Three reviews in the first day... nice!

Before I start chapter 2, I just want to tell T.A.R.N.S that no, I don't plan for this to be a slash fic... I just want to aim for Shads and Mephy being friends. But, I do have a couple scenes planned where it falsely interprets itself as mild yaoi. :D

Mephiles coughed and sputtered, now retching roughly as he held the trashcan in his hands and waited for his upset stomach to calm down before he dared to even start talking. He felt as if he could have died from the embarrassment of this.

He felt someone rub his back to help him feel better, and, again, was amazed at how simple contact between two beings can effect both emotions and sensations in the most positive of ways.

When he was sure his stomach was now empty, Mephiles lifted his head up wearily and wiped his mouth on the back of his hand, knowing that his face had probably darkened a couple of shades of pink, as this situation felt extremely awkward, he was sure he was visibly distressed. His body shook with a cold chill that slipped up and down his spine, the sensations of cold spreading quickly from there to his fingertips, making him close his eyes as he shivered and groaned, the foul taste of vomit nastily coating his tongue as his remaining tears slid down his face.

"… What… happened?" He murmured between deep gasps, his tongue still refusing to work right, and his lungs still relatively winded. "… I don't… remember… being on… the floor…"

He opened his eyes and saw Shadow shift uneasily and look behind Mephiles to lock gazes with Rouge, who was still rubbing her hand up and down his back.

"… You have no idea what you were dreaming about?"

"… Vaguely… I remember feeling… terror… and agitation… and even pain… quite clearly… but… I cannot recall… more than just a… few bits and pieces… of it…"

He swallowed back something that was inching up his throat, and lowered his head a little more into the trashcan in case he needed to throw up again. Then he looked at Shadow for a response.

"… You don't really remember it too well?"

Mephiles shook his head lightly, staring at him with a look that asked him to explain it for him.

"… Well… you kinda scared us there for a moment…" Shadow said slowly, closing his eyes and shaking his head.

"… How so?"

Shadow looked up.

"…At first, we thought you were having a fit of some kind…"

"… Was I?"

"… No… But it was scary to watch… you were screaming, thrashing around, and shaking like you were being electrocuted or something… you kept on screeching about making the pain stop and begging for someone to help you…"

Mephiles was shaken. That definitely did sound like it was pretty scary to watch. Shadow continued, shifting the cuff of his glove a little as did.

"… You couldn't even hear us… then you started to scream about not being able to breathe and said that you were drowning or something… you even gurgled like you were…"

Shadow pulled back his glove a little to show his wrist to Mephiles, who moaned queasily at the deep teeth marks that had been gouged into the back of it.

"… Your eyes opened, and glinted madly before you grabbed and bit down on my hand…" Shadow looked away solemnly and pulled his hand back, tugging the cuff back over it. "… I think 'Dark' had slipped through then… either that or you were really out of it and possibly delusional… anyway… you bit down and wouldn't let go for a couple of minutes, growling like a dog… you finally let go when you jumped, like you'd been hit or something, and fell on the floor, screaming again for help… then you woke up just a few minutes later, in a panic and now… Are you okay?"

The thought of sinking his teeth so deeply into Shadow's flesh had caused Mephiles' face to pale quickly, and he closed his eyes and groaned… but was thankful that he had nothing left to throw up as his stomach tried to churn, but he still ended up drooling a little, as you tend to do before you barf.

"… I'm sorry…" He moaned weakly. "… I'm so sorry I did that…"

"That's okay… like I said… you were probably delusional…"

Mephiles was breathing heavily now. He had long since set the trashcan down, and was now clutching at his chest fluff, digging his claws into it, scratching his hands up and down his chest. He whimpered before moaning slowly: "… I'm sorry… I'm sorry... I'm sorry… I'm sorry… I'm sorry… I'm sorry…" He did so as he started fall asleep again, exhaustion catching up with and wrapping around him, dragging the shade down into REM sleep with a soft breath of air escaping from him as he continued his low chant. Suddenly… his tone changed, deeper and darker, almost a low rumble in his throat, with a singsong-like rhythm as his chant changed as well. "… You're not… You're not... You're not... You're not… You're not… You're not…"

For a while, Rouge and Shadow could only watch, unable to really help him as his tones changed back and forth, the good Mephiles' sounding frantic, and the bad one's sounding calm and collected, as if he was trying to pressure Mephiles into breaking, and wanted to drag it out. The facial expressions switched back and forth as well, with Mephiles on the verge of tears when it switched back to him.

