A Shadow Dream Story

At this very moment, I was sitting down on a comfortable cushion chair in a hallway inside a hospital. The whole reason for being here made me a bit guilty. I was searching for the whereabouts of a friend of mine and went through a restricted area to find him. It seemed very odd that I could get through so easily, but I did. However, I had brought my sisters with me for a reason I myself could not understand. Maybe I was afraid something would go wrong and I wouldn't know what to do. Whatever the case, I seemed to persuade them into coming along. They probably wanted to prove to me that my friend didn't exist, but I knew otherwise…

After driving for who knows how long in my blue SUV, I began to wonder if this was all just a waste of time. But then I noticed a huge building up ahead that had the GUN insignia on it.

This had to be it!

So I sped up a bit more to realize that it was already too late. Small explosions could be heard coming from nearby the building. My mind seemed to shut down at the moment and my one sister Julie took notice of it. She quickly pushed me aside and grabbed the steering wheel of my car as I sat there, still with a black mind. I couldn't believe it! It was a trap all along and I fell for it! I felt so useless. However, there wasn't time for crying about it, since we were all about to die if we didn't get out of there fast enough.

My sister was one step ahead of me though, and I realized that maybe we would make it. I turned around to notice the flames from the explosion were gaining on us and a look of anxiety came over me. We weren't going to make it!

As we moved faster and faster, the flames seemed to come after us in the same manner. All this was just too soon! I didn't want to die.

As the flames got close to us, I noticed that a look of pain crossed over my sister's face as she was driving. The flames had gained on us and the heat was unbearable. My ears began ringing from the intensity and I closed my eyes and folded my hands, praying that we'd make it through this.

Time seemed to stop at the next moment and it was then that I forgot everything that happened. I somehow ended up in the hospital with no possible explanation as to who called to get us here or what exactly happened. Thoughts of my car tossing and turning crossed my mind but all I could think about was if my two sisters were okay. Mostly my sister who had been driving. The nurses there wouldn't say anything about her but told me that she was going to be okay and that my other sister was asleep in a hospital bed at the moment.

This didn't help me feel relieved in the slightest however, and I began to walk away from it all. I ended up in a hallway near the entrance of the hospital and sat down where I was sitting now. My thoughts were finally driven to where exactly my dark friend was at the moment. I wasn't angry at him in the least. I knew that what I was doing was suicide and it made the matter feel even worse on myself.

I glanced down and sighed in discontent. Why can't he just show up when I need him the most?

Right after thinking that, I got up from where I was sitting, and when I fully stood up, I noticed a familiar figure standing in an open door near the stairwell. It was unmistakably Shadow! He was wearing a long black flowing cape that covered the majority of his body and came down to his ankles. His striking red eyes seemed to flicker in my direction and I stared into them hard before I decided to run up and embrace him. There were no tears in my eyes, but you could tell that they held some sadness.

I then got out of my tight embrace and softly stroked the back of his quills. He grabbed my hand as I was about to pull it away and looked at me with concern filled eyes.

"Why were you looking for me?" He almost demanded.

His eyes held that same look but I could tell he was somewhat angry with me. I glanced down in shame and wondered why I acted the way that I did. However, no matter what I thought, it would always come down to the same answer. I loved him and didn't want anything bad to happen to him, no matter what the cost.

"Shadow…" I sighed and looked up at him. "You should know by now that I would never leave you. I love you."

Shadow shook his head, right away disagreeing with my actions. "You don't understand Caroline." The crimson and ebony hedgehog then seemed to hesitate at his next words. "You can't…love me."

My heart seemed to stop at this moment and the words didn't seem to register in my brain properly. "W-what? What are you-?"

Shadow stopped me as I was about to finish my sentence and said, "I only cause pain and destruction." The dark hedgehog then sighed deeply as he closed his eyes while turning his face away from me. "It's not safe for me to be around you, and you can't go searching around for me either. You… You could have died if I had not of come on time." Shadow's voice seemed to break at this point, and I couldn't help but to let a few tears escape from my eyes.

"I-I'm sorry Shadow…" I started to hyperventilate as I realized that Shadow did care for me yet still wanted me to leave him. It hurt me very deeply and I couldn't help but to begin sobbing. My anxiety took over my emotions once again, and I wish it hadn't, for it caught Shadow's attention right away.

"C-Caroline? Are you crying?"

~Normal POV~

Shadow turned back to face her with his eyes fully open, and realized with a slight dread, that Caroline was indeed crying. And who'd blame her. Although it seemed Shadow was not expecting her to break down so soon.

Shadow walked up to her and put a hand on the girl's shoulder to try and soothe her. "I haven't left you yet, so there's no reason to be crying."

