Meaningless
This is a one-shot Knuckles x Shadow fan fiction that I wrote over the past week. I decided to do this because well…I've never seen one before. I've never even seen a yaoi picture of the two of them. I've never been a yaoi fan, so this is new for me. This is the first thing I've done like this so it's not all that great, but at least I can say I tried. Anyway, if I get enough positive reviews on it then maybe I'll do something like it again. If not then…oh well. So enjoy…and stuff.
"I'll be right back you two," Sonic announces, dashing out of sight.
"Sonic! Sonic!" Knuckles calls, knowing that Sonic has intentionally left him alone with Shadow. "Damn him," Knuckles mutters. He glances over at Shadow, whose black and red quills gleam healthily in the sunlight. Sonic had been teasing Knuckles lately, saying things about Shadow's homosexual tendencies. Knuckles thinks back to the day before.
"Hey, Knuckles. I saw Shadow staring at you just now," Sonic had whispered to him.
"Shut up," Knuckles had warned, not wanting to believe it. But he had noticed it too. He had glanced at Shadow after that and, sure enough, caught him staring again.
Knuckles growls under his breath at the thought and tries to keep calm. "What am I so worked up about? It's probably not even true," Knuckles thinks. Shadow had been caught staring at Knuckles many times, but his expression remained as sincere as always. He had never even done as much as blush. "He could just as easily be planning to kill me and steal the Master Emerald," Knuckles realizes. "Yeah, that's probably it," he assures himself with a satisfied nod. "But what if it's not," he can't help but worry. "Bah! Who cares! Even if Shadow is gay, I'm not! Besides, he's more likely to go for Sonic's cotton-candy ass than me. Hmph, I'm not about to be part of some freakish yaoi," Knuckles concludes in his mind, finally relaxing. He sighs contentedly and closes his eyes.
Shadow stares off into the distance, his gaze emotionless, hiding the thoughts cluttering his mind. He knows that Sonic has left him alone with Knuckles on purpose.
"I've got to be more careful," he thinks. "If Blue Boy is catching on, then it must be really obvious. Looks like I've got a choice to make," Shadow frowns in thought, his eyes still gazing into the distance. He suddenly stands with a decisive look on his face. Shadow turns to see Knuckles with his eyes closed and walks over to him.
Knuckles's eyes open upon feeling someone standing over him. He sees Shadow staring down on him with an expression that he can't quite place and stares back, his violet eyes as blank as they can be.
"What?" he asks, an annoyed tone in his voice.
The two of them lock eyes for a moment, exchanging harsh glances. Shadow narrows his eyes hatefully before chuckling and walking off. Knuckles feels a chill creep into his bones and sits motionless for a moment. He feels himself overcome with confusion.
"Was that…disgust in his eyes?" he wonders, still picturing the look in Shadow's blood red eyes. "Or was it a 'you better watch your ass if you don't wanna get raped, bitch' look?" Knuckles's eyes scan the ground uncomfortably for a few minutes. He is snapped back into reality when Sonic's hand lands heavily on his shoulder.
"Yo, Knux, where's Shadow?" Sonic asks. "Why aren't you two all hugged up?"
"Say that again--ever--and I swear, you're dead," Knuckles threatens, giving Sonic an icy look. "And how the hell am I supposed to know where he is, anyway? The Ultimate Life Form can take care of himself. I'm not Mr. Anti-social's keeper."
"You have some nerve calling anyone anti-social," Sonic points out. Knuckles doesn't respond. He sniffs the air.
"Rain," Sonic announces, and Knuckles nods in response.
"So, where'd you go, anyway?" Knuckles asks after a few minutes of silence.
"Nowhere," Sonic answers. "I just went for a little run to give you two some time alone."
"You what?" Knuckles gives Sonic an angry look. He growls, "You know, you are really starting to irritate me, Blue Boy. I have half a mind to break your jaw."
"Oh, please. I'll take you on any day, any time, Red," Sonic grins, unfazed.
"Hmph," Knuckles responds simply. After a moment he gets to his feet and saunters off.
"Hey, where ya goin?" Sonic asks.
"Away. Your presence is starting to annoy me," Knuckles answers coldly. Sonic chuckles carelessly in response.
Knuckles's feet quietly shuffle across the smooth dirt path as he enters the woods, patches of sunlight shining on his quills through the thick canopy of branches and leaves above. He wanders aimlessly through the forest, dismissing the wave of thoughts trying to grasp hold of his mind. He comes to a stop far into the woods and circles a tree before sitting down against it. Moments later he feels the uncomfortable sensation of an intimidating gaze burning into him. He opens his eyes to see Shadow.
"I knew you were following me," Knuckles lies.
"Follow me," Shadow demands, disregarding the comment.
"Why on Mobius should I?" Knuckles asks, glaring at Shadow.
Shadow does not respond. He turns his back to Knuckles and starts to walk away. Knuckles watches and, reluctantly, stands and walks after him. Shadow begins taking quick, long strides, skating across the air just above the ground. Leaves and dust are blown outward from beneath him as he maneuvers effortlessly through the thickening trees. Knuckles follows closely behind, shattering dried leaves like thin glass with each step. Shadow approaches a dense, cave like dome of intertwined branches and leaves. He leaps into the air and curls into a ball, landing and spin-dashing through the dome. Knuckles follows suit and shreds through after him. When he uncurls his body he stumbles, landing on his hands and knees. He brushes the moist leaves from his quills and looks up, his eyes meeting the red glow of Shadow's. Shadow offers him a helping hand. Knuckles ignores him and stands up on his own.
