First of all, it is my painful duty to inform you that the first words you would have heard Shadow hear, have been removed. Why? He's swearing! Isn't that lovely? Well we don't want to ruin his reputation with any transcripts of that... so we removed it. ^_^ Enjoy the slightly edited version of events! Oh yeah, and Domino's belongs to Domino's pizza.... I've never been in one or anything, so don't blame me if things don't match up! SEGA owns the Sonic characters.
Shadow mentally vowed he would never, emphasis on the never for those GUN clods who don't understand italics, work with GUN again... at least, as one of their agents. This had to be the most humiliating mission ever... what was his mission? To stop Eggman from ordering a pizza... a pizza with extra pepperoni and cheese. And of course, after he's stopped Eggman, he's supposed to order the exact same pizza for the Commander. He was definitely resigning as soon as this mission was over. Eggman grinned at Shadow as he walked into Domino's. "Ah Shadow! Just the person I was looking for..." Shadow sighed before asking the question the Commander had insisted he ask.
"Have you ordered a pizza Eggman?"
"No, that was just a ruse to get them to send you." Shadow blinked, well thanks very much Eggman, but the mission being a hoax didn't soothe his pride at all.
"Then what was your real reason?" He asked, leaning against the wall, refusing to sit in the seat across from Eggman.
"Well, I need someone to test this new machine for me and..."
"No way Eggman." Said Shadow, interrupting the obese scientist. His eyes were hard.
"Please Shadow? If you do... I'll find a way to bring back Maria for you." Shadow's eye twitched, and he remained silent. "Please? I'm serious! I stole some blueprints for a life-giving machine from a time traveller... they used it to bring back their wife and it worked perfectly!" Shadow could tell that Eggman was hiding something from him, the life-giving machine was probably a lie anyway, but on the off-chance he could spend at least a week more with Maria....
"Fine."
"Excellent!" Crowed Eggman. "Let us go then shall.... Shadow?" Shadow stood by the counter, waiting for one of the employees to appear. "What are you doing?"
"Completing my mission first." Said Shadow in a gloomy tone.
"Um... excuse me, but I thought it was to stop me ordering a pizza."
"And once that was done, I was supposed to order one for the Commander." Eggman got a look of great understanding on his face.
"Ooooh... um, well, you know where to find me when that's done." Said Eggman, hastily leaving. Shadow frowned, it was just like Eggman... leave, and have the person come to you instead of exerting effort to go there yourself. The first employee who walked out was... Rouge. Shadow's eye twitched.
"Hey there Shads." She said, leaning on the counter. Shadow gritted his teeth. "Okay I'm supposing you're here on a mission, otherwise you wouldn't be in a pizza place."
"I thought you were on vacation..."
"Well... I decided to try something new for once." Said Rouge, grinning. "So... the mission?" When she found out she laughed. "Okay Shadow I'll get that for you right now... why don't you wait in one of the seats?" Shadow sat down, frowning as various customers who came in shot him curious glances. Soon enough, the news people were outside, filming him sitting in a Domino's..... Why is it such a big deal?! Thought Shadow as he occasionally glared at the cameras.
***
"InuYasha!" The hanyou ignored the black haired girl and continued slashing at trees with his sword. "SIT!" The necklace around his neck glowed and he was pulled to the ground. After getting his face out of the dirt (and it looked like it had been jammed in pretty painfully), he looked at her. "Oh, heh heh... sorry InuYasha!" The girl giggled nervously as she realized the bridge of his nose had slammed into a rock, and was now bleeding.
"What did you want Kagome?" He grumbled, leaning against one of the slashed trees. She looked at him for a moment, then frowned.
"Well isn't it obvious?"
"No it isn't. Ever since we beat Naraku there has been nothing to do. There is the occasional demon but there's never enough of a challenge! Never enough action!" Kagome sighed.
"Do you want to know why I'm here, or do you want to keep complaining?" He frowned. "Sango invited us over for dinner." InuYasha's face was covered in disbelief.
