Sequel to Secrets Within The Origami

Because I couldn't let my Shadamy readers without anything to read ;)

::

Black Pearls

::

::

Amy fingered the hem of her skirt absentmindedly, lower lip caught between her white, even teeth in a soft bite. Her green eyes were focused on the host standing just two feet away from her, checking the reservation book to confirm she was allowed in there.

The pinkette had spent the whole afternoon after something to wear in her date with Shadow. She had rushed to her room at the same time the words engraved in the paper leaves sank in her head. The time she spent to get dressed in something comfortable to go to the main street was a blur in her mind; as well as the trip to her desired destination.

Sometimes, it sucked that cars or any other transportation that could pollute the world weren't allowed in that island.

But then again, she wasn't in a rush until she discovered she had a date in the same day she found it out.

And had less than three hours to get ready.

A whole hour she spent running from shop to shop in search for anything that would be formal enough to a restaurant she never had the opportunity to look at. She bought a simple high-waisted black skirt that reached two inches above her knees, a pastel blue blouse and black three inches high heeled peep toe shoes.

The other two hours she spent washing her hair, blow drying and pinning it in an elegant hairstyle, applying some make up and trying to calm down her nerves.

In that same day, her companions arrived, in order to stay a day or so away from the jungle to plan, eat proper food and simply relax. They had entered the room at the same time she had left the bathroom, face contorted in a worried expression. Knuckles promptly turned around and left, saying he was too hungry to know what the hell was going on. Tails hesitated for a moment, eyeing the pink hedgehog and his blue best friend, who were exchanging awkward glances. He backed away slowly and closed the door, before he darted at top speed after the red echidna.

Sonic snapped out of his trance at the sound of the door being closed and asked Amy what she was doing wearing that outfit. She told him she was going on a date with a hedgehog she met while they were away and that the way he asked her out was too cute to simply say no and brush him aside – she made sure to not mention he was Shadow in any way possible.

The blue hedgehog stood there frozen for a second, before he closed his eyes and flashed her a big grin, showing he was completely pleased by her choice. When he asked her who this hedgehog was, she told him a random name and made a mental note to remember it in case he asked her about the date later. He offered to take her to the restaurant, seeing that she was obviously running late.

And now there she stood; at the entrance hall, waiting for the host to find her name in that book.

The book shut with a soft sound and the chocolate colored bear gave her a polite smile, saying he would escort her to her table and date. Her cheeks darkened at the mention of date, but she thanked him and said nothing else. As they stopped beside a table, he pulled the chair and waited until she was seated down to leave quietly.

She glanced around, taking her surroundings with curious eyes. Light colored walls, fancy red curtains; big, shiny chandeliers pending from ceiling, red roses decorating the place and spreading their smell all around the place. She wondered briefly if a glass of water from this place was as expensive as her favorite pair of boots.

"Good evening, Rose."

Amy snapped her head to the right, looking at the hedgehog sitting across from her. Shadow sat there, reading the menu with unexpressive eyes, left elbow propped on the table, hand hovering in the air moving in circular motions, twirling the red wine inside the crystal glass. His ruby red eyes moved from the menu to focus on her green gaze. "I can see that you like the place."

"Ah... Yes, I do." She answered, feeling slightly uncomfortable. Not that Shadow made her feel uncomfortable on daily basis, but this was a different situation. They were on a date in a fancy, very expensive restaurant, located in a paradisiacal island. Who wouldn't be uncomfortable?

Shadow closed the menu and moved it in her direction, silently telling her to take it. She grasped it softly and opened the black cover, eyes scanning the food names and different drink options she could probably order. She could, but she wouldn't. Shadow was paying for it and she wouldn't take advantage of his out of character hospitality.

"I must admit that I thought you wouldn't come." He said calmly, eyes fixed on a far away window. "I am surprised."

Amy raised her eyes from the menu, looking at his face with confused eyes. "And what made you think I wasn't coming?"

"The fact that I don't have green eyes or blue fur." His eyes fixed on hers and he smirked against the glass border.

She felt insulted, blood running to her cheeks in an angry gesture; but to the dark hedgehog sitting at the other side of the table she was blushing at his comment. And she couldn't prove otherwise without making a fool of herself... So she opted to simply huff indignantly and return her attention to the old looking pages.

From the top of the menu, she saw a gloved hand placing a crystal glass some inches away from the black cover. "I ordered red wine for the both of us. I hope you like it." The last sentence, she noted, was completely a lie.

"I am only fourteen." She said quietly, but firmly.

"I am not."

"You're not even twenty-one!"

"Did you forget that I was created more than fifty years ago?" He asked, but it sounded more like a statement in her ears. This time, the blood in her cheeks was because she was obviously embarrassed; how could she forget that Shadow the Hedgehog was the famous Ultimate Lifeform that was created pratically half a century ago? She thanked that she was holding the menu right in front of her face, or else, he'd see how flushed she was right now.

"You look so young that I forget you're older than any of us."

His glass froze halfway to his lips, eyes moving from the red curtains to fix on the black covers of the menu. "Oh?" He unfroze slowly, taking an appreciative sip of the cool red liquid. "That's a good thing, I guess."

