Father

He remained up there for an extended period of time. He didn't say anything or do anything, he just stood there. The stirring wind had finally calmed now, making his black and red quills falter, alongside his long black vest. The echidna before him remained in awe at his appearance, as he continued to stand on the tree branch. She couldn't believe he was here. Her heart started to skip, making her place her hand upon her own chest. The hedgehog's disposition had not yet shifted, as he continued to stand.

But how much longer could she go on like this? Just the weight of his ruby eyes falling upon her, was enough to shake her body. She started trembling lightly, and began walking backwards as well. He was the one person in the world who she wanted to, so why was she acting like this? Why was she so scared and terrified of his shaded figure? There was no reason for her to be, he had done nothing as of yet, he just stood there, on that tree branch.

When he finally made a movement, it was with his hands. One atop the other, his arms crossed in their usual fashion, making his disposition even more daunting. The next second, he stepped off the branch, making the flames from his jet shoes ignite. Slowly he descended, making each second drone on for what felt like forever. It was so silent too, she could feel her heart beat within. Or maybe that was the heart of her child, it was getting hard to tell these days.

And when he landed, that was it. She wasn't exactly sure what she was suspecting. Maybe a kiss, maybe a hug, or at the very least, an 'I missed you'. But she got none of that. The hedgehog walked up close to her, so that the two could stand a mere inch or two away from one another. Then he rose his hands, and slid free the glove that held his left hand. When that black and red appendage was freed, she watch him open and close his hand, before placing it upon her pregnant belly. If he were anyone else, she would have stricken him. But there was just something about that black and red hedgehog that quelled her emotions.

He was so warm. His touch, that is. Despite his demented appearance, his cold attitude, and silent nature, the touch of his hand upon her enlarged stomach was so incredibly warm. He was truly a lively fellow, in spite of his many robotic notions. She could forget that at times, seeing as she rarely saw him in the first place.

What brought on his appearance in fact? Had Rouge's talk really brought him? Or had he come on his fruition? His emotionless face wasn't helping, and those ruby eyes of his didn't say much either. He wasn't even speaking, though she wished he would answer the question within her head. He remained so intent on keeping his hand upon her stomach, feeling the life that thrived within.

Thump.

Thump.

Thump.

He pulled back his hand, rose it, then slid his glove one once again. She stared deeply into his crimson orbs, hoping that some emotion would be transcribed within them. But of course, he remained eternally robotic, not even his face softened. His hand did raise higher though, so they could touch upon one of her many orange dreads. The shadow that had been casted upon her face thanks to the dread, was now gone allowing her to gaze upon his face in a greater light. His arms were crossed again, and in that usual daunting manner of his.

"The baby's okay..." Shadow said, without a hint of feeling within, "That's good..."

"You say that as if you're surprised," Tikal answered, as her blue orbs grew into an antagonizing squint, "Or are you trying to belittle me?"

The hedgehog's head cocked slightly, before sliding back to the position from before. Though her words were obviously an attack on him, he expressed no shift in demeanor, retaining the same look as before. His hands moved back into their crossed fashion, while his ruby eyes moved away from her face, and up to the shifting blue and white skies over head.

"I was actually beginning to worry," he stated, oddly enough, "Rouge said you hadn't been feeling well as of late."

Even through his emotionlessness, she could tell he wasn't being sincere. Or maybe it was because of his lack of feelings that she felt no truth resonating from his words. Whatever the case may be, his words did little to reduce the echidna's feelings. In fact, it made heightened them, making her face flush a tight red quickly.

"What does she know!?" she suddenly barked, while at the same time slamming her foot on the earth.

And, of course, the hedgehog she roared at showed zero change in his emotion. If anything, he appeared more robotic, as he took a taller and stronger pose with his stance. His arms finally uncrossed themselves, only to slide into the pockets of his vest. His ruby eyes shifted away, right as a stirring gust of wind brushed up among them.