Caroline shook her head at his naïve words. He should have known that she was smarter than that. "Yes, but you care about me and still your going to leave? How can I not be upset?"

Shadow's eyes widened and his lips moved as if he were about to speak. Then he stopped himself and sighed in defeat for once. She's right you know. You can't leave her if we both love each other. It'll only make things worse on her part. But still… I don't want her to be in danger either.

"Caroline? What is it about me that you love so much?"

She smiled at his acquisition then and brushed her tears away as she answered for him. "And what's not to like?"

"You claim to be this Ultimate Life form with no emotions and no purpose in life and yet you're always saving the world. You're also the most stubborn creature that I've gotten to know and yet still, you have a heart."

"Oh! And to top that all off, you have this little tuft of fur that's been placed on your chest for whatever reason I don't know. However, I'm glad it's there. Otherwise I wouldn't be able to do this!"

Right at that very moment she grabbed a hold of this said white patch of fur and started to tickle the said Ultimate Life form.

~Caroline's POV~

Without much restraint, the crimson streaked hedgehog began to continuously laugh and struggled to catch a breath in between his laughing spasms. "S-stop! This… This is uncalled for! I'm t-the Ultimate l-life form h-hedgehog, a-and your j-just a h-human!" At that point he couldn't control his laughter anymore, and I therefore let him off the hook before adding one last comment.

"Well…That may be true, but this human loves and cares for you more than any other human. That is… except for…um…" I couldn't quite finish my sentence for fear of stirring up the ebony hedgehog's feelings, but I had a feeling that I had caught Shadow's attention once the laughter had subsided and his eyes darted towards me in a more serious manner. I must have taken the wrong assumption however, for Shadow's words seemed to contradict my thoughts. "It's okay Caroline. You can say her name." His eyes then focused downwards as he smiled and said, "Besides…Maria would have wanted me to remember her."

My eyes widened as I looked to him in shock. "You're kidding, right?"

Shadow shook his head. "No. I think it's about time I remember my past, not ignore it. Well, at least not ignore the parts of my past that were good."

Shadow then looked up to me again as he said, "That's probably the best thing I've learned from you humans. Even in the most negative of times you still try to think positive."

At this point, a smirk crossed over his features and I could not help but to not ignore him. I mean, since when was Shadow this optimistic? I just hoped that deep down he had decided not to leave me. For I would hate to see this smile leave both his face and even mine. For at this very moment, I really was smiling.

After gazing at each other for quite some time, I finally drew closer to him and nuzzled into his chest while sighing in content. Shadow wrapped his arms around me tightly and I looked up to gaze into his eyes. I thought that I'd finally see some relief in those ruby red eyes, but instead his gaze seemed distant. When I drew my hand to his face to get his attention, he finally gazed towards me and I knew right away that something wasn't right. "You aren't still thinking about leaving me, are you?"

The dark hedgehog seemed to sigh in defeat at my acquisition. "No…" He shook his head and paused for a second. "I'm just worried that my decision to stay with you isn't so wise."

I sighed in annoyance. "Shadow… You know it'll only be worse now if they find me alone now right? GUN knows that I've taken an interest in you, and it's only a matter of time before they use me against you." I glanced down sadly at this point, but then I smirked as I said, "But that won't happen with you around, right?"

Shadow still glanced at me with some uneasiness on his face, but nevertheless tried his best to smile back at me. "That may be true Caroline, but what if I wasn't there? What if they caught you when I least expect it? I couldn't live with myself if anything were to happen to you."

His eyes were now downcast and a look of sadness crossed over his features. I'd never seen him this upset before. I grimaced as I realized the predicament we were now in and wondered if their really was a chance for us to be at peace together. I wasn't sure where we'd end up but I knew that if I was with Shadow then it didn't matter.

"Don't worry Shadow. Everything will turn out alright." I replied back hopefully while reaching out a hand to his shoulder.

Shadow then looked up to me and said, "For your sake, I hope so."

"I know so." I answered back with confidence.

He glanced back at me as if unsure he could trust my words, but then nodded in approval.

At this point, I couldn't help but to snuggle up to Shadow like I had once before. I just felt so complete with him around. Things weren't so dim and gloomy like they were before, and there were no doubts. My eyes then traveled down to his waist and right away I took notice of a gun hanging on a holster around his waist. I never noticed it before because it was shrouded in the darkness of his obsidian cape. However, now that I did take notice of it, I couldn't help but smirk in amusement.

The ebony hedgehog beside me held a look of confusion and I quickly responded to him, still with a small smile that graced my lips, "So I'm guessing that you weren't planning on things to be easy to begin with? Are you expecting an attack already?"

