8 My Fair Sticksy

Amy looked excitedly at the meteor shower that was doing its daily attack. People everywhere were yelling in fright, waving their arms and running around. However, that didn't stop Amy's excitement. "Meteors are shooting stars!" She smiled. "We shouldn't be running... we should be making wishes!" She sighed, clasping her hands. "I wish for a pony!"

"Yeah, and I wish you'd take cover!" Sonic grabbed her hand and made a dash for it, with the rest of the team following them, ran underneath a shack-like shelter. Penny knew this wasn't going to hold them up for long, and she hoped that none of them will get hit by the meteor.

"How come your wish came true?" Amy frowned at the blue hedgehog, who smirked victoriously back at her.

"Should I use my meteor defense system?" Sticks asked. Tails and Penny turned to her. "You have a meteor defense system?" Penny asked.

"I have a defense system for all sorts of junk. Wild fires, floods, people trying to read my thoughts...."

"Yeah, let's use the meteor one!" Sonic said quickly. Penny giggled.

Sticks took aim of a meteor that was shooting towards them, and shot right at it, causing the meteor to explode into millions of pieces.

"The people trying to read my thoughts are the same, but with tin foil trim!" Sticks smiled.

Penny smirked back at her.

......................

Later....

Penny and the others were all relaxing at Tails's shack. Sonic and Penny were at the counter, sharing a fruit drink. Penny once again had her favorite book in her hands, and she smiled contently as she drank out of her cup. Hearing foot steps, Penny smiled as she saw Sticks walk in, a letter in her hands. "Someone left this at my door." She said, holding it up.

"Yeah. The mailman did. It's a letter...." Sonic said flatly. Penny chuckled.

Sticks took a sniff of the letter and frowned. "A letter, hu? I don't know. Paper folded over itself? What's it hiding? WHAT'S IT HIDING?!"

Penny slapped her face a tiny bit. Amy took the paper from Sticks' hands, and when she read it, her face brightened. "Sticks! You've been nominated for an Awardy Award!"

"They really need a better name for that." Tails said sarcastically.

"Oh, let me see!" Knuckles took the letter from Amy and put on a pair of reading glasses. He frowned. "Wait. I can't read."

Penny looked at Knuckles. "Then how in the world do you pay your bills?!"

He shrugged, and Sonic groaned in annoyance. "Gimme that." He grabbed the paper and started reading the message. "In honor of saving our village, the mayor invites you to the Awardies. Hu. Conveniently you can bring your five closest palls."

Penny's brown eyes widened in excitement. An Award ceremony? This should be pretty interesting! What would it be like? Five closest friends, hu? That meant Penny, Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Amy, Comedy Chip....

Wait. Comedy Chip? Where did he come from? Penny began to choke on her drink in surprise. Sonic noticed this and patted her back until she stopped coughing. Sonic turned over to Comedy Chip and said, "Sorry, Comedy Chip."

Comedy Chip sadly slunk out of the room.

"Now, where was I?" Sonic cleared his throat. "The Awardies will be at the Mayor's mansion. You'll dine on, ooh, elegant foods and mingle with elegant guests! After which, the Awardy Awards will be awarded to the winner." Sonic stopped reading and turned to Sticks. "Which could be you." He smiled.

"I can't make it." Sticks said, causing Amy and Penny to turn to her in surprise. "Why?!" Amy asked.

"This is an honor of a life time!" Penny added.

"Well, you know, I'm slam this week!" Sticks took out her weekly planner and flipped through it. "See? Tomorrow, rummage through garbage, Wednesday, rummage through garbage, Thursday, get tetanus shot. Friday, rummage through garbage and go shiny things hunting with Penny. I'm booked solid!"

"Wait. You hunt shiny things with Sticks?" Tails asked Penny in surprise. Penny nodded. "We're practically besties right now. We do almost everything together!" Penny smiled at Sticks, and she smiled back.

"This is the honor of a lifetime!" Amy said.

"Yeah!" Penny smiled, putting an arm around Sticks. "You might even get a shiny trophy! You love shiny things!"

"I do love shiny thiiiinnngss!" Sticks smiled, stretching the word "things". She then frowned. "But. No. No, no, no no, nope!"

"Aww." Penny whined. "Why not?"

"Sticks?" Amy asked. "Are you afraid to go?"