"You might wanna keep those emotions of yours in check," the hedgehog suddenly said, "Talking bad about Rouge isn't something you would normally do. I know you're pregnant and all, but I'm not sure that's the kind of feelings you want to pass on to..." his voice trailed off, but Tikal didn't care.

Her face had turned into this downplayed version of shock. She couldn't believe the words that came from his mouth. Everyone of his words felt so hypocritical in the young echidna's mind. He sounded like he cared, but she couldn't help but feel as if that weren't true either. 'Keep those emotions of yours in check', he says, as if he's been there since the very beginning. He spoke as if he was at home with her, taking the brunt of those pregnant hormones, when in fact it had been weeks since she last saw him.

She couldn't stand the sight of him. And even though he was the one person she wanted to see most in the entire world, she wanted him to leave at this very instant. Hm, maybe her pregnant hormones were screwing with her.

"Why are you here!?" she asked out loud, while her arms flailed out to her sides.

He remained stoic against her bark, though his hands did slide from his pockets to be at his sides. To anyone else, he would have appeared the same, but not to her. She could see the slight difference his body made. It seemed to be an ability she gained over the years. She watched as his stance became more defensive prone, for his hands tightened up into curled fists. At the same time, his muzzle made slight movements, while his eyelids moved down.

"I suppose I deserved that..." he answered as he brought his arms up to cross them over one another. It was another one of his movements that showed he wasn't in the mood to talk, which was every time when it came to him.

The silence returned, with Tikal feeling antsy, and the hedgehog being oh, so, indifferent. She wanted to punch him, she wanted to strike him, she wanted to make him feel pain, and yet, she knew not why. Why did she want to hurt him so badly? Why did she want him to come here, if his face only spiked her rage?

She was fidgeting now, jerking up and down, making her anger known to all. Shadow started walking forward, his arms breaking, as they now lay at his sides. She still showed anger, even as he now stood before her. His left hand reached forward, slid passed her cheek, then cupped the side of her head. He made her rage filled face turn up to him, so that the two could see eye to eye. His opaque indifference was in complete opposition to her rage. It was quite the change in personalities for the two.

"I thought my appearance here would be appreciated," he whispered lightly, so only she could hear it, "I guess I thought wrong..."

His hand broke away from her cheek a moment later, and at the same time he began stepping backwards. The wind picked up again, as Shadow shifted his hands into his vest's pockets. The sight of him, turning around to head off for the unknown, immediately quelled all of Tikal's rage. She didn't know what it was, his appearance, or the child growing inside of her, but she felt her emotions go wild in a flux. The wind was growing a bit stronger, a sign of his coming departure.

She reached forward, and latched her hand upon his arm before he could leave. He stopped dead in his tracks, and turned around in a near robotic-like fashion. Tikal said nothing, instead staring into his ruby eyes in the bleak silence. Even through everything, her pregnancy, his lack of appearance, she felt so much love for the hedgehog. His being here was both calming, and infuriating. It drove her up a wall, and held her closely at the same time. She was in love with him, and hated him.

"Why?" she suddenly inquired.

The wind had died out by now, making his vest falter, and so too her scarf and skirt. He remained silent and indifferent however, an action which only made the echidna before him angrier.

"Answer me, Shadow!" she ordered as she slammed on his chest, "Why!?"

She pounded on his chest over and over again, waiting for his answer to come. It seemed that she pounded one time too many however, as he suddenly gripped both of her wrists. The action made her gasp and pull back, as she wasn't expecting such force to come out. His holds weren't painful, but they still showed superiority when compared to her. Her eyes were on his hands at first, before they made their way up to his eyes. Those crimson orbs of his conveyed the emotion he was best at. Anger, that is. To that, she bit her lip, and started to tremble. She never lost her own rage, however.

"Just tell me why, Shadow," she demanded, as tears started to leak from her eyes, "Please? Can you do that much?"

He moved her hands around, placing one of her hands upon the other. At the same time, he placed those hands on their child. Next, his left hand moved from her hands, so they could touch her face. His finger dragged against the tears moving down her face, cleaning them away from her eyes. She brought her face up to stare at him, as his touch moved away.