Amy nodded dumbly, scolding herself for not being brave enough to say he was as handsome as Sonic was in her eyes. Shadow, on the other hand, was oblivious to her inner turmoil and only knew she had nodded because he saw when the visible part of her head moved up and down.

"I recommend you to choose the seafood dishes. They're quite good." He said, eyes still focused on the crown of her head. She nodded again and flipped through the pages until she found the seafood section.

::

::

The seafood dishes were quite good indeed. Shrimp Newburg was something she had never eaten before, and when the waitress said it was one of the best dishes the cook could prepare, Amy ordered it eagerly. Shadow didn't say anything; he simply sat there, drinking his wine and nodded whenever she asked him if it was fine. He even bought her a dessert; a generous slice of white chocolate raspberry cheesecake and Amy was melting in her seat.

She didn't notice, however, the way his red eyes were fixed on her lips while she was lost in the sweet bliss the dessert provided. And when her tongue escaped her mouth to lick the white chocolate on her lower lip, Shadow had to drink every drop of cool wine inside his glass. He was glad when she placed the silver fork down and cleaned her lips properly with a napkin. He didn't know what he would do if she licked her lips again.

Now they were sitting at the aquatic complex; Amy had her bare feet dipped in the Olympic pool while Shadow sat by her side, legs crossed Indian style. Their shoes were forgotten near a white plastic chair under a palm tree. The pinkette would comment about something from time to time, always receiving direct answers. She didn't mind, thought. His presence could be felt from miles away and she was sure that the people inside their rooms could feel it.

"Shadow."

"Hm?"

"Why, exactly, did you invite me to a date?"

There it was. The question he knew she would ask, sooner or later. Shadow himself didn't know what possessed him to ask her out on a date; didn't know what made him watch her wander around the resort alone. He didn't know why he bothered to create that cube rose origami as a different way to ask her out.

Why did he want to ask her out?

He wasn't Sonic. They were physically similar, yes, but now that Amy had spent a lot of time near both hedgehogs she could see the differences clearly. It wasn't only the fur that was shades darker than the royal blue, or the blood red eyes that were so cold in comparison to Faker's emotional green gaze, or the lack of white, fluffy chest fur that made them different. Sonic was kind, had a large group of friends, he worried about others and he was- no, he is a hero.

And what was Shadow?

An artificial body that was cold, rarely caring and almost never kind. This hedgehog liked to be alone, had few friends, a regular number of allies and rivals, and lots, lots of enemies.

I am the enemy.

The person he loved the most, Maria. Where is she now? Dead. My fault.

Rouge, the white bat with clear blue eyes. Where is she now? Probably with the echidna.

Omega, the robot that he met years ago in that room filled with black hedgehog clones. Where is he now? Missing.

Amy, the pink hedgehog with soft hair, bright green eyes and annoying voice. Where is she now? Right by my side.

When did she become one of the people he most cared for? At Prison Island, they had met. She had mistaken him for the blue hedgehog and it all started from there. At Ark, she had made him remember his promise to the blonde human girl. When the Black Arms invaded his home planet, she had stuck by his side and cheered for him. Their paths had crossed so many times. Sometimes, they would walk together to the same destination; other times they would part ways – she'd say an enthusiastic goodbye and he'd only nod and grunt while walking away.

She was everything he had, and at the same time, she was nothing.

How many times had he seen her chasing his rival? How many times did he see or hear news about her being rescued by her knight wearing no armor? How many times did he pick up the phone only to hear her voice asking him if Rouge was at her club? How many times did he follow Rouge to the shopping mall, only to see the pinkette there?

Did he ever realize he followed his combat partner only to see her?

If he didn't before, now he does.

And as the minutes dragged by, filled by his silence, Amy felt like she had lost the battle. She took her feet out of the water and reached for a towel near her hips to dry them. As she stood up, her fingers let the cotton material fall softly to the ground, near his hands. She walked to the chair and picked her shoes, wandering to the hallway that would lead her to the elevators.

She had already pressed the fifth button and the silver doors were sliding to a close when a bare foot was put between them. The doors retreated sensing a body standing there and Amy raised her green eyes from the black toes to look into his red orbs. Shadow stood there, hands trusted deep inside his pockets, expressionless mask on his face.

His hands slowly left the pockets and were going in her direction with calm and calculated moves. His right hand gripped her free one, which was resting against her collarbone, and pulled it towards him. He turned her palm upwards and, with his left hand, placed something on it. The object made some noises similar to small rocks hitting one another as he curled her fingers around the cool material.

He did never, even for a second, break their eye contact.

Amy's eyes moved down after some long seconds of tense hesitation. She uncurled her fingers, watching as dark black, rounded, small pearls reflected the artificial lights above her head. Her eyes grew larger as she realized they weren't fake. It was a bracelet; a beautiful, delicate bracelet. The pearls had a full horizontal hole, in which a pale pink ribbon was put through, keeping all the small rounded beads together, and it was tied in a delicate knot.

Black pearls.

Black hedgehog.

Shadow.

He had chosen black pearls because they would remind her of him. Hard to find, rare, and absolutely beautiful.

She snapped her head up to look at him and to apologize for leaving without saying goodbye and to thank him for the amazing dinner and lovely gift and to say anything that wouldn't ruin their friendship.

But just like the first time,

He was gone.