"No! No! No! no! no! no!" Sticks said once again. She suddenly grew sheepish and looked down.

"Sticks, there's nothing to fear!" Amy said calmly.

"Look at me!" Sticks gulped. "I'm a feral badger! I'll embarrass myself!"

"Who cares what people think?" Sonic asked, and Penny turned to him.

"Yeah!" Knuckles smiled. "Anyone at these parties is a windbag anyway." He turned to Sonic and started imitating one of the popular folks. "What a robust mustache you have, Colonel Grumpkin." Knuckles said, rolling his 'r'.

"Why, thank you, Madam Stinkbottom!" Sonic said, and the two burst out laughing.

"Don't worry." Amy smiled. "You'll be fine. I'll teach you to be a lady!"

"A lady?" Sticks asked. "That's the thing that holds garbage, right?"

Penny frowned.

"No!" Amy said. "A lady is a polite, sophisticated member of society! And you can do that!"

Sticks excitedly clasped her hands together.

"Lesson one: Don't discuss garbage!" Penny smirked at her. Amy smirked back.

Sticks frowned. "I'm out!"

"Come on! You can do this!" Penny said, grasping Sticks in a hug. "Do it for meee?" The girl asked, giving her puppy dog eyes. "For the shiny trophy as well?"

Sticks sighed. The girl's pleading pleading seemed to work, because she said, "OK, I'll try. But only because Penny wants me to try."

"Great!" Amy smiled. "A proper lady requires an escort to the gala."

Comedy Chip poked his head through the door.

Penny and the others all frowned at him.

Comedy Chip frowned. "Why do I even bother with you guys?!" He asked, before walking out with a huff.

Amy turned to Sonic.

"No." He said.

"PLEASE?!" Sticks pleaded. "I don't wanna embarrass myself in front of fancy folk!"

"Fine." Sonic sighed. "But I'm not wearing any pants!"

Sticks got so happy that she grasped Sonic in a hug. "Thank you. THANK YOU!!!"

"If you wanna be a lady," Amy said, "you have to train hard. You up for it?"

"YES!" Sticks smiled. "Just one quick question. Can I bring this snail?" She asked, holding it up.

Penny sighed. This was gonna be a lot of work...

....................

At Amy's....

"When meeting someone new, start with a compliment. Try saying something nice about their perfume!"

Sticks walked over to Amy and sniffed her. "You don't stink." She said when she was finished.

Amy just looked a tiny bit pleased and annoyed at the same time. Penny slapped her face. This is going to take some work...

......................

Soon, Sonic and Sticks started practicing their entrance. "Aaannnddd...." Amy smiled, holding a stop watch. "Go!"

They walked up to an wooden board person that Amy asked Penny to create. And she was pretty pleased that it turned out good!

"This is my male consort. And if you don't like him, I'll knock you out." Sticks said defensively.

"Sticks," Amy scolded. "A lady doesn't fight!"

....................

Soon, all three girls were having tea at Amy's. Penny wasn't fond of this drink, but she did it to help Sticks be more proper and ladylike.

"When in doubt, pinkies out!" Amy smiled. She stuck out her pinky and started sipping her tea.

"You try it, Sticks." Penny smiled. The girl imitated Amy, by holding her cup properly and sticking out my pinky finger. Penny pretended to sip up her tea.

Sticks did what Penny did, but instead of sipping it, she started lapping it with her tongue, making Penny and Amy cringe in disgust.

.....................

Soon, Penny sat down at the piano and began playing a dancing song. Tails accompanied her with drums. Amy taught Sonic and Sticks dancing moves in case there was a ball at the party.

"One two, step. One, two, turn!" Amy smiled. "One two, step! One, two, dip!"

"Why is the music controlling us?!" Sticks panicked as Sonic dipped her. "I'm not your puppet, music master! I'M NOT YOUR PUPPET!!" Sticks screamed as she grabbed Sonic with her. Penny winced from the piano as she watched Sonic and Sticks crash into the background, and Sticks landed on top of Sonic.

"Sonic, Sticks, are you guys ok?" Penny asked with a panic, getting up from the bench and walking over to them.

Sonic looked at Penny, and then down at Sticks. "I think she's ready." He mumbled.

..................