"I don't like seeing you cry," Shadow whispered, "You know that..."

"Then why do you hurt me like this?" she asked of him.

"I don't want to hurt you," he answered, "That's why..."

"Why, what?"

"Why I don't come often... or at all..." he moved even closer, allowing his lips to touch hers, "It's better this way..."

Her eyes fluttered open, seeing ruby stare back. Shadow's eyes trekked up a second later, gazing pass her. The hedgehog's hands broke free from her face and hands, sliding back into his pockets a few seconds later. The wind started to shift again, as he began walking backwards. Turning around one last time, Tikal watched the flames from his shoes light up. Her hand reached through the air to grab him, but it was too late. He vanished in a black and red streak.

Tikal's arms fell to her sides, as she stood tall once again. Why had he left so quickly? It was just the two of them, right? Remembering how he reacted when she looked up, the echidna turned around. Her eyes fell upon teal ones.

"Rouge?" she murmured, finding her batty friend's appearance surprising.

"So," the white-furred woman answered instead, "Shadow actually showed up, huh?" her blue-green eyes stared up to the blue skies, "Funny, I didn't think he was going to show."

Rouge walked her way pass Tikal, as she laid her fists on her hips. Staring up, she listened to the wind running along her wings and ears. Turning back, she peered into the echidna's blue eyes. Tikal wilted under the gaze of her friend, thanks mainly to the embarrassment she was feeling. The brief moment she had with Shadow was rare, and she felt Rouge's interruption had ruined that moment. Somehow, that made her feel bat.

"Why?" she asked of her friend.

"Oh don't give me that," Rouge said, walking to her, "Shadow was about to leave, you and I both know that," she shook her head, "The hedgehog's never been the people person. Or, any kind of person, for that matter..."

Rouge lifted her hand to lay it upon her cheek, as she took a thinking pose. Said pose was broken quickly, when Tikal began to sob and moan. Looking to her friend, she had found the echidna to be in one of her crying fits.

"Why!?" she asked out loud, to anyone who would answer her, "Why does he keep doing this!?"

She sat down on her feet whilst placing her hands on her eyes. She was crying harder now, not even Rouge's touch upon her shoulders could make her feel any better.

"What did I do to deserve this!?" she asked.

"You didn't do anything," Rouge comforted, "Don't blame yourself..."

"Then who do I blame?" she asked, as she grew silenter, "Who...?"

…

The door opened up, he stepped in, and it closed behind. The darkness within the room kept him surrounded for a few seconds, while his hand searched for the light switch. When he felt the stub, he flicked it up, making light enter into the room. Staring up, the hedgehog gazed into the light, then down and around the room. It was a fairly small room, barely bigger than that of child's room. This room was just the smaller component of a greater base. A small green cot was all he had for a bed, with a single brown desk too his side. And right in the corner of this room, one single broom.

The hedgehog in the room removed the black vest from his shoulders. He dropped it onto his chair, fiddled with his gloves, and stepped slowly for the green cot he called a bed. He laid upon it quickly, letting out quite the groan through his lips. Kicking off his shoes, he enjoyed the freedom his toes had been awarded when the sneakers were released. He placed his feet on the bed next, while his ruby eyes closed shut.

Groans and utterances escaped his mouth, as his mind replayed images from the day. Papers were done, missions were completed, and newbies had been properly trained. Tonight, he would go to sleep, only to wake up and start the process anew in the morning. Captain Shadow the hedgehog. He got more respect with his new level, yeah, but he sure doesn't get out often. It didn't matter, it wasn't like he had things to do outside of work.

His hands found the back of his head, propping him up, while those crimson eyes slowly closed shut. The mind he owned started to wonder now, as the darkness of his sights allowed him to think. He saw images, events, of days passed. Battles he's had to win over the three years, people he's had to meet, people he's had to destroy. It's been a funny life, filled with trauma, danger, pain, turmoil, and a lot of other things people wouldn't necessarily call, 'funny'. More like, 'chaotic' or possibly even 'traumatic'. Yeah, that's what his life was, traumatic.