"See?! Nothing exciting happens anymore! Invited to dinner... you're excited about that?! You can slam my face into the ground, not because I'm attacking you or possibly harming someone you said not to, but because you want to tell me we've been invited to dinner! That really takes the biscuit!"
"Well what else is there to do?! It's not like we can travel to other worlds! Or like people can travel to our world...!" She stormed off, dragging InuYasha by his wrist... while he struggled in her vice-like grip. Demons, huh. He'd rather take five thousand of those rather than Kagome... any day.
***
Shadow slid into Eggman's latest base. His eyes widened slightly as he looked around him. The walls were a bright, cheerful yellow with little pink flowers painted all over them. "What.... what is..."
"Welcome to the reception area of Doctor Eggman's home base! I am the secretary, Decoe. What can I do for you sir?"
"First of all, I'm Shadow, not "sir". Second of all, what the hell is with this room?!"
"Reception area." Said Decoe, tutting. "Do you like it? Doctor Eggman said I could decorate it how I want. What is your business with the Doctor? Do you have an appointment?" Shadow would have facepalmed... if he actually did such things.
"The Doctor asked me to come."
"That's alright then, go straight on in through the green door." Shadow would have liked to go straight on through Decoe and end the infuriating robot's existence, but, as heavenly as the idea was, he had something to do that was more pressing. He vowed to dismantle the robot latter.
"Eggman?" The scientist turned around.
"Ah Shadow!" The room was large and grey, machinery was all around... and the machine which Shadow desperately hoped he wouldn't have to go into, looked like a large, silvery-grey lip-stick container. "I was wondering why you took three minutes longer than you should have..."
"Decoe." Said Shadow flatly.
"Oh I see..." Eggman frowned, Shadow had the sneaking suspicion that Eggman wanted to dismantle his secretary as well. "Well anyway, this is the dimensional travel machine I built!" Oh god... it IS the lipstick-container!! "If you'll just step inside..." Shadow frowned, but did so. "I'm going to insert a nano-bot into you..." Before Shadow realized what was happening, the lipstick-container machine had him strapped against one of it's walls.
"Damn you Eggman!" He growled as Eggman stuck a little robot onto his arm, it busily burrowed into his skin, disregarding the blood that started to stain it. Shadow groaned, something must be coating the claws of that little devil, because he was in more pain than he should be.
"Now now, this is for your own protection, who knows what the world you'll end up in could be like? Now that you'll be out of the way, I'll finally be able to beat Sonic!" Eggman chuckled. "Definitely... and I'm roboticizing your hands... I've found that the only attack you don't need your hands to be organic for is Chaos Blast... and this way, I'll be able to control your hands, so I could make you do whatever I want you to, in a way. If I roboticize the rest of you you might not survive... which is unfortunate. Oh well, I shall now say that hackneyed sentence... Sayonara, Shadow the Hedgehog." And he pressed a button, just as the others burst into the room. Shadow's hands turned metallic, and his expression became one of utter shock as the lives of people in different dimensions flickered in his eyes. The machine disappeared from Eggman's lab, and into the whirl of images. Shadow's mind eventually shut itself down to escape the pressure of the journey.
***
Shadow opened his eyes to see a blue sky and a few clouds. He realized that the whole metal cylinder was gone... except for the wall he was attached to. "Damn Eggman... damn him damn him... DAMN HIM!" Roared Shadow, struggling to free himself. After awhile he lost the strength to struggle and lay there, chest heaving. He kept on repeating the same two words with each breath. "Damn him... damn him..." He continued muttering until a large shadow descended over him.
"Who are you?" A voice asked. Blue eyes were the last thing he saw before passing out.
An old lady looked at the large figure, carrying the tiny (in comparison) black and red figure in one of his hands. "What's that Jinenji?" She asked, putting aside her broom.