Although I was acting all upbeat and cheery, inside I was full of excitement and anxiety. On the other hand, I could see that Shadow held a very somber and almost determined expression. He didn't look very hopeful. It was as if a situation were to occur, he knew that something awful would happen.

Silence still began to take over us. Shadow looked as if he was still contemplating over what I had just said and before I could press him further, he said, "No. I just thought it would be safe to be prepared." He seemed as if he were having second thoughts over the words he had just spoken, but then he shook his head and said, "Come on Caroline. Why don't we go check on your sister's? They should be coming around about now and I'm sure you'd like to see them before we go."

I looked at him in confusion. "But what about-?"

"Don't worry about it." Shadow abruptly cut in. "Just as long as your with me, you'll be fine, remember?"

I was still unsure however. "Yeah, but…" My eyes focused downward at this point and I was sure Shadow would notice the doubt there. The Ultimate one wrapped his gloved hand around my bare one as if to reassure me that things would be okay.

"Caroline… I promise you. I won't let them hurt you like they did to Maria. I'll stay by your side even if it kills me."

As I noticed the sincerity in those ruby red eyes of his, I could not help but show an awed look on my face. It seemed that Shadow cared more for me than I thought. "Shadow? Do you mean it?" I asked in surprise. Tears were threatening to spill out from my eyes at this point and I could not hide the smile of delight on my face.

He smiled back at me. "Of course I do. I love you." At this point, he brought his hand to my face, stroked me on the cheek softly and finally kissed me on the lips. My eyes widened at his sudden actions, but I immediately melted into it. I guess it just couldn't be helped; on both my part and his.

We finally stopped however when I heard a loud "Ahem" behind us. I turned around and realized that it was one of the nurses from earlier. I blushed a bright crimson as I said, "Um… sorry about that. Was there something you needed from me."

The nurse had an impatient look on her face but nonetheless sighed deeply. It seemed that she'd let this slide for the moment. I guess she thought I'd been through enough already. Plus, I was really enjoying the taste of that kiss. Not that she would know that anyway, but I'm pretty sure she could tell from the look on my face.

"Well I'm glad to see your in good condition." I blushed again. "Both of your sister's are awake, so your free to see them now, as well as your friend." She then winked at me and walked back towards the room where my two sister's were held.

After gazing at her retreating form for a couple of seconds, I couldn't help but wonder what my two sister's would think of my current companion. Would they hate him because of what I did? Would they forgive me of my hasty actions? I wasn't too sure about that myself, but I knew that I shouldn't abandon them. I had to try.

I felt a light weight on my shoulder and once I turned around, I was instantly met with two concern filled red eyes. "What's wrong?"

I glanced down with a somewhat blank expression. "Nothing."

"You're lying." Shadow stated calmly.

I then felt the palm of his hand lift up my face and sighed in defeat. "I can't hide anything from you, can I?"

Shadow smirked. "Not really." He then held a more serious facade. "Now what is it? Are you having second thoughts already?"

I shook my head. "Sort of." I then looked towards the ground sadly as I said, "It's just that all this time that I've been here I felt that my sister's getting hurt was my fault. I'm just… I'm not so sure they'll forgive me for what I did, and I'm afraid they won't like if they see you as well." I then looked up to Shadow at this point but was in for a shock as I saw a smirk on his face. "Why aren't you-?"

Shadow stopped me abruptly by putting his hand on mine as he said, " Don't tell me you forgot what I told you already?" Shadow inquired with that same smirk on his face.

I rolled my eyes but nonetheless sighed in defeat. "Of course Shadow. How could I forget?" I smiled back at him briefly, but then held an unsure expression. "I just hope that you're right."

Shadow still had that smirk on his face as he said, " Of course I'm right."

When I still held that unsure look on my face however, he sighed and said, "Fine. If your that uncertain about all of this, I promise that you can beat me up if all fails. But if you're wrong, then I'm taking you out on a date."

I quickly rolled my eyes at his final statement and said, "Like you would even think of doing that at a time like this?"

Shadow crossed his arms as he said, "And why not? You can keep a low profile, can't you?"

I sweat dropped at his inquiry. "Uh… Well… I guess."

The black hedgehog started laughing at me and I couldn't helped but be annoyed. Once he stopped laughing though, I noticed a more serious demeanor. "Well then, I guess we can head over there now, right?" He gestured towards the open door in front of us that lead into the hallway.

I gulped in fear. "Sure…" I then felt his hand on my shoulder and heard him whisper softly, "I'll be right here beside you, so don't be afraid." This time I tried to smile my best. "O-okay Shadow. I'll try."