Soon, when it grew dark, Team Sonic all went to the Mayor's house for the party. Penny was wearing a fancy pink dress (NOT LIKE AMY'S!!) This dress was a light pink, with silver beads on the skirt. Along with it, she had my hair in a braid down my back and she wore a flower pin in my hair. Penny refused to wear makeup, and thankfully she looked pretty enough without it. Matching the outfit were silvery-pink shoes, to match with the dress. To go with the outfit... light pink leggings.

As Penny tried to get comfortable among these fancy folk, she suddenly heard Amy introduce Sonic and Sticks. "It's my pleasure to introduce the lady Sticks, and her escort, Sir Sonic of Hedgehog."

Penny almost spewed her drink, silently chuckling on how amusing Amy was being right now. Penny knew she would never get used to all these rich folks.

Sonic led Sticks down the staircase, and once they reached the bottom, Amy smiled at Sticks.

"Go ahead, you can do it!" Amy encouraged the badger. "Start with a compliment!"

Penny watched as Sticks closed her eyes and walked up to the mayor of the city, and sniffed him. "What an elegant scent!" She smiled. She sniffed at him again, even snorting through her sniffing. Penny have never felt so humiliated in a while, and she believed that poor Amy was feeling the same amount of humiliation as they watched their friend continue to sniff the mayor.

Sonic soon joined the girl, noticing how uncomfortable Penny looked. "How are you holding up?" He asked. Penny looked up at him. "Fine. Just not used to these Awardy Awards parties."

"Hey, you'll do fine!" Sonic smiled encouragingly. "Just stick with me and you'll be ok."

"Aren't you escorting Sticks?" Penny asked.

"Sticks will be fine." Sonic said with an eye roll. Penny chuckled. The blue hedgehog looked at her with a smile. "Pink looks good on you." He complimented.

Penny smiled, blushing a tiny bit and lowering her head.

"You know what?" Sonic said, breaking the awkward silence. "Let's get some food." He took my hand, and soon joined Knuckles on the way to the food bar. "Finally, some chow!" Sonic smiled. He frowned when he saw what was there. Penny turned her attention away from the guys and headed over to a table. When Sonic came over to Penny, he sat down and sighed.

"Food didn't look appetizing?" Penny smirked.

"Nah." Sonic said. "Thought I'd just sit with you for a while."

Penny smiled at him. However, the moment was ruined when they heard someone yell. Sonic and Penny turned around to see Sticks looking down at a beaver, and he had his juice spilled all over him.

"Save my spot." He mumbled. "Gotta check on Sticks."

Penny sighed a tiny bit, but nodded. The girl watched as Sticks walked up to a purple hippopotamus lady and smiled. "You seemed to be well prepared for winter!" She said. "That's one healthy layer of rubber!" She smiled as she patted the lady's purple dress. "Well, I never!" The lady said, and walked away, anger in her eyes. Penny gulped nervously.

Sonic soon stood next to Sticks and frowned. "Sticks!"

"What?!" Sticks said defensively. "It was a compliment! It's not like I didn't say she wasn't prepared for winter!"

A tinkling of a glass turned my attention towards the mayor, who smiled to the crowd. "Welcome to the Awardy Awards!" He announced. "Where we'll award an Awardy award to the award winner! Tonight, one of you nominates will be awarded your very own Awardy Award!"

He frowned. "That's it. I'm firing my speechwriter." He took off, and Penny quietly burst into giggles.

Soon, Amy came to join Penny and Sonic, and they watched Sticks try to behave herself from a safe distance. She looked down at her forks and knives in front of her. "What's this?" She asked, picking it up.

"It's your salad post soup mid appetizer post cocktail tertiary fork." Leroy the Turtle explained to Sticks.

"Excuse me, pardon me, sorry!" A familiar voice popped up, and Penny's eyes widened in surprise to see Eggman walking towards us, and sitting down next to Sticks, saying, "Evil genius coming through!" He pushed Leroy away, saying, "Move it, shell boy."

"Eggman?" Sonic asked. "How did you..."

"Get nominated?" Eggman finished. "Let's just say that I had a loyal base of supporters."

"Liar." Penny mouthed to Sonic and Amy. "Liar liar super liar. He used his bot to do that!"

"How do you know?" Sonic asked Penny admirably.

"His tone of voice. His facial expression. I'm pretty sure that's obvious!" Penny said, straightening out the sleeves of her dress.

Eggman stared hard at Sticks. "You look familiar. Do I know you?"