"I found him on the edge of the field Ma." The horse hanyou lowered his hand to his mother's eye level.
"Some demon maybe?" She suggested. Jinenji looked doubtful.
"He doesn't feel like a demon Ma." The lady looked at him. "Maybe Kagome and InuYasha would know." Suggested Jinenji. The lady smiled.
"You really want to see Kagome again don't you?" He blushed, a surprising thing to see on the face of one so large as him. He nodded, grinning. "Fine then, but who will help me with the farm while you're gone?"
"The villagers will help you Ma, you know that... and none of them knows how to find InuYasha and Kagome. They're not that far away for me."
"Okay then, I'll stop giving you excuses... go find them."
***
"Mmmm Sango! This is really delicious!" Said Kagome, speedily finishing her portion of food. Sango laughed as the bowl was held out for a refill.
"We should invite you over more often in this case."
"You should! Or we should invite you over more..." Kagome grinned. InuYasha sniffed, then cautiously ate some of the food.
"Pretty good. I still like potato chips better."
"InuYasha? You finally learned that they're not called chips potatoes?" InuYasha glared at Miroku, who just started laughing. Suddenly, a villager ran in, panicked, and told them that something, possibly a hanyou, had appeared at the edge of the village. InuYasha stood and stretched.
"Finally a bit of action." He stretched and walked out, then they heard his disappointed voice say. "Guys, it's Jinenji." They walked out and Kagome smiled at Jineneji.
"Hey Jinenji! How have you been?"
"Uh... good..." Jinenji blushed. Miroku nudged Sango, who quickly realized why this was and smiled.
"Why'd you come to find us? Was it just for a visit?" Asked InuYasha, sounding like he hoped that a demon had appeared near where Jinenji was... even if he would tell Jinenji to take care of it himself.
"No... this creature appeared near my fields... it was strapped to this." He held out the piece of metal, which reached around InuYasha's shoulder height.
"Whatever was strapped to this was shorter than InuYasha..." Said Kagome, examining it. Jinenji nodded.
"It was... I think it was male."
"Did it make any noises?" Asked Miroku.
"It kept on saying "Damn him" over and over again..." Kagome looked surprised, and Shippo looked excited.
"Really? Can we go see Kagome? Please please please? Only you and InuYasha have seen Jinenji's farm! I want to see it too!"
And so it was settled. They would go.
Next morning.
Kagome looked at the hedgehog curiously. What was he exactly? He looked like a hedgehog, but... not like a hedgehog at the same time. According to Jinenji's mother, he hadn't woken up since Jinenji brought him to her. And he kept on mumbling things in his sleep, all were too quiet to hear, except the names Maria, Rouge, and Omega. "Omega..." Moaned Shadow. "Where's Rouge...?" Jinenji gently lifted the hedgehog up and opened his mouth, pouring medicine in before laying him back down. InuYasha was thoroughly bored, they could now only wait until the hedgehog woke up to find out what he was. Kagome was fantasizing about InuYasha when Shadow's eyes suddenly flashed open. "MARIA NO!" He yelled, hand reaching out to the ceiling. He blinked. "Wha...?"
"He's dramatic isn't he?" Said InuYasha, frowning.
"Listen to the pot calling the teakettle black." Said Shippo, before getting a bump on the head, courtesy of InuYasha.
"Who's Maria?" Asked Kagome, smiling at the hedgehog. Shadow looked at her, eyes wide, breathing heavy.
"Who are you?" He asked.
"I think we should have our questions answered first." Said InuYasha, glaring down at Shadow. Shadow's eyes hardened.
"And I have no reason to answer your questions." He tried to stand, but Jinenji gently pushed him back down. Shadow blinked at Jinenji. "You were the one who rescued me." He said. Jinenji nodded. "What are you?" He asked, a curious look on his face.
"He's a hanyou, like me." Shadow frowned.
"But that means half demon... there aren't any demons."
