Chapter One

Author's Note: Here's chapter one of my brand new story. Hope you enjoy it. Please R&R! Nothing belongs to me besides Julia and the plot of this story.

A young-looking white female hedgehog was strolling along in a small forest. She was wearing a white tank top with a light pink colored bordering the piece of clothing, and a bow of a darker pink shade adorned the top of her shirt. Underneath her fluffy white chest fur, she had on a pink skirt with white bordering. She also had on pink gloves and pink and white boots other than that her fur was a pure white color like snow. She held a picture in her hands. It was a picture of Shadow with the word 'Missing' written on a piece of paper that was taped to the bottom of the picture. She looked around and sighed.

"Shadow, where are you?" she asked herself softly.

She picked up a rose and sniffed it; tearing out the spines, she placed the flower in her fur next to her ear. She had been desperately looking for Shadow ever since they had been separated after they had left Space Colony Ark. She had spent year after year of her life trying to find the black and red hedgehog. She had now given up all hope of finding her equally furry best friend. Today she was on her last search for him. And as she traveled she heard two voices, one female and the other male. She cautiously navigated her way over to see whom these two voices belonged to. When she did spot them, she went out into the open, thinking that maybe they could help her. The rabbit and the echidna turned as they heard her coming.

"Who are you?" asked the red-furred echidna.

"My name is Julia, and I was hoping that you could help me with something," she responded in a soft tone.

"My name is Knuckles, and this is Cream," the echidna said.

"It's a pleasure to meet you both." She smiled.

"What is it that you want us to help you with?" Cream asked as she picked a flower.

"Just a simple question. Have you seen him?" She asked as she held up the picture of Shadow. Knuckles's eyes widened.

"Why are you looking for Shadow?" Knuckles asked.

"I will explain when the time comes. Now I take it that you know him, and if you know him, then you must have seen him. So I ask you that you please take me to him," she pleaded. "It's very important," she added. Cream and Knuckles looked at each other.

"Maybe we can ask Sonic and the others if they know where he went," Cream offered.

"I heard he went to practice his fighting skills, but we can make sure by asking the others" Knuckles agreed.

"Can we go now?" she asked impatiently. The two nodded.

"This way," Cream said, leading them to Sonic's house. They arrived at the house in a couple of minutes. Sonic's house was neither big nor small.

"Here we are. Sonic's house," Knuckles said. They all walked inside. Sonic halted in his tracks as he passed by the front door.

"Hello! And who is this beautiful hedgehog?" Sonic asked, grinning. Julia looked at him icily. Her eyes were the same crimson color as Shadow's.

"Sonic, this is Julia," Knuckles said faintly, noting her irritation.

"She wants to know where Shadow is," Cream said. Tails overheard their conversation.

"Wasn't Shadow practicing in the field?" Tails cut in.

"I know. Let's all go together to visit him," Amy suggested; she had also overheard them.

"Can we please go now?" Julia urged.

"Whoa, what's the big hurry, Julia?" Sonic asked suspiciously.

"I have been searching Shadow for a long, long time," she replied, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"I see," said Sonic, and they all set out to the distant field where Shadow was practicing. It was a long walk there. They arrived at the location more than ten minutes later. Julia was so excited that she was finally able to see her very best friend again after fifty or so years. She looked from behind the last tree until the field began. When she spotted Shadow, her heart began to race in her chest. She couldn't stay hidden any longer and she ran out.

"SHADOW!!!" she yelled joyfully, skidding to a stop right before the red and black hedgehog. Shadow's eyes widened for a moment.

"Don't you recognize me, Shadow?" Julia asked. Shadow still said nothing. Julia was silent too but she dug under her shirt and pulled out a picture. It was a photo of her and Shadow hugging. She pulled it out and showed it to him. A smile was now on her face.

"J—Jules?" Shadow whispered softly in disbelief. Julia smiled at him.

A/N: End of chapter one! What will happen next! Stay tuned! And don't forget to review on your way out please. I really appreciate reviews!