Sticks frowned a tiny bit, but Amy's voice echoed in her head. "Start with a compliment!"

Sticks smiled and said, "You have healthy hindquarters!"

"Why, thank you!" Eggman smiled at the female badger. "I actually just started taking spin classes."

Sticks took up her bowl and started sipping rudely from the bowl.

Amy and Penny groaned in annoyance. Luckily, though, Sticks remembered to stick her pinky out.

"See that Shelly?" Eggman growled. "That's how a lady sips out of a bowl!" He picked up the bowl and started doing the same thing.

Finally, the mayor held up his announcement page. "And now, Ladies and Gentlemen, we are ready to announce this year's winner!"

He smiled as he read, and the winner is.....Leroy the Turtle!"

"YES!" Leroy cried "Woo-hoo! Score one for Leroy!" He hopped off and slowly headed for his award.

"Leroy the Turtle?!" Eggman asked. "That award was mine! Something fishy is going on here."

"I have an irritable bowl syndrome!" A fish called out to Eggman.

Eggman growled. "If you won't give me that reward, I'll take it! With my ballot stuffing robot!!!" He suddenly hopped onto his machine, which came out of nowhere. Sonic and Penny chuckled as they watched the flying papers shoot out of the mouth of the machine.

"This is not quite as menacing as I hoped." Eggman frowned. "MINIONS! ATTACK!"

Right on cue, millions of bee robots flew everywhere around the room. Seeing the danger, Sonic pushed Penny under the table. "Stay. There." He ordered, and dashed off to fight.

Under the table, Penny could hear yelling. The girl pulled her knees to herself, trying to calm her nerves down. Sonic had recently been keeping her away from any fights.

"Sticks!" Penny heard Sonic yell. "Get them!"

"A lady doesn't fight..." Penny heard Sticks mumble.

"That's how I know you." Eggman growled.

Penny heard struggling outside her hideout, and she peeped out under the table cloth, only to be greeted with a shocking scene... Knuckles, Tails, Amy, and Sonic all trapped together in spherical power balls. Sonic banged fiercely on the ceiling of the sphere-like cage.

"SONIC!" Penny yelped in fright.

"Sticks," Tails called. "We could use your help here!" The young foxes' voice was muffled from the trap, but Penny made out his words clearly.

"NO!" Sticks yelled. "Must... remain.... ladylike!"

"Sticks, you've gotta help!" The girl sprang from her hideout and put a hand on Sticks's shoulder. Penny didn't see the danger of Eggman's bots shooting its arms at the girls, but Sticks did and pushed Penny out of the way just in time Penny's near miss had gotten Sticks back into battle mode.

"That's it!" Sticks yelled. "I'm sick of being proper!"

She tore off her black dress and grabbed a dishware, turning it into a boomerang. She gave a battle cry and dashed towards our attacker. She threw the boomerang-shaped spoon and it hit one of the sphere, releasing Knuckles and Tails. The laser was about to hit Knuckles next, but luckily two men pushed him away, and they fist bumped each other.

Sticks hopped on Eggman and once again and pressed another button, which released Sonic and Amy. After Sonic caught Amy, Sonic dashed over to Penny. "Are you ok?" He asked, putting his hands on her shoulders.

"Yeah, I'm fine!" Penny smiled.

Sonic hugged Penny tight, sighing in relief. After making sure the girl was ok, the speedy hedgehog clenched his fists and sped around the bot Eggman was in.

"EAT GARBAGE!" Sticks yelled, tossing a garbage can at Eggman and his bot, causing them to stagger. The robot crashed to the ground.

"I'll be back!" Eggman growled in annoyance. "And next time, I'll bring more ballots!"

They soon left.

Soon, the crowd gathered around Sticks and Leroy.

"Leroy, you may have won the award," Sticks smiled. "But we can all agree on today, I was the real hero!"

"Maybe." Leroy gave the female badger a smug look. "But I won the award." He smiled, holding the trophy. Sticks couldn't take it anymore, and growled, "GIVE. ME. THE. SHINY!!"

"You tell him, Sticks!" Penny smirked pumping her fist in her hand, and Sonic just shook his head, smirking back.

"Thanks for saving our skins, Sticks." Amy smiled. "I guess it isn't always proper to be proper." She smiled. "Can you teach me how to do that?"

"Sure!" Sticks grabbed Amy's hand, and dashed into the garbage can.