Disclaimer: "I do not under any circumstances own Sonic the Hedgehog and team, only Sega has that right; but I can still dream and think…as far as I know it is still legal."

Author's Note: "…I own the plot line and my own personal opinions as to who should be paired with whom. If you do not like the choices then you do not have to read, NO FLAMES ALLOWED, but to those who like these pairing's ENJOY!!!Reviews are gladly appreciated…if any of you want someone in particular to be paired up with Sonic than email me your suggestions…I might reference or give the other characters cameo appearances but it will be brief…"

Shadow/Amy Rose

Tails/Cream

Knuckles/Rouge

Sonic/?

…blahblahblah… = Flash backs

'...yadayayayayada…' = Inner voice/thoughts

"…lalalalalalalalalala…" = Speech/Talking

Summary:

Amy (12) and Cream (6) are in College, as a senior and as a sophomore. They have finished the semester and are now on break, which will last about a month and a half. Amy works part time at a café with Cream. They live in a three bed and bath, art/theater studio, in the rural part of Station Square, so they need to take not only private but also public transportation to get around. They all care about the environment too, you know.

Rouge (19), like Shadow, works full time as a spy/agent for G.U.N. but decided to live with the girls for the sake of conveniences.

Sonic (16), is still the hero as we all know and love, he is currently in training to be royalty.

Tails (8) is a part time College professor, not at the same College the girls attend mind you, and in his spare time he spends it getting closer to Cream and or updating his inventions/gizmos.

Knuckles (19) still is the Guardian of the Master Emerald, he as well has a part time job as a karate/kung-fu instructor, in his spare time other than watching over the "M.E." he too tries to develop a stronger relationship with Rouge.

Shadow works for G.U.N. as an intelligence agent and his spare time consists of racing motocross or on his bike traveling.

Dr. Robotnik (Eggman), he retired, and is in Hawaii doing….I kid, I kid, he did not retire… (He should though).

BTW...Each of the characters ages are displayed accordingly, and yes, those are the correct ages as far as I know from playing Sonic Heroes...Although, I was hoping to make it so that each character could be proper ages according to there occupations...but I guess that will not go over well with some of the fans and readers...(sad panda)...

Just so you all know for future references the story takes place kind of like its a AU...because in reality Shadow does not partake in Motocross as a pastime, and Knuckles does not instruct Karate/Kung-Fu...that would be cool though....if only it were true...if only...

Universal Guardian

Chapter One: Ruby Butterfly

A rose colored hedgehog opened her emerald eyes to her white and pink bedroom. She lifted herself up on her elbows and groggily looked toward her silver heart-shaped alarm clock. It read, '5:35am', she blinked stupidly at her clock for a couple of seconds then sat herself upright and rubbed her eyes to ward off the sleep.

'Amelia Rose, you silly girl, why did you have to go and wake yourself up this early in the morning; it's not like there are any classes going on today.' She rebuked herself inwardly as she yawned and stretched lifting her arms up and over her head.

Amy sighed heavily as the main event from last night's club fiasco crept slowly back from the depths of her mind.

{Flash Back}

…Amy was dancing, to Sandstorm, with her friends Rouge the bat and Cream the rabbit. The three girls had been at the club since it opened, and were still going on strong.

Rouge was dressed in a revealing purple halter dress, sterling silver heart shaped amethyst earrings'& bracelets, of the same fashion, with a stunning sliver necklace, looped around her lithe neck three times, decorated with amethyst shaped hearts, and sporting matching silver stilettos decorated with heart shaped amethysts.

While Cream was dressed in a red-gold trimmed tube-top dress that came up to shortly above the knee in a seductive flare with matching red high heels trimmed in gold, gold loop earrings encrusted with rubies hung low from her ears sparkling in the multi-colored dance lights and her gold bracelets jingled like bells as she danced to the music.

