked a little scared. Amy nodded and Maria replied: — Oh, this little brat is not capable of anything. He always trips over something and manages to drop something. — If you treat him this way and hate him so much, then why do you keep him in your castle? — asked Rouge. Maria and the chef were already silent and didn’t know what to answer. Rouge walked up to Amy and hugged her. — Silver, just so you know, the things he suffered because of you remind me of my beloved niece.” Her parents, if you don’t know, hated her in the same way, scolded her for nothing, even beat her and almost punished her and did treat her like a thing. I was probably the only one who understood perfectly well, felt sorry and could reassure. You can't treat your servant like that. — But it’s not our fault. He was not like us. His unknown parents abandoned him and left him with us near the palace when he was a baby. Then the king and queen, who loved prince Sonic, refused to accept him as a brother and gave him to me to raise. He is not a royal, but just a stupid heir of peasant blood. — the chef explained and Rouge, stroking Amy's hair, replied: — So what? I personally don’t care whether he is of royal or peasant blood. Is he to blame for this? Of course not. Just because he’s not like you doesn’t mean you have to treat him so brazenly. Maybe he just loved you and wanted to become the same as you, and you stupidly spit in his face and only cause him stress. Because of this, by the way, he began to secretly hate you and be rude so that none of you heard about it, because you yourself brought him to such a state, and he himself is simply afraid to admit it to you. Haven't you thought about that? Amy even nodded in confirmation of her words, looking menacingly at the chef and, in addition, almost cried, again remembering her incident with her father and mother. The chef and Maria immediately became thoughtful. — You know, dad, they’re right. To be honest, secretly from you, I even felt sorry for him. I was just afraid to admit it to you and thought that you would hate me too. — What are you, daughter? — the father hugged Maria in response and was ready to cry. — I'm probably to blame myself. If I probably would have loved him just as much as you, and sometimes helped him myself, then maybe he wouldn’t lose heart so much. Perhaps he could even be a good brother to you. Albeit adopted. Prince Sonic also has his favorite human uncle. But at least they don’t complain about each other and about this topic. Rose tore a new piece of paper from her notebook and handed it to the chef. He blew his nose on it, as if on a handkerchief, and then read what was written there: “Maybe then you yourself will personally go to him and ask for his forgiveness.” After reading, he nodded silently and left the kitchen first. Silver was still sweeping the floors at this time, and when he saw the chef and Maria walking towards him, he was scared at first. They stood in front of him and looked sad themselves. They really felt ashamed for treating him like that. Stretching their arms out to the sides, they smiled and silently beckoned him to them. Throwing the mop aside, the white hedgehog came up to them in a hug. — Forgive us, Silver. We promise we will be more polite with you. — said the boss. — And if anything happens, we ourselves will help you with something, give you advice or reassure you if something is wrong, brother. — Maria added. Silver opened his eyes surprisingly at what he heard. Coincidentally, he was looking directly at Amy. She smiled and winked at him. Still, they convinced them. Silver was so happy and so moved that he was ready to cry with happiness. At that moment, Robotnik entered the dining room and when he saw the chef and Maria and Silver hugging, he was a little shocked. — Um... Sorry, did I miss something?