He smiled back at me and we were on our way. Our hands were intertwined as we made our way through the doorway and into the hall. When we finally got to the door that led into the room that held both of my sister's, I stopped abruptly. "Are you ready?" He asked.

I paused for a few seconds but then firmly said, "Yes." With that one little word said, I reached for the doorknob and finally opened the door. When I walked into the room, both of my sister's looked up at me. My one sister, Nicole, held and angry expression. She had her arms crossed and quickly looked away from me after I had made myself known. My older sister looked as if she were still recovering but she seemed okay. A few scrapes and burns, nothing serious. However, she had a look of concern on her face. I'm guessing she was concerned about me, but I didn't understand why. I guess she thought I was crazy, but she was in for a surprise once Shadow showed up at my side.

This time both of my sister's held a look of shock on their faces. Neither of them looked like they were angry. They just seemed at a loss for words.

I decided to break the silence however, as I said, "So, um… This is Shadow." I mentally slapped myself at how stupid I sounded but felt reassured once Shadow smiled down at me and squeezed my hand softly.

Julie now had a somewhat reluctant look on her face and looked as if she were pondering over something. Nicole looked between the two of us as if she were trying to figure something out. I had a feeling they were wondering if something was going on between me and Shadow, but that wasn't my biggest concern for the time being.

I looked up towards Julie and once I caught her attention, glanced downwards with a sad expression. "Julie… I'm sorry…" I paused. "I-I never meant to get you guys hurt. All I ever wanted was to make sure Shadow was alright."

I then glanced back up to take in Julie's expression. A look of surprise came over my features as I saw a smile upon her face. "Caroline… I can see that you must really care for Shadow, so don't worry about it. I guess would do the same if I were in your situation."

"Really?" I asked, still in utter surprise.

She nodded.

I then looked towards Nicole. "And you Nicole?"

"I'm just surprised to see that you've actually fallen for someone."

I blushed. "So you don't hate me for what I've done?"

"I'll admit I did at first, but seeing the two of you together makes it different." She then gave a genuine smile.

I couldn't believe the words that came out of my one sister's mouth. All I could do at this point was smile.

"See? It wasn't so bad, now was it?"

At the sound of Shadow's calm and sincere voice, I couldn't help but turn to face him.

Shadow held a smile upon his face and so I smiled back. After that brief glance however, Shadow's expression quickly changed to shock and concern. He growled in irritation and I wondered why. Then it hit me! "They're here, aren't they?"

Shadow tightened his hold on my hand once again as he nodded his head.

"But how-?" I was abruptly cut off as he answered, "They must have followed my chaos energy." Shadow sighed in distress. I put my other arm around him to comfort him but he softly brushed it aside. "We'd better go." He then reached behind his quills and pulled out a green Chaos Emerald. Shadow then wrapped an arm around me. While looking towards both of my sister's he said, I'm sorry for leaving so abruptly, but for the safety of the both of us and yourselves, we must leave."

They nodded their heads and right away, Shadow lifted up his Chaos Emerald and began to say his two trademark words. "CHAOS…-

Click. "I wouldn't do that if I were you."

"Damn." The both of us turned around to notice the general as well as a dozen GUN soldiers standing in front of us. A growl emitted from Shadow's throat as he stood in front of me and said, " Why can't you just leave us alone!"

The general merely smirked at Shadow's comment as he said, "Whoever said it had to be the both of you. The only one we came for was you Shadow."

I noticed Shadow's shoulders tense up and his hands were balled up in fists as he yelled out, "Like hell I'm the only one your came for! You nearly killed her the other day because of your selfish acts!"

The general crossed his arms as he said, " You shouldn't be talking. If you would have turned yourself in then that would never have happened." He then paused as if waiting for something to happen. "However… It seems that you won't be given the choice this time." The chief GUN commander then smiled evilly as he noticed Shadow's confused expression.

Without him even knowing, I was taken by surprise by several other GUN agents that secretly showed up. Before either me or one of my sister's could utter a word, all three of them had covered our mouths. Their guns were pointed towards all of us. I could not help but let a silent tear slip out of my eye. Since we are all being held hostage, there's no way Shadow would not give in.

"What are you talking about?" I heard Shadow ask with anger and annoyance. "Why would I give in now?"

The general laughed, which sickened me to the core. "Why don't you look right behind you?"

"What are you…?" As Shadow turned to face me, could not help but close my eyes as tears ran down my cheeks. This wasn't happening! I couldn't lose him now. Not now. Not when we were so close to being together.

"No…" Just by the sound of his voice, I could tell he was torn from the inside out. Pretty soon rage would take over, but it wouldn't matter. GUN had the upper hand now.