"There aren't any demons eh?" InuYasha snorted. "The world is made of demons..." Kagome stepped in.
"Jinenji is a half-demon, his father was a horse demon and his mother was a human. There are demons here." Shadow looked around then quietly swore.
"Damn him." He muttered.
"Who are you damning? Jinenji said you were saying that when he found you." Said Miroku.
"Eggman." Stated Shadow flatly. He sighed and passed a hand over his face. "He said that if I tested out his stupid machine he might..." His voice wavered. "He might find a way to bring Maria back." He finished quietly.
"Who's Maria though?" Asked Sango. Shadow looked at them.
"Would you answer my questions first?" He said, frowning. Kagome smiled, he somehow reminded her of InuYasha.
"I'm Kagome, this is InuYasha, he's a hanyou too. This is Sango the demon slayer, this is Miroku, and this is Shippo."
"And I'm Jinenji's mother." Said the old lady before standing and exiting. Shadow looked at them.
"So... I wonder what sort of world I am in..." He muttered, then sat up and leaned against the wall, looking at them. "Give me your questions now... I'll answer them as well as I can... if they warrant answering." InuYasha was the first to speak.
"First of all, what are you?"
"I am a hedgehog. A Mobian."
"Never heard of Mobius."
"Of course you wouldn't have, this is a different world from mine." Kagome noticed it looked like a fight.
"Um... what's your name? And what are you other than a hedgehog and a Mobian?"
"I am Shadow the Hedgehog, the Ultimate Life form created on the Space Colony ARK for the purpose of protection."
"Created...? That makes it sound like you weren't born..."
"When were you created?" Asked Shippo.
"Fifty-two years ago." Said Shadow calmly.
"AAAAAAH!" Shippo dodged behind Miroku, squeezing Kilala tightly. "HE'S A DEMON! ONLY DEMONS CAN LIVE THAT LONG AND LOOK THE SAME!" Shadow looked slightly amused.
"Some would say I'm a demon." Suddenly his hands twitched, he got a look of alarm in his eyes, his hands shot out, but he deflected them to the floor. Kagome had jumped back.
"Wh... what was that?!" Asked Kagome, InuYasha had half drawn his sword, eyes wide and distrustful. Shadow forced his hands deeper into the floor, a look of concentration on his face.
"Quiet." Sweat beaded on his forehead. They watched, silent, and fascinated. Finally, he relaxed and pulled his arms out of the floor. He flexed his arm. "Eggman roboticized my hands and put a nano bot in me so he could partially control what I do."
"What did you mean by some people would call you a demon?"
"Would you like me to show you?" Asked Shadow, smirking. InuYasha, of course, didn't like the attitude of the black hedgehog.
"Fine, come on, let's show him outside." Jinenji was going to stop Shadow, but Shadow stood properly, not swaying or wavering. The hole the nano bot had made in his arm was bandaged up. He was suddenly... gone. They rushed outside, and there he was, looking at the sky.
"It looks the same..." They heard him say.
"Yeah whatever, come on! Demonstration time!" Said InuYasha, folding his arms. Shadow smiled.
"Chaos control." He disappeared in a flash of light. They looked around for him and saw him sitting on Jineji's roof. "I could show you my chaos spear if my hands weren't like this. As it is, you'll have to wait to see that one." He looked at Kagome.
"Anything around here that could be destroyed without anyone complaining?" InuYasha looked at Shippo, who had become good at collecting information.
"Well, there's a demon not too far from here...." Shadow smirked.
"That will do. It's not a battle mech, but it will do very well." He jumped off the roof and his shoes kicked into action, stopping him a few inches above the ground and allowing him to land softly. He bowed, smirking. "Lead the way." InuYasha turned to Kagome.
"Get on Kagome." Shadow frowned and stopped him.
"I could carry her easily, you're supposed to be leading the way, remember?" InuYasha snorted.
"You're smaller than me! Your arms are skinny! You probably wouldn't be strong enough to do it." Shadow got a dangerous looking smile, and eyes to match.