At least he had a lot to show for it. He was a captain in the most respected government of the world. People looked up to him, for leadership, for strength, for victory. And he gave it to them, in as many quantities as he possibly could. If only they gave him that which he wanted the most. Some respect. He never really cared for it before, but now, he felt as if he had earned it. But those people outside, they denied him that which he wanted, they denied him that respect. But worst of all, they denied her respect.

The mother of a demon, they called her. She hadn't even had the child yet, and they were already calling both her and their child, a monster. They painted her in a demonically charged light, as if they were nothing but evil. She wondered why he never saw her, when she knew the answer all along.

But he didn't want to think about that. He just wanted to sleep, sleep it all off. It was better for the both of them this way, better for them all.

"God-daddy!" a small, pipsqueak voice echoed from outside his room, "God-daddy! Are you here!? I know you are! You're always here!"

The hedgehog opened his eyes, making them drag over to his door. Moving his hand to the side of his face, he rubbed his temples while he got up from his bedside. The hedgehog quickly returned his shoes to his feet, while the door started to produce noise, the call for 'God-daddy' getting louder and louder. Slipping on his vest once more, he pressed his hand on the panel device that lied on the door-side. This caused the doorway to slide open like some kind of futuristic spaceship. What lay on the other end, was this three-year-old. A long haired brunette, with the greenest eyes, she looked so cute, even though her face was red and flustered with annoyance.

"Finally I found you, God-daddy!" she yelled whilst pointing forward a finger.

Shadow blinked and unblinked, retaining his visage of stoicism.

"Molly what could you possibly want?"

Molly Tower, G.U.N. Commander's granddaughter. A girl born shortly before the Black Arms, she was named after a person her grandfather knew years ago. Despite the levels of danger G.U.N. goes through, its never uncommon to see the toddler make her way through the many halls. It was equally uncommon to see her bother a certain black and red hedgehog.

"You're being annoying again, God-daddy," Molly scolded, "I don't like that!"

Annoying, it was a word she recently learned, and she's been using it constantly. Whether it be in or out of context.

"Why are you here, Molly?" Shadow inquired, "Shouldn't you be busy bothering the Commander?"

The young girl crossed her arms, and pouted her lip.

"Grandpa is so enthralled by his work," she said stepping deeper into Shadow's room, "He's been doing boring paper work, saying he's chasing down people called, terrahists..."

"Terrorists," Shadow corrected, "Not, 'terrahists'..."

"They're still boring," Molly said, "And I hate that..." she sat herself on the hedgehog's bed and uncrossed her arms. She looked hurt for a few seconds, but her face quickly brightened up into a smile, "But at least my magical God-daddy is here to keep me busy!" Shadow groaned, while Molly laughed childishly, "Where's Mr. Omega? Isn't he usually here?"

"Mr. Omega is on vacation," Shadow answered with a sigh.

"Vacation?" Molly repeated, "What kind of vacation could Mr. Omega go on?"

"The kind that entails the destruction of a certain Doctor's base..." Shadow sighed again, "We discovered another one of the Doctor's bases near Holoska. I'm pretty sure Omega's having a field day..."

The thought of his best friend, riddling a base full of holes was enough to make the hedgehog smile, if only for a few seconds. Face returning to his usual aloof nature, the hedgehog moved his gaze back down to his God-daughter. Molly just gazed absentmindedly into Shadow's crimson orbs, while twiddling her fingers with one another.

"Are you going to be leaving soon?" Shadow inquired, breaking the brief silence, "I was about to go to bed..."

"Oh God-daddy! If I'm awake, then I know it's nowhere near time to go to bed! And I have to go to bed at... uh..." she lifted her hand, sprawling out all five fingers, "How much is this?"

"Five," Shadow answered, "And its six right now..."