As for Amy, she was decked out in a black strapless cocktail dress with two slits each reaching up towards her mid-thigh, sporting a black choker enshrouding a white gold heart in the center, she had her long pink quills pulled into a messy bun, white gold earrings and bracelets jiggled with her movements creating a light bell like sound that seemed to accentuate the techno music perfectly and the last accessory that complimented her dark sexy look were the knee high boots.

The girls could not help themselves, they normally didn't show off in front of men, well excluding Rouge of course, but tonight somehow seemed different.

It probably had to do with the fact that with Dr. Robotnik, just was not himself.

He had taken to being distant, and even more brooding, so much so that he had isolated himself from society, not even Rouge and her partner Topaz could find him, he just upped and disappeared.

Normally he would be constantly heckling Sonic , herself, and the others, disrupting the peace, causing chaos and mayhem, lately however, it seemed that things had simmered down quite substantially and no one not even Sonic or Tails could fathom as to why things had changed.

Not that anyone on either side was complaining in all actuality everyone was to some extent tiring of the hero lifestyle.

Furthermore she started to feel, how could she describe it…empty? Unsatisfied? Maybe, it was a possibility, she seemed to notice that the others were moving on with their lives, to better and brighter things, and she felt kind of like she was being left behind or she felt like she had forgotten something vital; unfinished, in a way.

Enough of that she shook her head to dispel those thoughts, 'I didn't come here to think and reflect…I came here to club 'Trinity' to get some R&R.'

Amy returned her gaze to the dance floor checking out all the dancers, then she turned her gaze to the bar and could not help but grin at what she witnessed. Amy could not help but swell with pride as she caught the ongoing hordes of men gawking at her and her friends, moving to the music.

She had long since gotten over her hardcore crush on the blue wonder, known as Sonic. They were still good-no-scratch that they were excellent friends now.

The girls fun and exhilarating evening was about to be cut short however.

Suddenly, the club door burst open with a bang and revealed a disheveled looking Sonic; he dashed into the club and dove head first into the crowd of dancing-raging hormones.

Amy blinked stupidly at Sonic's sudden and unceremonious entrance, her gaze was then turned instantly to two more figures standing in the doorway, Tails and Knuckles suddenly came running into the club as well, making a bee-line for the bar. In hopes of what looked like to Amy and the girls to be a pathetic attempt on their parts to blend in.

Amy, Rouge, and Cream slowed their dancing down and tried to figure out what was going on from their current position out on the dance floor. Amy, gathered from the looks on their faces that either one of the more probable episodes took place prior to the sudden intrusion: 1) Dr. Robotnik, 2) Sonic did something incredibly stupid, not like that was anything new, or 3) they were trying to avoid crazy/insane fan girls.

Amy's theory was soon answered by a sudden flash of red light which lit up the club doorway, momentarily blinding her. Once she re-focused she saw another familiar face occupying the door way. Enraged ruby eyes scanned the interior of the club, 'Trinity', the ebony hedgehog surveyed the crowd of dancers seeking the culprit of his rage.

'Aaaahhhh, then its theory number two, Sonic did something to anger Shadow, now the real question is what???'

Amy gasped softly as emerald eyes met ruby. Shadow blinked, before, softening his gaze at the rose colored female, all the while managing to look bored and indifferent.

Amy inwardly giggled, trying to ignore the butterflies in her chest, at the fact that 'she' and no other woman had such an immediate effect on 'his' emotions.

Granted, Rouge had an immediate effect on 'his' emotions, too, but it was more like a brother and sister kind of relationship, competing to see who could get under each other's skin first; platonic at its best and at its worst.

Their little moment didn't last long, though, as she suddenly felt something hit her hard, causing her to land in an unnatural position on the dance floor.

She looked up angrily at the culprit, who turned out to be Sonic, she watched in mock horror as he simply shot her his trademark smirk. He then took one last look behind him, and she watched him make a bee-line for the emergency exit.

Amy sighed, haphazardly, at his abrupt rudeness, "Rose, do you need a hand?" a voice sharp and unforgiving; cut like a dagger through the loud noise of the music, but unlike most she could tell that there was some underlying sincerity and compassion.