Shadow quickly turned back to face the general and with much anger shouted, "Let her go, now!"

The general now had a smug look on his face. "I will, but on one condition."

I gulped.

"You turn yourself in."

"And what? Become one of your experiments?" Shadow shook his head and with much anger spat out, "Forget it! I'd rather die!"

"Well that could be arranged, but your much more useful for us alive. Therefore…" The general's eyes darted over towards me and before my brain could process what he had just indicated towards his soldier, a loud blast echoed through the air and I instantly felt a pain shoot up my entire arm as I screamed in agony.

As I fell to the floor while clutching onto my left arm, I faintly heard Shadow scream out my name. I tried to open my eyes to see what was going on but I was in too much pain. From what I could hear however, there was a lot of movement. The commander yelled at Shadow to calm down but it seemed that he didn't listen. I heard someone getting beat up and a few people crashing to the floor. Then nothing.

Finally, after the pain and shock subsided a little, I opened my eyes slowly. I look up to notice Shadow was now facing me while his shoulder's shook and he was panting deeply. He then looked up into my eyes and I into his. I tried to get up but that just gave me more pain so I sat there holding my arm. Before I even knew it, Shadow had rushed up to my side and started checking my wound. "We need to get that bullet out now, before you lose anymore blood." Without any complaints, I allowed him to pick me up. He then hurriedly rushed into another room and laid me down on one of the beds. "I'll have to make this quick. The GUN soldiers and their bastard leader will be up any moment." He then glanced towards me as he noticed my astonished expression. "I… I told myself I wouldn't kill them. Not in front of you." He then seemed to pause in his words.

"Shadow…" I looked up to him with concern filled eyes as he glanced down.

He avoided my gaze as he said, "I'm pretty sure I would have ripped them to shreds if you had not been alive."

I wanted to say something that would comfort him from those daunting words but I couldn't think of anything. We stayed in silence for a few minutes until he sped away and came back with something in his hands. He then walked up to me, put a cloth under my wound, and said, "I'm sorry. This will hurt a bit."

I made sure to look away at this point, and bit my lip as I realized what he was about to do. I felt a soft gloved hand on my right shoulder and began to relax somewhat. Although scared, I held in the pain for the most part, while screaming insanely in my subconscious. A few sharp gasps came out of my mouth and I couldn't hold in the tears any more as he finally pulled out the nuisance of a bullet. I looked at the bullet wound and took notice of more blood oozing out. I closed my eyes and cringed at the disturbing image. Then I felt a cool cloth on my wound, which stung a little, but I could cope.

I opened my eyes and saw Shadow had finished wrapping up my wound after cleaning it. "Aren't you going to use stitches?"

Shadow sighed. "I would, but we don't have time. I'll have to do it when we get to my apartment." He then walked over to a small metal table beside the white hospital bed and picked up what looked like a shot but was probably something to use for numbing the pain. Then he grabbed a bad full of what was needed for stitches and some gauze. Once he fully concealed the contents in the pocket of his long black jacket, he glanced up to me with that concerned look in his eyes. "C'mon. We'd better go."

I nodded my head right away, although I was still unsure about something. However, I let it go, and tried getting off the bed. I didn't succeed however for I cringed in pain. Shadow noticed right away and came up to my side to help me get down. Once I was fully standing, he made sure to hold me in place with his left arm and then reached into his quills to grab a hold of his green Chaos Emerald. He then pulled me close to him and whispered the words "Chaos Control." Before either the GUN soldier's or the commander could reach us, we were gone in a flash.

After the both of us arrived at Shadow's apartment, he made sure to stitch up my arm right away. He of course used a shot to make the pain go away and then carefully stitched up my arm. Once he was done we seemed to sit there forever in silence. It wasn't broken until Shadow caught my attention by gazing upwards into my hazel blue eyes and asking, "I know this may seem a little abrupt and not to mention heard to believe, but… I think you should go stay at Sonic's for a while. At least until things clear up a bit." He paused. "I know things won't ever clear up for me, but I want to be assured that you'll be alright." He held my hand at this point and his eyes deepened as he looked into mine. "Caroline?"

I started crying. It could not be helped. Knowing that he would be gone tore me apart. Even knowing that he trusted his greatest rival didn't make me smirk in the least. I was depressed. It was inevitable. We would always be separated, wouldn't we? I… A palm was placed underneath my head and I was turned to face the one in my thoughts. He wiped the tears from my face and said, "I'm sorry Caroline but this is the only way. I promise that I'll be back to see you though. For now though, I need to be as far from you as I can." Shadow gazed downwards then and for the first time I noticed a very solemn expression on his face. I knew then that we were both in for hell. Thankfully though, he'd be back. I didn't know when, but I knew it was only a matter of time.