"Really?" Molly said, "I don't even think I can count that high... Where is six? Is that after three or before one...?"

While the toddler before him moved into a tangent of numbers, Shadow turned around. Laying his hand on his face, the hedgehog groaned under his breath. He was fixing to get some much needed rest, but that wasn't possibly if the three-year-old never shut her trap. He loved Molly, he really did, she was his God-daughter after all, but there was just so much of this he could take. He really wasn't that good with children, to put it lightly.

"Molly!" he yelled, ceasing her words.

"Yes, God-daddy?" she answered.

His hand reached forward.

"Here, it's past your bed time, let me take you home."

"But I don't wanna go home!" Molly said, growing defensive.

"If you don't, your mother will be mad at you, and we all know how Mrs. Tower can be..."

Molly's eyes widened.

"You're right," she answered, grabbing his hand, "I don't wanna see momma mad..."

"I figured..." Shadow retorted.

He led her to his room's exit, opened the door, then left with her hand in his hand.

…

Hand in hand, they walked down the city streets. The skies overhead were growing grey, and looked as if they would burst open soon. He wasn't sure how strong the storm would be, but he knew it wouldn't be good. Sure, he'd be fine, he is the Ultimate Life Form after all, but he was sure the girl beside him would get wet and sick. And if she got sick, then Mrs. Tower would be on him like white on rice. And no amounts of doctor fighting, evil alien destroying, or ancient god crushing battles, would prepare him for the danger that awaited him if that happened.

Yard after yard the sidewalk stretched on, appearing grey and gloomy against the land. Shadow felt his body shiver from the light kisses of cold, something which made his fur stand on end. When gazing down to Molly, he found the girl was drifting in out of the realm of sleep. Her footsteps were growing shorter because of this, prompting Shadow to lift her up in his arms. The child giggled at the touch, as she shuffled her way deeper into his arms.

"You're enjoying this, aren't you?" Shadow asked of the child.

"Its rare that God-daddy picks me up," she answered, "I think the last time that happened I was a baby..."

Shadow found his eyes wavering at the word 'baby'. It was an unwanted reminder of something else. Molly noticed this, and her hands reached forward to touch the lines of his face.

"God-daddy?" she inquired, "What's the matter? You look... hurt..."

It was secretly terrifying to the girl, because she had never seen him make such a face before. God-daddy never made that face.

"God-daddy?" she said, once again.

"I messed up Molly," he stated as his vision trekked to the skies, "I messed up."

"How did you mess up?" Molly asked, "Did you... mess up your math equations?"

Shadow chuckled thanks to her childish cuteness.

"No," he whispered, "Not really... It's not that easy..."

"What?" she said, her face growing a bit fluster, "What did my magical God-daddy mess up? You can't mess up!"

"Nothing," Shadow whispered, "Let's keep moving..." he began walking again.

"Do you remember when I was a baby?" she ask, making Shadow nod curtly, "I wish I could. I mean, it is my life, I wish I could remember what I did before last week. Do you remember what you did before last week?"

His head suddenly bent forward, while this object flew off his quills. Molly pulled back and gasped, only to see Shadow's face was still the usual hardness it was known for. Beside them, that object fell. A rock, it seemed. It bounced off the ground, before rolling off onto the roadside. Molly trained her green eyes on that rock, before sliding her vision back to Shadow's ruby orbs. His face was still emotionless, even as he slowly lowered to the ground. When she felt her two feet meet the ground, her arms released the hold they held on his body. Shadow stood tall next, an act which casted a shade over his Goddaughter's body. The young brunette swallowed her spit, as she watched her Godfather turn around slowly.

There were men there, all dressed up appropriately for the cold and wet weather. But they didn't look, well, too nice, if one were to put it in Molly's terms.

"Get out of here, Black Arms!" one of them barked.

It seemed as if Shadow's hecklers had gotten more audacious over the years. It would be a lie to say their hatred of him didn't exist, but at least they held it behind closed door. Now, they seemed to have forgotten the power they held themselves. It seemed as if he had to remind them.