She tried to hide the blush that slowly crept upon her cheeks at Shadow calling out to her.

She looked up to see Shadow's outstretched hand offering some assistance. She smiled genuinely, 'You know I never really thought much of it, but Sonic and Shadow really are different beings, not that their differences are a bad thing…'she reflected as she took his offer.

Amy brushed herself off and looked around for her companions, realizing they were nowhere to be found. "If you are looking for the others they are over there at the bar." Shadow grunted jerking his thumb in the general direction. And sure enough Amy found Cream and Rouge completely involved in conversation with their respected love interests.

Well, Cream and Tails were engrossed in each other's company sharing a deep and intimate conversation, sharing what looked like a sweet treat every once in a while; while Rouge and Knuckles on the other hand were making out like there was no tomorrow.

Amy shuddered in disgust at that image; shifting her attention to the ebony knight standing in front of her.

"Thank-you, Shadow." Amy chirped in a soft and angelic voice, his ears twitching in her general direction which was her only indication that he heard her, '…Man he has incredible hearing…' she observed.

"Hn?!" was all that she heard from the disgruntled male.

Amy giggled softly to herself as she thought further on the differences between the two males.

'…Sonic with his incredible speed, and heart of gold, wasn't necessarily all that suave with the ladies when push came to shove, at times he would act so fickle or it would seem that way, he would rather run around seeking adventures than settling down, Sonic the carefree bird who did not like to be caged, pretty much lived in the moment and was off in a flash; as for Shadow, even with his painful past, he exuded the aura of a person who owned everything within a five mile radius of where he was standing, he was the suave gentleman, and Shadow learned the hard way to never take anything in life for granted, unlike Sonic, who was always on the move never stopping always going, and with Shadow once you got past the rough edges and pride he really was a softy…'

"Rose, what might I ask is so funny?"Shadow asked in mock annoyance at the female's odd behavior.

Shadow smirked at her, while inwardly he was chuckling at how easily he could just let his guard down whenever he was with this particular female. '…In a life or death situation that would probably wouldn't be a good thing…but I will enjoy this moment for just a little while longer…then I have to 'kill' that stupid blue wonder…' Shadow argued mentally with himself as he waited for the rose colored hedgehog's response.

"…Oh, it's just that…you know…ummmmm…I was just thinking about something…" Amy teased, hoping that Shadow would ask her to clarify.

Shadow raised his eyebrows in amusement but kept his countenance stoic as he decided that he was going to have to drag it out of her since she wasn't going to be so forth coming. '…Probably trying to stall for as long as possible to let that 'faker' get a good head start…' he thought.

"..So, what was it that had you giggling up a storm…?" Shadow pried.

"…Oh, well, you see I was just thinking about…how much fun and how awesome this place is…" Amy said vaguely, she would never admit it to anyone, not even the girls, but she had developed a certain fondness of the ebony hedgehog's presence and liked his company, and besides she knew Shadow would 'eventually' track Sonic down.

Shadow glared at her, "…Look, I know that you are purposefully avoiding answering my question, so just cut to the chase already…" he barked, smirking at her on the outside, but on the inside he was laughing up a storm at how he could be so convincing at playing angry when he really was enjoying this little game. '…Note to self never admit that last train of thought…'he thought.

Amy Rose glared back, "…Fine, I was simply thinking about how different you and Sonic were, you know comparing and contrasting your personalities, and traits…happy now…" she retorted hotly shooting him a coy smile.

"…"

"…Shadow..?"

"…"

"…Ummmmm, was it something I said..?"

"..Humph…"

Shadow started walking stiffly away from Amy, and towards the back of the club, where the exit was, which he had seen Sonic dash through but his progress was halted suddenly.

"…Shadow, wait…look I'm sorry if what I said offended you…wait…" Amy reached out and grabbed his left arm, above the elbow, holding him fast. She found it extremely difficult not to notice the sudden electrical charge/shock that surged through her at the sudden contact. She consciously felt his muscles ripple underneath his fur as she gently squeezed his arm and tugged a little in hopes that he would acknowledge her or at the very least look at her.