"I don't need your help," he tells Shadow, harshly.
"So full of pride," Shadow chuckles.
"Shut up. What the heck did you bring me here for?" Knuckles asks.
"Hehe. That's what I like about you. You like to get right down to business," Shadow says. His ear twitches as thunder rumbles in the distance. The few slivers of light entering the dome fade to nothing, leaving them in the dark. "It's going to rain," he announces.
"I know," Knuckles responds, almost cutting him off.
"It's quite the romantic phenomenon. Dark and romantic, don't you think?" Shadow voices, his eyes on Knuckles.
"I guess," Knuckles answers, trying not to show how nervous he is. Bluish threads of light flash through the dome, momentarily illuminating the two of them with a low, sickly-colored glow. A crack of thunder follows and Shadow's ears flatten painfully. The earth shakes beneath their feet as the sound of water droplets plummeting through the canopy high above becomes audible. Knuckles and Shadow stare at each other through the dark, their faces occasionally highlighted by the electric blue glow of lightning. The rain falls hard around the dome, slowly trickling in. Knuckles is hit by the first drop. When it lands on his shoulder he springs into motion, as if snapped out of a trance. Knuckles leaps toward Shadow, throwing punch after punch. Shadow gracefully evades each blow. He comes back at Knuckles with a series of kicks, each of which Knuckles dodges effortlessly. They leap away from each other and Knuckles charges Shadow. He reaches out, grabbing for his throat. Shadow puts his hands up and locks them with Knuckles's. He falls back, the red echidna pinning him to the ground, their hands still locked together.
"Tell me, Shadow!" Knuckles says over the rain and thunder. "What do you want from me?"
The two of them stare at each other, breath hard. Rain drops down Knuckles's dreadlocks onto Shadow's quills before rolling onto the ground beneath them.
"What is it that I want, you ask?" Shadow finally voices, his blood red eyes ablaze with fire. "I am the Ultimate Life Form, yet what is this life I live? It is nothing!" he yells. His eyes soften, filling with the emotions he had always kept hidden. "I have nothing to live for," h continues, his voice low. "I don't even have anything to die for. My very existence is meaningless. That is an unbearable pain."
Knuckles looks down on the red-eyed hedghog, speechless. He had never seen Shadow like this before, never heard him like this before. Shadow had always been so hard and cold that the possibility of him having emotions had always been unfathomable. He regains his focus and finally responds.
"Well, what does that have to do with me?"
"You know what it has to do with you. You're the only one who shares my pain. You, too, seek the reason for which you continue to exist," Shadow answers matter-of-factly. Knuckles feels a ripping pain sear through his heart. Shadow had said it. He had said the one thing that Knuckles had been denying to himself ever since it became clear that there was no longer any need for a Guardian.
"It's not true!" Knuckles yells at Shadow, pushing him into the ground.
"Knuckles, you know as well as I do that there is no longer any need for a Guardian."
"Shut up!" Knuckles snarls and punches Shadow in the mouth. Shadow feels blood trickling down his lip as he slides back across the wet ground. He looks up to see Knuckles still on his hands and knees, his head hanging. He gets up and walks over to him.
"Don't sit there looking pathetic. You're one of the strongest creatures alive. I am the Ultimate Life Form and you the Guardian of the Master Emerald," Shadow points out. "Both of our purposes in life have been erased, but we can recreate them."
"How?" Knuckles demands to know, not budging. "Put all of Mobius in danger after working so hard to save it from Robotnik?"
"Don't be foolish. Mobius if finally peaceful and that is something that I never want to see change. But when one has lost all direction and meaning in life one will always continue on for one thing," Shadow says. "Love."
"Love," Knuckles scoffs. "Something I don't know. I don't know what it's like to be loved, so how can I ever show love to someone else?"
"You're wrong," Shadow informs him. "I've tried to hide it all this time, but I cannot do so any longer." Shadow lifts Knuckles's chin and looks him in the eyes. "I love you."
Knuckles feels himself become paralyzed by a wave of fear and shock. He tries to pull his eyes away from Shadow's, but finds himself unable to. He feels Shadow's gloved hand stroke his face and is suddenly overcome with anger. He smacks Shadow's hand away.
"Shut up, Shadow! Don't play mind games with me!" he warns, trying to determine the authenticity of the compassion in Shadow's eyes.
"Knuckles, I would never play mind games with you," Shadow assures. Knuckles feels a warmth radiating from Shadow's eyes and immediately realizes how sincere he must be. His cheeks redden slightly with embarrassment.
"Shadow…you know I'm not like that," he points out.
"What relevance has gender to love? Should the ability to procreate be a factor in determining who you love?" Shadow asks rhetorically. Knuckles ponders the point.
"I guess not…"
"And are you afraid of what other think of you?" Shadow questions.
"Hell no!" Knuckles responds with a quickness, his pride speaking for him.
"Then surely you will not fear this, either," Shadow says and presses his lips against Knuckles's. The echidna's violet eyes go wide and his heart pounds wildly. Shadow holds the back of Knuckles's neck gently, waiting for him to return the kiss. Finally, Knuckles closes his eyes and presses his lips against Shadow's. As he does so he feels his pain soothed by a great sense of peace. The two of them open their eyes and look at each other, drenched and covered in leaves and dirt.
"I love you," Shadow whispers. "Can you love me in return?"
"I-I don't know, yet," Knuckles responds, hanging his head for a moment. Shadow slouches, sadness creeping into his heart. When Knuckles raises back up, Shadow sees a slight smile on his face. "But I can start finding out right now."