"Oh can't I?" He scooped Kagome off, they heard her shriek, and there he was, at the edge of Jinenji's farm, looking at them, Kagome was in his arms. "Are we going yet?" He smiled, revealing fangs. Kagome gasped. He looked at her with a frown. "What?"
"Only yokai and hanyous have fangs!" She said. His frown grew deeper.
"I am not a yokai, or a hanyou thank you. Come on InuYasha! I'm waiting!"
"Fine!" Yelled InuYasha. He was with them in a second.
"Let's go then." Shadow watched Kilala grow bigger with interest, then turned to following InuYasha.
***
"I can't believe it... you're keeping up with InuYasha!" Said Kagome, sounding dazed. Shadow chuckled.
"This is an easy pace, I can go much faster."
"Well you're cheating, you aren't running. It's more like you're skating." Said InuYasha, frowning.
"I am skating." Said Shadow, smiling.
"Did you do ice skating?" Asked Kagome. Shadow actually laughed.
"No, but my speed was a little hard for me to control. I can run this fast, and faster, but it's easier to skate. Besides, my creator also made my air skates." InuYasha slid to a halt, and Kilala landed behind them.
"The demon should be around here." As if on cue, a huge demon crashed through the trees... funnily enough, it was of the same kind Jinenji had fought when they first met him. "This should be good for you... or are you scared?" Taunted InuYasha, noticing the shocked look on Shadow's face. Kagome looked at Shadow, worried. He seemed so small... Shadow was suddenly smiling again.
"This will be perfect thanks. I was just surprised it was this big." He turned to them, smiling. "You might want to step back into the trees." They did so... the demon slashed at Shadow, he let it hit him, he slammed into the ground, then stood, smiling. "That should be enough." He said, looking at his bloodied arm.
"What does he mean...? Does he use blades of blood, like you InuYasha?"
"He can't possibly." Muttered the dog hanyou. Shadow's fur turned red. Kagome gasped, Shadow looked back at her, and his eyes gained a slightly crazed look.
"I use the pain to help fuel the energy." Then he turned back to the demon, fur going completely red. "Let's see how strong you are... chaos... BLAST!" A red sphere of energy expanded outwards, they had to leap back a few feat to avoid getting destroyed. The demon was badly hurt, dripping blood everywhere, but it wasn't finished. It hissed at Shadow and lunged past him, towards Kagome and the others. Without thinking, Shadow's hand shot out. "CHAOS SPEAR!" Bolts of red energy shot from his hands and hit the demon, sending it to the ground. He landed and smirked. Kagome and the others noticed his hands were back to what they guessed they were supposed to look like. "So... you're a demon are you? I wonder... are you greater... or lesser? I'm quite curious... you seem so easy..." He looked at it's ugly face, the tongue shot out, he grabbed it with one hand and shot a chaos spear straight in. It screamed and died. He sighed and let go. His fur went back to it's normal colouration... and his hands went back to being robotic. "Damn.." He said, frowning at his hands. The others had their eyes wide open with shock... what sorts of powers did this guy have?!
I just couldn't seem to stop writing..... this is a Kagome x Shadow by the way. ^_^ Human and hedgehog... XD I wonder what to have happen next...? This is my first time writing anything with InuYasha in it! So go easy on me please... thanks to DominicanChika for suggesting I write a Shadow x Kagome. :) And thanks Dominican, for inspiring me with your story. ^_^ I'm not sure I'd have been able to write this without having read that, having your insistence I'd do great, and having watched some InuYasha episodes..... and I only added Jinenji because I reaaally wanted to.... I think he's sweet you see. :P Anyway, please R&R! ^_^ No flames. XD I just don't have a use for them... other than making great marshmallows. :) But I can use wood for that... to give flame review is to waste too much lead, paper, or ink. :) I hope you enjoyed this chapter! There will be..... another one! ^_^