"…"

"…Shadow, please…please, just hear me out…." Amy softly pleaded, hoping that he would wait with her just a little longer.

"…Whatever…" Shadow replied gruffly.

Amy didn't seem to notice that he had removed his arm from her grasp.

"…Look, I have important things that I need to tend too, maybe some other time…" Shadow retorted curtly.

Amy flinched inwardly at his curt response and her bottom lip curled slightly into her famous 'cute' little pout, which practically turned any sane man/male into putty.

Because Amy was so focused on looking at the floor and not at him, she also failed to notice that he had turned, just ever so slightly, to look over his left shoulder and smirk at her 'cute' little pout. '…Note to self, never repeat that out loud, Rouge would never let me live it down…' he finished as an afterthought.

Amy sighed heavily, bringing her gaze back up from its previous position, she watched as Shadow continued stiffly passed her, not saying another word, towards the emergency exit that Sonic had previously run through several minutes ago.

"…Shadow, wait…what was it that Sonic--?!?" Amy yelled trying to shout over the heavy and loud music playing.

"…Good-night, Rose…be careful…"

That was all that Amy heard or at least she thought that was what he said, as he disappeared in a blinding red flash, leaving her alone on the dance floor surrounded by the crowd…

{End Flash Back}

'…What did Sonic do or say for that matter to rub his quills the wrong way? Sheesh, and men say that women are complicated A/N (No offense to the men out there reading this)…I had hoped last night at the club that I would have had more time to ask Shadow himself, but now though, he might not want anything to do with me…I wonder…why did he react like that after I told him what I had been thinking…' Amy ranted to herself about the puzzle that was Shadow.

"…Oh well, I will just ask the girls about it then…" Amy said out loud. '…But, first things first, a nice hot shower will help me rinse off the sleep, among other things…' she thought.

Amy groggily trudged to her dresser and opened the drawers that held her undergarments, picking through the pile she reached out grabbing the closet bra and underwear. Out of all the ones she owned she had happened to pick the two that were ruby red silk. She held them up to her face and blinked slowly at her choice, '…They kind of remind me of his eyes…' she mused to herself, completely unaware of the cherry red blush that had spread like wild fire across her cheeks. A/N (…It can happen, trust me on that, it happens to me a lot…blushing without being aware of it, until someone points it out, which makes it worse, because then your blush turns an even darker shade and you can feel the hot burn of it all…)

She then opened the next couple of drawers and picked out a black tube top, red-black and white plaid bell bottoms, coupled with a white mini-jacket and a pair of white-black streaked ballerina slippers, with a red rose embroidered in ruby's, perched at the top.

Amy walked with her clothes and accessories in hand, out of her room and tip-toed past her roommates, Rouge and Cream's rooms, towards the overly sized bathroom and locked the door behind her.

To be continued…

How was my first Shadow and Amy fanfic???

It's not my 'first' fanfic, but it is my first official Shadow/Amy Rose fanfic…I am so happy…

And the title of the chapter, doesn't relate to the content per say, more like it is a symbolic meaning, that Amy Rose has grown up, she has matured into an adult, she has changed on the inside and out, she is no longer a weak cocoon, but a powerful Ruby Butterfly…(hint hint to the Ruby reference)…

Oh! Yeah, about the flash back, sorry about it being so long, I promise in the near future that will not be the case.

But seeing as how I tend to not explain perfectly the overall setting of any of my stories, I thought, in a detailed flash back, everyone would know at least some of the background.

I am hoping that there will not be any confusion overall in this chapter or in future chapters.

I had originally planned for this story to be a one-shot…but as I was writing it out I found, now though, it seems that a One-shot just would not do it justice…and generally speaking when people, myself included, tend to rush through things it doesn't turn out quite like you had originally planned it too. So I will take my sweet time writing it out, or at least giving it a nice solid pace, so that I don't feel like I am being rushed all the while satisfying the readers.

Reviews are gladly appreciated.