This is a sadder chapter. In this, Shadow nearly makes a life-threatening decision on the day of Maria's death. Somebody saves him...but who? Probably not who you think. Also, this uses lyrics to the song "Fly Me To The Moon" by the great Frank Sinatra. They used that song at my best friend's uncle's funeral, and I thought it was fitting since it's a '50s song, dating back to when Shadow would have been first created. I do not own it. Enjoy! ~PierceTheBre
Endless Shadow Oneshots, Chapter 2 - Love Never Dies
Shadow opened his eyes. He was in his bed, having just woke up. It was only another day in the solitary existence that he lived in. Now that he had quit his job at G.U.N., the passing days were getting more and more boring.
He got up from his bed unhurriedly, and yawned. His quills were still damp from his shower last night. He glanced down at his bed, his red-colored pillow and sheets askew. It looked like he had had a wreckless sleep last night. He decided to make his bed, for once. Hey, it was something to do.
After he had made his bed, Shadow walked into his kitchen and turned on his coffee-maker. As he waited for it to warm up, he walked into the bathroom and stared at himself in the mirror. Who was this hedgehog? He didn't recognize the male staring back. When had his eyes become so lifeless, so dead? Shadow internally laughed at that. He was the Ultimate Life Form, who had lifeless eyes. When had he started to see too many terrible things, all too quickly?
He started to walk out of the bathroom, when he noticed his razor. It wasn't lying in the soap dish inside the shower, as it usually was. Instead, it was lying on the bathroom sink, like a sharp-toothed monster ready to eat him alive.
Suddenly, realizing how the razor had gotten there, Shadow slowly glanced down at his leg. Ahh. Right. From last night, he thought, eyeing the zig-zagging cuts.
He had promised himself he wouldn't do that anymore. He knew Maria would have never been proud if she was alive. And he did stop, he fought the urge, for a very long time. For nearly a year. But it seems that last night, he broke his promise.
But why? Shadow racked his brain for a reason, any reason, and was suddenly met with an explosive headache. Can't anything ever go right for me? he thought. He really wished Maria were -
Maria! It was the anniversary of her death. That was why he had cut. Stupid, he thought. I'm so freaking stupid. It's the anniversary of her death, and I forgot?
Shadow hurried out of his bathroom, quickly unplugged the coffee-maker, and grabbed a coat, making sure his iPod was in his pocket, as that was where he usually kept it.
It was a cold day, ice fairies falling elegantly onto the ground. In this part of the country, it was pretty uncommon for it to snow at all, so Shadow wasn't used to this. He pulled his coat tightly around himself.
Shadow dashed into the florist shop on the corner of the road.
A fat, pot-bellied echidna stepped out from behind the counter. "Hey, young-un! How may I - "
"I need a Forget-Me-Not flower," Shadow said.
"How many?" The echidna asked.
"Just one. A live one, if you can get it."
"Not sure we have any live ones this time of year. But, I can check."
After waiting about five minutes, the man brought a single bright-blue flower. "This'll do?"
"Yes, sir. Thank you. I appreciate it." He handed the man 10 rings and left.
As Shadow walked through the cold town, he kept the flower safely inside his coat. He was careful not to damage it on his way to the cemetery.
At last, he arrived. He strode over to Maria's makeshift grave, ignoring the freezing wind gnawing at his face. When he arrived at the wood-carved tomb that he himself had made (the gravedigger didn't mind, since Shadow had done so much to prevent him from having to create more graves), he sat down and placed the flower on the gravehead.
"Maria," Shadow whispered. "I messed up last night. I was thinking of you, and I guess I couldn't handle it. I know what I did was wrong, but I hope you can forgive me."
As soon as he said it, a bone-chilling breeze swept over Shadow. It was freezing, yet it somehow made him feel at peace. He knew it wasn't Maria. He knew it was only a coincidence, yet somehow, it still made him feel the slightest bit of joy.
"At least I did something right, for once. I got your favorite flower for you, Maria. I got you a Forget-Me-Not." Shadow felt his voice crack as he said those words. "How about we listen to our favorite song?"
Shadow pulled his iPod out of his coat pocket and found the song he was looking for. He placed the iPod on the ground, lay back, and sighed in relief. These moments that occured once a year were when he was truly happy.
Fly me to the moon
Let me play among the stars
Let me see what spring is like
On Jupiter and Mars
In other words, hold my hand
In other words, baby, kiss me
Fill my heart with song
And let me sing forever more
You are all I long for
All I worship and adore
In other words, please be true
In other words, I love you
Fill my heart with song
Let me sing for ever more
You are all I long for
All I worship and adore
In other words, please be true
In other words, in other words
I love you
The song was by Frank Sinatra, a musician popular in the 1950s when Shadow had first been created. Maria had showed it to him the first day he had been created. He always remembered that song. He always heard that song play in his head when he imagined Maria. No, he didn't think of Maria in a romantic way. But he did love her. She had given him hope, and she had given him trust. That had all been lost along with her life.
As quickly as his mood had shifted to happy, it suddenly shifted to angry. Those G.U.N. Commanders! They had killed Maria! And what had he been doing all these years, working for G.U.N.?
Shadow stood up, almost knocking over Maria's grave. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," he muttered, grabbing his iPod and running from the cemetery.
Shadow threw his coat down on the floor as soon as he had ran into his home. He had barely wiped the snow off of himself when he wandered into the bathroom. He hadn't really meant to walk in there. It was like his feet had carried him there themselves. He meant to look into the mirror again, but his eyes strayed to the flesh-eating monster next to his toothbrush. It sang its song to him. Shadow, I can make you feel better. Shadow, I can take you to Maria. Shadow, just brush me against your skin, and everything will be all right...
No, it won't, Shadow bitterly thought back. Nothing can be okay. Not with Maria dead. A stupid razor is never going to bring her back.
And yet, Shadow felt his hand reach out to grab it. He carefully brought the razor to his wrist, and gently placed it on his skin, prepared to rip himself open -
"Fly me to the moon, let me play among the stars, let me see what spring is like on Jupiter and Mars..."
Shadow gasped. His iPod! He had turned it off, though...he threw the razor down. He hadn't done it. The song had stopped him. No...Maria had stopped him. This time, he knew she was nearby. She had somehow turned his iPod on and played their song.
"Thank you so much," he whispered, his eyes closed. When he opened them, he once again was facing himself in the mirror. This time, he didn't quite see lifeless, dead eyes. These eyes were hurt, a broken crimson flame dancing in them. These eyes were hurt, yes, but these eyes were alive.
Author's note: I nearly teared up while writing this. ;-; This is such a sad chapter, but it's so filled with hope, too. I'm proud of myself on this one. I usually don't like stories where Shadow has issues with self-harm because it seems so cliche, but I just felt like the story fell into place that way this time. Anyway, I hope you liked it! I worked very hard on it. Constructive criticism is welcome. ~PierceTheBre