"Oh! You've gone and done it now!" Molly yelled, her face getting red with anger, "God-daddy's gonna use his magical powers to make you disappear!"

Shadow's hand opened wide and started to shake, as yellow energy crackled through his fingertips. Those fingers of his eventually rolled tightly into a fist, as he rose this glowing orb of energy up high. He showed this powerful attack to his assailants, making them step back in fear. When he stepped forward, the individuals directly at the back of this group ran off. And when the hedgehog began walking forward, the entire group rushed for safety, disappearing into the many alleys of this neighborhood.

His hand fell a few seconds later and the power charging within died out. As his arms crossed as usual, Molly ran up and stuck her tongue out in a taunting pose.

"You better run!" she yelled, "You don't know what my magical God-daddy can do!"

She took a strongly defiant pose, placing her fists on her hips to show anger and authority. Said pose was quickly broken however, when Shadow scooped her up in his arms.

"Let's get you home," he stated, "It's getting cold outside..."

She looked as if she wanted to yell some more, but her modest nature got the best of her. So, stealing herself from saying anything else, she closed her mouth, and nodded. The hedgehog put her down on the ground a second later, so he could grab her hand in a touch so tender. With his free hand moving into the pockets of his vest, he turned off to bring the child home. As soon as he turned though, his ruby eyes fell upon teal.

Rouge was standing before him, arms crossed, with this strongly defensive posture. Molly, finding the bat to be daunting, hid herself behind her Godfather's body.

"Uh-oh," she said, "You messed up God-daddy..." she looked at Rouge, "Miss Rouge is here..."

Maverick Talks!

This chapter, as I said before, focused on Shadow. And because of that, I'm pretty sure I've made more questions than answers. I'm sorry you guys, I just couldn't help myself. That being said, I do hope I did answer some of your questions. The main problem is, what rift happened between Tikal and Shadow that caused this? Obviously enough, they care for each other, Shadow makes that clear, and Tikal's pregnant, so something had to happen. People just don't get pregnant out of the blue, that would be a terrifying world! But enough of their relationship problems, I'm gonna save that for the next chapter.

Tikal's outburst earlier is mainly because of her pregnant woes, and of course, the hidden resentment she has over Shadow. She loves him so much, but he hasn't really been there as of late. Of course, we don't know what's happened over her pregnancy, she's currently eight to nine months into it, but we do know something happened to drive a spike between her and Shadow. What is that spike? I've hinted at it in the earlier chapter, and hinted at it some more in this chapter. Unfortunately, because I'm a jerk, you're gonna have to wait till the next part.

Also, Molly Tower. Molly is, obviously, G.U.N. Commander's granddaughter. If you all remember Expert Mode in Shadow the hedgehog, the Commander said he became a grandfather not too long ago, and he invited Shadow over to his place so the could reconcile. Molly is that granddaughter he mentioned. Her name comes from two places, first, Molly from Sonic X, and G.U.N. Commander's name from the Sonic Comics, Abraham Tower. So, yeah, she's Molly Tower, Shadow's Goddaughter. Originally, I was going to have Shadow talk with Omega in this chapter, but somehow Molly got in my head. I get carried away to easily. So instead, Omega's off blowing the hell out of Eggman robots, because that's his kind of vacation. Molly sort of keeps Shadow tethered to humanity at this point in time. If it wasn't for her, he'd probably be in his room all day, doing absolutely nothing, only coming out to give orders and such. He can't do that with Omega, because Omega isn't that kind of person, he can't do that with Rouge, because of his dealings with Tikal, and he can't do that with Tikal herself, because of obvious reasons. He really needs Molly, or else.

So, I'm done with another chapter. The next one, Shadow and Tikal's lives change. Forever.

By the by, did you all get the Power Rangers Time Force reference I made in the last chapter? Eh, probably not.

So, till next time, this is Maverick Kay Prime, signing out!