"Okay Shadow. I can do it. And I'm sure you can too." I tried my best to look as optimistic as I could as I gazed up to him. Shadow brought his head up and held a look of uncertainty as he asked, "Are you sure?"

I smiled. "Of course Shadow."

Shadow then surprised me as he sighed once again and said, "I wish there was something else I could do, but…"

I brought my hand to his shoulder. "It's alright. I… Understand that it won't be easy for the both of us, but I know we'll make it through." The dark hedgehog cracked a small smile. "Let's hope so."

I smiled back at him. "Well… I guess we should go. It's probably best not to linger here for too long."

"Yeah…" The dark hedgehog glanced down again. I could not help but feel bad for him. I mean, he lost someone close to him before, so it must feel awful for him that he had to leave without me.

"Shadow?" He abruptly brought his head up. "Yes?"

"I just want you to know that I love you." I rubbed his arm to try and comfort him.

He smiled back at me genuinely. "As do I."

We both then gazed into each other's eyes for the longest time. We both knew what we wanted, but it would never last. Still though… I wish it would.

Before I even realized it, Shadow pulled me close to him and started kissing me. I would have stopped, but it seemed our emotions had a mind of their own.

Once we stopped kissing, I could now help but to gaze into his eyes almost pleadingly as I asked, "Do you really have to leave me Shadow?"

The dark hedgehog sighed and I knew right away that it was a stupid question, but I just had to ask.

"I know you don't want this, but please just try, for both our sakes. If something were to happen to you I'd never forgive myself." Shadow gazed downwards sadly.

I hated that he felt responsible for everything that had happened. It wasn't fair for him to keep bashing himself because of me.

"Shadow…" As I placed my hand on his arm, he gazed up to me. "If anything were to happen to me, it would be my fault, not yours." I then blushed as I spoke my next words, "I'm the one who keeps wanting to stay close to you."

Shadow seemed stunned for a moment, but then changed drastically as he smirked back at me. "Is that right? Well then, I trust that you'll be able to control yourself."

I laughed. "Of course I will." I then paused briefly. "However, I'll sure miss the heck out of you!"

Now it was Shadow's turn to laugh. "Well… Then we'd better make this quick. Otherwise you'll have to wait even longer for me to return."

I nodded. "That's true."

"So um… I'd use Chaos Control, but I'd much rather they not find you from my chaos signature, so we'll use the only other fast option." Shadow then picked me up and before igniting his hover skates, asked, "You ready?"

I held a look of uncertainty but nonetheless nodded with a "yes." I noticed Shadow's ears droop downwards and figured he saw my look of uncertainty. "Don't worry Caroline. Everything will turn out alright in the end. I promise."

With that said, Shadow finally activated his black, red, and white hover skates, and in a flash of yellow light and a strong gust of wind, we were gone.

Meanwhile, in a place not to far away from where the Caroline and Shadow had left, Sonic the Hedgehog was running towards Tails' workshop at his usually leisurely fast pace. He was totally oblivious to the things that had just occurred with the human girl and obsidian hedgehog. Not that he didn't care. If he had found out, he would be just as upset as they were. Okay… Well not upset, but you get my drift. Anyway… Once Sonic had caught up to his best buddies home, he realized that the door to Tails' workshop was left ajar. Hmm… Must be working on something in the garage.

He was about to speed over into the garage when a familiar scent came over him. Is that chili dogs I smell? Right away he turned back towards the door and sped right through the house until he was lead right to the kitchen. There, standing right next to the stove was Amy Rose.

She was about to put some chili onto a hotdog and bun when she took notice of the blue hero a few feet in front of her. She blinked a few times and then laughed as she realized how fast he had come to her just by the smell of his favorite food. Chili dogs.

"Well I sure didn't expect you to notice so fast, but I guess I was wrong. Good to know you came here on time." She smiled.

Sonic just looked at her in awe. "What are you doing here? Did Tails ask you to come or did you really make this for me?" His eyes seemed to sparkle at this point and his ears twitched in anticipation as he continued to smell the delicious morsel before him. He wasn't even bothered by the fact that Amy was here.

Amy crossed her arms. "Of course I made this for you silly! Now go ahead and eat! I know you must be hungry after a long run like that." Amy then smiled genuinely.

Sonic smiled back sheepishly. "Sorry for doubting you Amy. You just always seemed like the type to always obsess over me."

Amy sighed. "Don't worry about it. Just eat."

Sonic then smiled and gave her a thumbs up. "Okay!"