Realizing that if this went any further, no good could come from it, Shadow leaned forward and seized the shade by the shoulders and gave him a couple of good shakes. Mephiles head tilted back once he had been pulled forward, and stayed tilted as he hung limply while Shadow tried to shake him awake. His words changed again to: "… I'm not… I'm not… I'm not… I'm not… I'm not…" and Shadow and Rouge feared that Mephiles was losing another brain fight, until he snapped awake as he said: "… I'm not… I'm not… You!"

At first, after he regained consciousness, he hung limply, as Shadow held him away at arms length, face blank and free from any emotion. He blinked and focused his eyes a little, then frowned as he saw that he had been shaken awake, frowning even more as he saw that Shadow had inadvertently held Mephiles' shoulders in a slightly painful viselike grip, Mephiles feeling bruises beginning to form under Shadow's fingers.

"… Owwwwww…"

Shadow let go and Mephiles fell back, glaring at him.

"… That hurt… y'know…"

It was Shadow's turn to say "Sorry".

Mephiles sat up a little better, rubbing his shoulders and cursing to himself before he looked at both Rouge and Shadow.

"… I just remembered some of it…." He said biting his lower lip. "… It's coming back to me…" His ears swiveled back and Rouge and Shadow waited, than he continued on, saying just one word, to which he referred to in the most callous way possible.

"… Water…"

If you knew him well, it was apparent that Mephiles despised water of most kinds. He had almost drowned within the year, caught a cold from it, and absolutely hated how it had caused him so much trouble before.

"… I'm surrounded by water…" He continued. "… And I feel electricity wrap around me and cause me to hurt… So much pain… I scream… Dark is having a field day in my mind… trying to break me and…" He stopped. "… That's it… That's all I can remember right now…"

Shadow exchanged a nervous and worried glace with Rouge.

"That's sounds a little… vague…" Rouge spoke for the first time since Mephiles had woken up.

"… It's all I got for now…" He breathed, folding his arms. "… so right now… I just want to know why I'm getting these nightmares…"

"I'm afraid we can't help you on that…" Said Shadow, shaking his head.

"… Well, if that's the case… help me with something else then…"

"What?"

"Staying awake." Mephiles lowered his head, and brought his shoulders up. "Can't have these stupid nightmares if I don't sleep, right?"

"That's good logic…" Said Rouge. "But it has one big flaw about it…"

"How so?"

"How long are you planning to go without sleep?"

"As long as I ne-" He stopped and his eyes opened wide before he facepalmed. "Dammit… I see the problem now… fantaaaastic…" He added sarcastically, practically fuming at himself for not even bothering to think that through. "So, what do I do then? Coffee? Late night movie? 'Bejeweled'? 'Robot Chicken' maybe? What?" He ran through a list of things that may be able to keep him up.

Shadow tossed him a book he had gotten off the shelf, which Mephiles almost dropped because of his bad catching skills. The shade turned it over several times, reading the title, info, and glimpsing through the first pages.

"This…" He said as if hoping Shadow was joking. "… Is a book about… rabbits… you want me to read over fifty chapters on a story about… rabbits?"

"Most kids in high school have to… besides, once you get past the beginning… it's pretty good…"

"It's about rabbits…"

"I know…"

"Rabbits trying to find a new hole to live in…"

"I think you'd like Fiver… he's a pretty interesting character…

"I can't believe I have to read a book on rabb-"

"YES!" Shadow snapped. "There are rabbits in this book! Just read it!"

Mephiles was taken aback by the reaction, and his ears flattened as he buried his nose in the book. A long pause and he said: "Bunnies?"

He almost didn't notice that Shadow looked like he wanted to strangle him for persisting with his excessive use of rabbit related words, before Rouge nudged Shadow in the side and giving him a hard stare.

End of Chapter 2 :D