Author's Note: I know I don't normally write Shadow/Rouge, but I when I was writing "Shadow's Green Notebook" I really loved writing Shadow and Rouge's banter. The characters have such brilliant chemistry; I decided to give it a shot. This was just a random idea I threw into words while I was bored. Tell me what you think and if you want to see more, and either way I hope you enjoy the read.

Sincerely, ShadowWeasel.

"A one-night stand."

"A one-night what?"

"You know... a stand."

"No, I don't know."

"The horizontal dance."

"Don't follow."

"I think it's time we get to know each other a little more... intimately."

"What the bloody hell are you talking about?"

Rouge the bat huffed and crossed her arms across her chest. Her wings flexed and twitched in a show of frustration; a display I'd witnessed many times prior. I always thought it was kind of cute, but I had never told her that...

I sipped my drink casually.

Her turquoise eyes stabbed into my own scarlet ones. The amber candlelight flickered in her gaze. "I'm talking about sex, Shadow."

I nearly choked on the wine as I stared at her, wide-eyed and startled. Several thoughts crossed my mind, but the only one that came out at the time was: "Why the hell would we have sex?"

"Why the hell not?" she shot back, refusing to back down. "Am I not attractive, Shadow?"

I raised my palms in defense. "I never said-!"

She got up with a start, nearly knocking over her chair. "Well then, what's the problem?"

I stood with her, and I noticed my palms were slick with cold sweat. This was not what I had in mind when Rouge invited me for a friendly drink. That's all we were, right? Friends? Apparently not...

So there we were, standing in her dining room and arguing about... about sex of all things. God help me.

"Why are you so angry all of a sudden?" I pried, following her to her living area.

"God, Shadow!" she spat, gesturing to the table behind us with a perfectly manicured hand. "The candles, the wine, my dress!"

She waved to her sleek, midnight-colored evening gown. It hugged her figure at all the right angles and curves, enough so to make any man who wasn't her best friend blush. But I was, in fact, her best friend. Wasn't I?

I ran a hand through my quills and sighed, rubbing my neck in awkward confusion. "I-I don't know, Rouge. You know I'm not any good at reading women..."

"Obviously," she huffed again. "I mean, we've been friends for what-?"

"Ten years," I told her, my eyes locked with the floor.

"Ten years," she echoed. She placed a palm over her forehead. "Jesus..."

We were silent for what felt like a long time.

Then Rouge plopped down on the leather couch, her face buried in her hands. She sighed something muffled and shook her head slowly. I was embarrassed as hell. But it was probably nothing compared to what she was feeling. How was I supposed to know?

"Maybe you should just go," she breathed through her web of fingers. "Just forget it."

There was another slew of silence.

I sat next to my friend the bat and sank into the chair with her. I stared up at the ceiling and tried to sort out the different feelings and emotions rattling in my skull. My hands moved to do something, but I wasn't sure what, so I let them fall back onto my legs with a quiet clap. "So."

Rouge let out a tired sigh and leaned back with me, leaning on my shoulder like she always did. When we were friends. Because that's what friends do. Her head nuzzled into my arm as she looked up at me. We locked eyes for a split-second. "So."

"Did something happen at work?" I questioned, trying to regain a sense of normalcy.

"At GUN?" she scoffed and sat upright. "Nothing ever happens there. All paperwork stuff these days."

I knew something was wrong. There always was. After a brief period of hesitation, I put both hands on her shoulders and rubbed her tan, tense skin with my thumbs. Her muscles loosened and warmed beneath as I massaged her softly. In the past, this wasn't nearly so damned awkward.

"Why the sudden interest in me?" I put it bluntly, borderline blurted.

"Jeez," she let out a breath and leaned back into me, her ivory head resting upon my chest. Those tantalizingly slender, tan legs stretched out in exhaustion across my own. "It's not all that 'sudden,' Shaddy."

"Don't call me that," I told her for the forty-freaking-millionth time. Where she had come up with that nickname, I'll never know.

"Fine," she sneered mischievously at me, the calm banter-feeling of our conversing returning at last. "Mister Doom-and-Gloom."

I ignored her teasing and increased the force of my fingers. She squirmed gently against me as I rubbed deep into her shoulders. I tried to fight the amber glow of blood rushing to my cheeks; touching and talking to Rouge had never before been so... so...

"This was a date, then?" I queried.

"Was," she emphasized. "Screw it."

"No," I insisted, "no. I'm sorry, you just... you caught me off-guard."

Her violet wings flicked and fanned-out, the velvety skin giving off a powder-purple, warm glow. Sea-blue eyes met mine as she turned to face me. One of her painted nails fingered at my tuft of chest-fur.

"So... you do want to?" she purred seductively.

There was no use trying to deny the flow of blood to my face any longer. I was beet-red and flustered as hell. "I-I didn't say that."

"The indecisive life form strikes again," Rouge made a whinnying sigh like a horse and backed away, still perched on my lap. "I'm not good enough for you?"

"I didn't say that, either!" I defended, growing further frustrated. "God, you're a pain."

"A good pain?" she asked eagerly, her pointed teeth gleaming pearly-white as she grinned at me.

"Like a piece of me's broken and hemorrhaging. That kind of pain."

"Like a broken heart?"

"With some sort of toxic plant rooting inside it."

"Like a beautiful flower?"

"Or a fungus."

"So you admit I'm growing on you?"

"Just like a fungus."

Rouge the bat smiled evilly at me. "Am I breaking you down, Sir Dark-and-Indifferent?"

I felt the inflamed sensation of my ever-pounding heart beneath the bars of my ribcage. I gulped down my cowardice and admitted defeat. "Yeah. Yeah, you are."

She laughed that beautiful laugh that only I knew. Part of me really, really wanted her to quit taunting me. Wanted her to shut up.

So I took her by the arms and planted my lips onto hers.

The look of absolute shock in her seafoam irises was totally worth it, even after we both closed our eyes and took the kiss deeper. The noise of her milk-white ears flicking this way and that coupled with her flexing wings produced an adorable chorus that made me smile through the whole ordeal. We parted after a few seconds.

I blinked a couple of times as the smirk on her sneaky little face widened. "Hello," she giggled. "I was not expecting that."

I nodded slowly. "Me neither," I said as I kissed her a second time.

Rouge ran a finger down my chest and looked up at me with a dirty kind of gaze. I followed it and asked her warily, "So... a one-night...?"

"Stand," she finished for me.

"Right. Stand. One-night stand."

"What about it?"

"I guess we... we could give it a try."

"Shadow?"

"Yeah?"

"It doesn't have to be just one night, you know."

"... Well, why didn't you say so?"