Before either of them knew it he had downed ten chili dogs. Amy had a few of them and then sent Sonic to check on Tails.

With a plate full of chili dogs in hand, he headed over to the workshop part of Tails' house. Once there, he pushed the door ajar with his red and white striped sneaker and peered inside the garage to see that his friend Tails was once again keeping himself busy with upgrading the Tornado. Sonic smiled and shook his head at Tails' obvious behavior. The blue hedgehog then decided to walk in. "Heya Tails! What's up?" Sonic shouted as he waved over to his two tailed friend.

Tails stopped what he was doing and looked up at his speedy friend. "Oh, hey Sonic! I was just polishing up the Tornado. Nothing new going on." He then paused as he took in the delicious scent of chili dogs. It was then that he finally noticed the plate full of chili dogs in Sonic's hand. His eyes seemed to sparkle and his stomach started to growl. "Eh heh… I guess I forgot to eat lunch again while I was fixing up my plane." Tails sweat dropped instantly.

Sonic merely laughed. "Not a problem lil' bro. They're all yours!" The blue hero winked at the yellow-orange fox.

Tails immediately ran up to the plate, smiled sheepishly at Sonic (for he knew that his friend hated when he skipped meals), and ran off to one of his tables to devour the tasty meal.

Sonic leaned back on one of the walls next to where he came in and could not help but ponder on his friend. Geez… Tails' appetite could almost rival mine. He chuckled.

It was at that point when he heard the familiar sound of Amy's voice. It wasn't the usual ecstatic tone of her voice. This time she sounded concerned. But about what? He wasn't so sure himself. Sonic sped out of Tails' workshop in a flash, followed by the young fox himself.

The blue hero skidded to a halt once in the other portion of Tails' house. "What is it Amy?"

Amy turned around to face both the blue hedgehog and orange tinted fox. "Just look for yourself. She pointed towards the TV screen in the middle of Tails' living room.

"Breaking news! The infamous Shadow the Hedgehog was last seen near a former GUN base that was left in flames due to a huge explosion." A scene with Shadow standing amongst the ruins of the said base was shown. The said hedgehog was glancing off in the distance with an almost hurt expression.

"It has also been noted that he took out about a dozen gun soldiers while he was inside a nearby hospital. The general from GUN confirms that Shadow had taken off with a young human girl and supposedly kidnapped her for reasons unknown…" At that point, Amy had turned off the television screen.

"You guys don't honestly believe this, do you?" Sonic asked as he glanced back and forth between both of his friends.

"Of course not Sonic. It's just, I'm a bit worried." Amy frowned as she sat down on a large sofa in the middle of the room.

"I know you'll hate me for saying this, but I agree with Amy." Tails ears drooped at this point. "This is definitely not looking good."

Sonic sighed. "I don't blame you guys for worrying, but it's not like worrying ever got us anywhere."

"That's true." Amy tried to smile a little but nonetheless still looked a bit upset.

"So what should we do Sonic?" Tails inquired.

"Just leave that to me." A smooth yet deep voice replied. Everyone turned around in disbelief. Their eyes took in the form of a black hedgehog with red streaks.

"Shadow!" Sonic, Amy, and Tails shouted in unison. They were all definitely not expecting to see Shadow, let alone myself.

Amy was the first to notice. "Caroline? What are you doing here?" She questioned in disbelief.

I was about to answer, but to my annoyance, was abruptly cut off by Shadow. "Long story short, I need you to take care of her while I'm gone." Shadow answered back emotionlessly. His eyes seemed to deceive him however. I could tell that in the inside, it was really tormenting him that he had to leave me.

Amy crossed her arms and held a slightly angered expression. "And where exactly will you be going?"

Shadow finally gave in his sad expression as he answered back solemnly, "Anywhere… Just as long as it's far away from Caroline. I won't let them hurt her. Not again. Not like…"

I softly pressed my hand on Shadow's shoulder. "Shadow…" I whispered softly.

"What? What happened?" Sonic asked in concern. The blue hero's eyes then traveled down to my left arm which was tightly covered with a thick white bandage. They instantly widened in surprise. "They didn't…"

"They did." Shadow's eyes still seemed to hold hatred from that incident. It made me depressed to see him like this, but there wasn't much I could do. I sighed as she glanced down sadly.

"Well then we'll just have to prove to everyone that GUN is not to be trusted. They can't just lie about it! Not on my watch!" For once, Sonic seemed to be very flustered. His fists were clenched and he had a fire burning in his eyes that showed that he wasn't about to back out of this fight.

I looked up to Shadow to see what he had to say, but was immediately discouraged when I saw him shake his head in disapproval.

