Meanwhile, Shadow was dragged by Amy to many stores and places, and before he could notice what time it was, the tower bell rang the noon.

"I'm tired," she said, sitting down on a bench in a park.

The priest sat next to her but made sure to have space in-between. He was surprised a small girl managed to talk for so long about clothes with such vigor, but jewelry seemed to bore her despite her status. He wondered how she was brought up and educated. From her speech he could tell she was well mannered and smart.

He was watching her when she turned to him and asked, "You know, Mister..." she made a small pause, "Oh, right, I forgot to ask about your name."

He made a wavy smile as he realized he had forgotten to introduce himself, but there was just no time for that.

"It's Shadow the Hedgehog," he quickly answered.

He hoped it would stop her from getting ideas about where to go next. His legs were killing him as he was exhausted. He was used patrolling the whole town with ease, so he was endlessly puzzled why checking a few clothes shop would drain him so much.

"So you have no surname," she stated as only important families or special people had the privilege to gain a surname. "I thought you would have one."

"I'm just a simple hedgehog after all." He took a short breather before continuing, "Will you now tell me about your troubles, Amy?"

He didn't want to press her, but prolonging her disappearance wouldn't do any good. He had witnessed many crying parents worried about their children, and he was sure it was the same in her case.

"You are a kind person, so I'll keep my promise." She nodded at him, and he replied the same way, but her remark rose another question of his.

"Why do you think, I'm a kind person?"

During their trip, she was acting friendly, showing no signs of nervousness or fear. It was like they were old friends. He thought Amy was just an open and easy going person, not fully aware of dangers of the outside world. While that was good, it could cause her a lot of trouble.

"I may actually be a bad person, trying to gain your trust to kidnap you," he said in a joking manner, but he meant it seriously.

She giggled a bit. "You do have a point there, but you can say I'm good at judging people." She winked at him and added, "Not to mention, I don't recommend you to be a kidnapper, you would be bad at it."

"You are right about that." The priest had to agree as it was more like him being kidnapped by a child.

"So, as I told you, I'm from Rose family, and as it happens, I was supposed to meet my fiance in the next days." Amy pouted a bit, showing she was irritated.

"Shouldn't it be a happy occasion?" The priest slightly shrugged his shoulders.

Many girls from his town were telling him how much they were looking forward to their own weddings, or how much they loved their boys.

"Are you kidding me?" she barked, making the other shudder.

Shadow felt she almost bit his head off.

"I have never met that person in my whole life!" she hissed with clenched fists. "My father announced it just this morning! That guy is ten years older than me!" She tossed her arms in the air, going on, "No way I'm going to spend the rest of my life with some old man I don't love!" She crossed her arms, pouting with a wrinkled forehead.

Shadow had to be careful how he approached her problem. "You don't know that for sure," he started gently. "This person may be good and kind. I have heard of couples with a big age difference, and they were still happy."

She sighed. "I know," Amy admitted. "But it's not fair to be told like this." She stopped knitting her eyebrows and loosened her arms as well. Maybe she felt a bit guilty for her burst of anger.

"I can agree, you should have been told sooner."

He wished to say more, but nothing came to his mind. He thought this was a matter he should discuss with her parents if they would hear him out. Shadow curiously looked around, realizing there was something off.

"And there is one thing bothering me. If you are a daughter of such a famous family, how come people aren't recognizing you?" His head moved from one end of the street to the other.

No one was paying them any attention. He was sure if a famous person would appear a lot of commoners would love to see them.

"Well, my parents kept me inside the mansion all the time, home tutoring me and such," Amy answered without much care. She faced the wind that gently caressed her quills.

'She was kept at the home?' he pondered. 'But then how can she judge other's character? Even adults struggle with it from time to time. There is more to this girl than meets the eye.'

He was deeply thinking about it when she spoke, "So, where do you live, Mister Shadow?" Her voice was surprisingly cheerful.

"Eh?" He looked at her dumbstruck. Where did such a question come from?

"I asked you where you are staying," the pink lass repeated. She leaned a bit forward to see his face better.

"Right, I have rented a room in an inn."

"Alright, then let's go!" She jumped down from the bench, putting her hands behind her.

"What?" he asked, still not fully grasping the situation.

"Well, I told you about my problems," she frowned a bit, "but I'm not ready to return home. So if you are a nice person, you won't let a small child wander those big dangerous streets alone, right?" In the end, she tilted her body, making a big, toothy smile.

Shadow shivered as a devil was hidden behind her angelic face. He didn't dare to argue, as she would only run away, really getting into trouble. Her offer actually provided him more time to convince her to return home with him.

On the way to the inn, he noticed she was looking around. He couldn't imagine how it must feel to be a prisoner of your own home, never knowing the world around you. The priest wondered if she ever felt lonely closed in the house, having only adults around her. However, maybe that was the reason she acted so maturely.

In a sense, he was glad she ran away, it might help her parents to understand her better, or it might make them furious and more determinate to keep her away from everyone. This was a tricky situation, and Shadow decided he would help her the best way possible. With his brain occupied, they reached the destination in no time.

While was Amy busy observing the inn, he got her a separate room and thankfully, it was the one next to his own. Then he took her to the second floor.

"Sonic, I'm back," the black hedgehog announced his arrival as he knocked on the door and walked into the room.

"Welcome!" The boy jumped from the bed, greeting him, but he slightly barked when he saw Amy standing behind the priest, "What's that girl doing here?"

"Is this how you speak to a lady?" she replied back, looking stern.

Sonic clenched his fists and pouted. A mere girl had the guts to talk back? He pushed back the urge to stick his tongue out. The boy decided to show her how respectable he was.

The ebony priest silently giggled, feeling the sparks in the air. He promptly introduced her, "Well, this is Amy Ro—Ugh!" He silently moaned through gritted teeth as she kicked his shin, surprised those shoes had such a sharp sole.

"My name is Amy, and due to certain events, I will be staying with Mister Shadow. It's nice to meet you," she introduced herself, hiding her surname, and doing a small curtsy.

That made the other kid blush because she suddenly looked so elegant. "I'm Sonic, Sonic the Hedgehog," he announced proudly, puffing up his chest.

"Do you know what is for lunch?" Amy asked looking down at kneeling Shadow, who was chafing his leg. "I feel hungry a bit."

"Whatever the chef made," the adult hedgehog answered, feeling the pain subsiding.

"You mean it's a surprise?" the pink girl cheerfully exclaimed. "Then let's go. I can't wait!" She dashed out of the room, calling her new friends to hurry.

They exchanged uncertain expressions before they followed her. Shadow then ordered the main dish and joined both children, who already sat around a vacant table. They had to wait a couple of minutes before the warm meal arrived.

When the plate was put in front of Amy, she curiously observed the mashed potatoes mixed with cooked vegetable sprinkled with cheese. She sniffed the aroma, and Shadow thought the girl might be very hungry because she tasted it. He was sure such simple and poor looking meal couldn't appeal to her. Oh, how wrong he was.

"It's delicious!" she shouted. "I never had such a tasty meal!" She put another spoon full in her mouth. "It's so simple, yet the taste is so rich. The chef here is a genius!" she called at the waitress who giggled and walked away to convey her praise.

The ebony priest smiled. What a strange girl she was. He started to eat too, noticing she wasn't exaggerating. The meal was tasty, and who knows, maybe it was tasting better because she was so cheerful about it.

Sonic observed her and adjusted the way he was holding the cutlery. For some reason, he couldn't help it. He wanted to look cool. After a long time, he and Shadow were able to enjoy a carefree meal.