A/N: I think I will be writing more of these one-shots every now and then. In this one, there are two references made. One is to the game "Sonic and the Black Knight", where, in fact, Shadow's character is Sir Lancelot. The other is from the first "Legend of Zelda". It quotes the famous line, "It's dangerous to go alone! Take this." . . . Now, please enjoy this next chapter in One Tranquil Colloquy!
Maria Robotnik was skipping playfully in circles around the lobby of the Space Colony ARK. She was excited for a gift that her grandfather was bringing her, which was a rare occurrence on the ARK. The door behind her slid open as the girl bounced around.
"Oh, Shadow!" she exclaimed happily, glad to see her friend. The black and red hedgehog bowed slightly and held out a pink box, which was tied up in a crimson ribbon.
"This is from your grandfather to you," he announced.
Maria gently took the box and played with the ribbon that was beautifully wrapped around the pink box for a few seconds. She plopped down to the ground, sitting cross-legged with the pink box in front of her.
"Sit down, Shadow!"
The girl patted the ground next to her. Shadow shrugged, smiling as he gave in to the girl's innocent blue eyes.
"Well, I suppose I have no choice . . ."
Maria carefully unwrapped the red ribbon from the pink box. She hesitated to open the box, and instead shook it lightly. The hedgehog watched as his friend slid the top of the box from the rest and pulled away the remaining tissue paper. She let Shadow take away some of the paper as she'd promised. When she ripped the last of the white paper away, Maria stared in awe at the gift.
"Ohh . . ." she breathed. Shadow curiously craned his neck over the box to see what it was.
"Well?"
"It's a book!" exclaimed Maria with glee. She held up the hardcover storybook of about nine inches wide and a foot long(vertically, or for those who don't know, up and down). It was dark brown and bordered with golden patterns. The title on the front was also painted with beautiful golden paint and embroidered with red thread that had been woven into the shape of flowers. Needless to say, the book was probably ancient. Shadow appeared somewhat disappointed at the gift.
"It certainly is . . . very fancy," he stuttered, not knowing exactly what to say. Maria noticed his odd change of behavior.
"Yes, it is. I love it," she said, not changing her own cheerful demeanor. Shadow shook his head, ridding himself of doubtful thoughts.
"Anyway, what do you do with it?" he asked, having never seen a book before. Maria widened her eyes.
"Shadow, you . . . you've never learned to read?"
The dark hedgehog shook his head, this time slowly.
"No, I'm afraid not. Is that what you do? Read it?"
"Yes, exactly!" Maria cried with great ecstasy. Shadow, taken aback by her sudden outburst, raised his eyebrows. In another moment, he frowned, still confused by the concept of reading.
"Words written on paper and bound into a decorated cover? I'm sorry, but I don't quite understand all this . . ."
Maria wasn't offended or frustrated with Shadow's utter bewilderment.
"Not just words, Shadow. A story. There's more than you think in the pages of this book."
"Are there pictures?"
Maria giggled.
"Yes, there are even pictures!" she smiled, looking at the first ornate page. Shadow gazed at the colorful leaflet of the book.
". . . What is it called?" he asked softly, becoming more eager to hear it. Maria checked the front cover again.
"It's called, Princess by Day and Raven by Night."
"That was incredible!" The exclamation, surprisingly enough, had come from Shadow. He had been genuinely engrossed in the story set in the middle ages. Maria laughed.
"Wasn't it, though? I loved it!"
"I liked the part where it's revealed that the princess of Thorona was the mysterious Black Raven Knight, and also that she was willing to give her life for the helpless citizens."
Maria gently closed the book.
"Well, I'm so glad you liked it! And what you just described is called Chivalry."
"Chivalry?"
"Yes. It's a code that the knights in the middle ages followed. They needed to fight to protect the defenseless."
"This 'Chivalry Code' . . . I will be a part of it when we get to Earth. I will be a warrior! They shall call me . . ." There was a pause as Shadow struggled to find a name for himself. He wrinkled his nose and pursed his lips. Maria giggled at the bubbly happiness he was showing.
"How about 'Sir Lancelot'?" she suggested. Shadow snapped his fingers.
"Yes! Brilliant idea, Princess Maria," he responded. Maria laughed loudly and played along.
"You'll need a task to prove that you're chivalrous," she said, tapping her chin in thought. Shadow knelt on one knee in front of her.
"Your wish is my command, your highness."
Maria laughed again.
"Let's pretend that there's a dragon that's destroying the castle town!" she exclaimed. "Yes, there's a dragon, and the other knights are afraid of it."
"I'm the great Sir Lancelot. I have no fear of a stupid beast like that." Shadow rose and whispered, "Chaos Control!" In less than a minute, the hedgehog had created a small "sword" from pieces of broken machinery. Maria raised her eyebrows, mildly surprised.
"Well, Sir Lancelot, it looks as though you are ready to fight that dragon! However, it's dangerous to go alone, so please take this! It's a token of my appreciation." Maria took the crimson ribbon from the gift box and tied it around Shadow's wrist.
"Thank you, milady," he said softly, kneeling down once again and taking Maria's hand, "I will treasure it forever."
Hours of the game went on as Maria and Shadow thought of various obstacles to put in Sir Lancelot's way. The two finally got to the point where Lancelot had defeated the dragon and was rescuing the princess, who had been captured earlier on.
"Princess Maria, I've found you!" he declared. Maria put her hands on her face.
"Oh, Sir Lancelot, it's you! Thank goodness you've come!" she cried.
Shadow bowed low.
"And now, we shall travel back to the castle, milady. Let us go!" The two galloped around in a circle, pretending to return home. Once they "arrived", Shadow frowned. "Well . . . that was fun," he said bluntly.
"Oh, it's not over, Sir Lancelot," Maria said. "I have a tradition that must be followed first."
"What's that, then?"
The girl addressed a pretend crowd.
"For the honorable knight, Sir Lancelot!"
Maria leaned over and kissed Shadow on the cheek.