"Look Sonic… I know you want to do something about this just as much as I do, but this is not your fight. If any of you get involved they'll be sure to go after you as well. That's most definitely not going to help Caroline, and they'll be sure to come crawling here right away. Just watch over her please." Shadow held a stern look on his face; he wasn't playing any games.

Sonic looked at his rival in surprise. "But Shadow…"

"No butts Sonic! Do it or I swear I'll kill you!" Shadow answered angrily.

I knew it was all a cover up for his real feelings, but it still shook me up.

Sonic's ears drooped and he frowned. "Okay…"

Shadow sighed deeply and then turned to face me. "Once again, I'm sorry I have to do this." He then gave me a quick kiss on the cheek which made her blush slightly, and whispered, "I love you, and you know it. I'm just not sure if I can keep my promise, but I'll sure as hell will try."

I nodded back at him as my head was faced downward.

However, it seemed that the I could not hold back my tears for I felt Shadow's smooth gloved hand brush tears off my cheek. He then grabbed my hand and squeezed it as if for reassurance. Then without looking back, he turned away and started walking away from us.

"So that's it? Your just going to give up?"

Everyone turned around to face Sonic as they heard his cold yet wavering voice.

"Of course not. Just because I'm facing this alone doesn't mean I've given up." Shadow replied back coldly. I turned to face him and noticed that he still had his back turned from everyone. He probably knew that if he turned back now, then he wouldn't be able to leave. "I know it sounds like suicide but I have to try."

I looked down sadly as I heard his not so upbeat tone. So I guess even he's not sure he'll make it.

Sonic sighed. "Well then, if your sure about leaving could you at least promise me one thing?"

Shadow grunted in annoyance. "And that is…?"

"If you fail to stop GUN, will you let us help you?" Sonic's head then rose up and he looked up to Shadow with a determined yet stern look in his eyes.

Shadow's body seemed to stiffen at this point and Sonic cringed as if he already knew Shadow was going to lash out at him. The dark hedgehog's body seemed to relax after a minute or two however, as he answered back to Sonic. "Alright." After that single word was spoken he actually turned around, walked up to Sonic, and grabbed him by the chest as he said, "But if GUN does anything to harm her, I swear to God you'd wish you were never born."

Once Shadow let go of him, Sonic slowly walked away with both of his hands in front of him and sweat dropped immensely. "Okay, Okay." Then once Shadow was at a distance from him he added, "I promise nothing will happen to her, and if something does then I swear I'll do everything I can to save her."

Shadow nodded his head in approval and walked away. However, right as he was about to walk out the door, he stopped. "Goodbye, Caroline…" And before I could stop him from leaving, he was gone in a flash.

Try as I might, I couldn't control myself from crying. I instantly fell to my knees wishing that none of this were true and that I was still in the hospital room with a smiling Shadow. Things aren't always that easy however.

I was sobbing so much at this point that it seemed that I had affected Amy greatly. I could see her white stripped red boots slowly move towards me as several of my tears pelted on the floor. Her soft furred arms were then wrapped around me and I couldn't help but feel a sense of calm come over me. It was very little, but it helped.

After a few minutes I had calmed down enough to look up and notice Sonic's blue form in front of me. I'll admit that I was a bit surprised to see a small grin on his features.

"Don't worry Caroline. Everything will be alright." He then gave me his trademark thumbs up as if to reassure me that things would indeed turn out for the best. I just wish it were true.

"If everything is going to be alright then why do I feel so awful." I then brought my hands underneath my face and sat there with somewhat of a pouty expression.

Sonic's positive expression immediately ceased to exist. It seemed that he didn't have the answers to everything.

"I wish I could help you feel better, but you know as well as I do that Shadow won't come back until he knows it's absolutely safe for you."

I instantly rolled my eyes. "Which will never happen while GUN is around."

Sonic's eyes narrowed. "Hey! Don't think like that. It'll all work out, you'll see…"

"If you say so." I muttered before walking away towards one of the spare rooms.

~Normal POV~

Sonic's eyes held sympathy for her. He honestly didn't know what to do. Hopefully things would get better like he said. Otherwise he'd have his hands full. Sonic then sighed and immediately turned towards his two remaining friends. He started scratching his head as he said, "This was definitely not how I was planning to end this day."

Note: This was the story I was talking about on my profile page. I'm not sure if other's will like it, but if you do, thanks.:) Feel free to make any suggestions, cause I need 'em. How do I explain how I'm in the same world as Shadow? Heh... Big no no. Unless I am in the same world.O.O Don't know how I'd explain my sister part though, cause they don't believe he exists. I'll leave that up to my readers to decide though. Unless I can think of ... Enjoy!:) ~Caro