A/N: Story's back. Neat.
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Prototype Bond
Theme: Cosmic Castaway, by Electrasy
Chapter 3: Anonymous Lyrics
Amy sighed tiredly as Rouge tuned her guitar in boredom. Rouge sat on a table in a corner of the Student Lounge, her feet resting on the bench attached to it. Amy sat next to her, absolutely frustrated by how dull the room was. They had asked Shadow to meet them after class, hoping to ask him a few questions. They looked up as he walked into the large room, looking about until he spotted them. He walked over to them, raising a brow at Rouge's grin.
"Hey Shadow." The white-haired girl called cheerfully.
"I believe I owe you an apology." He said lowly, trying not to catch the attention of the few students left in the room. "And an explanation." He sat at a table across from them. "I had to go visit my sister in the hospital, that's why I wanted to get away."
"And what about your arm?" He pulled up his sleeve to expose the wound.
"Hospital." He said simply, something akin to amusement in his ruby eyes. He finally noticed the instrument Rouge was holding.
"You play?" Amy asked hopefully, if she could get him to play, their band just might be able to start doing shows again. He nodded, a small smile on his face. "Prove it."
"How?" She stood up and walked to a locked door. She unlocked it and pulled out a guitar case. She brought it back to him and he took the instrument out carefully. "What can you play?" He smirked and started playing a familiar song, it took Rouge a minute to catch the rhythm but soon they were both playing the it. After she caught up Shadow decided to sing the lyrics, no longer concerned with drawing attention to himself.
"I was walking down the street
When out the corner of my eye,
I saw a pretty little thing approaching me
She said, "I never seen a man
Who looked so all alone,
Could you use a little company?
If you pay the right price,
Your evening will be nice,
Or you can go and send me on my way"
I said, "You're such a sweet young thing'
Why'd you do this to yourself?"
She looked at me
And this is what she said:
"There ain't no rest for the wicked,
Money don't grow on trees
I got bills to pay,
I got mouths to feed.
There aint' nothing in this world for free.
I know I can't slow done
I can't hold back
Though you know
I wish I could.
Oh no, there ain't no rest for the wicked,
Until we close our eyes for good.""
The dark-haired boy let the song trail off at that point. He gave Amy a knowing smirk. He placed the guitar on the table next to them. He turned to leave before Rouge grabbed his arm. He glanced down to her hands before glancing back up at her in irritation.
"Do we have to go through this again?" Neither of them noticed Amy wince slightly at his reference to the night before.
"You're not going anywhere until you agree to join our band." The white-haired girl declared triumphantly.
"What?" He gave Amy a pleading look.
"Sorry Shadow, normally I'd help you but we need you in the band." His pleading look quickly switched to an annoyed glare.
"Do I have a choice?"
"No." Both girls said at the same time, Rouge grinning like she had won some fabulous prize.
"Fine. Where can I buy one of those?" He asked looking at the guitar.
"Keep it. It's my old one anyway." Rouge said smiling. The dark-haired boy nodded quietly, replacing the instrument in its case.
"So Shadow…" Amy trailed off when she met his crimson eyes.
"Yes?" He asked uncertainly, glancing between Amy and Rouge.
"Sorry, she's going to keep doing that until she get's used to how cute you are." Rouge said apologetically, earning another glare from Amy and a blank look from Shadow.
"Funny." He said with a sigh, picking up the guitar carefully. "When do you practice?" He gave an amused half-smile at the confused looks. "The band?"
"Oh." Rouge said as she and Amy both blushed slightly. "Every Tuesday, Thursday and Friday after class. Unless we're really bored and fell like practicing anyway." The white-haired girl covered quickly.
"Right." He glanced at the clock on the wall. "I have to go see my sister right now. See you guy's later." He waved to them as he turned, walking out the door. After he left Rouge turned to Amy with a sly look on her face.
"We're going to follow him aren't we?" Amy asked in preemptive defeat.
"Well, how else are we supposed to know that he's telling the truth?"
"We could take the high road and believe someone for a change."
"Or we could take the fun road and follow him like the untrusting girls we are."
It was easy enough to follow Shadow. He didn't exactly blend in, whether he was in a crowd or driving down the streets on his red and black motorcycle. He was currently doing the latter as the two girls did their best to follow him discreetly. When he drove right passed the hospital Amy began to share her friend's suspicion.
"Why would he lie?" She asked as they followed him into the parking lot of some corporate building.
"Because he's a criminal. Which means we've officially arrived." She giggled at the clueless look Amy gave her. "We have a criminal in our band! That's like, the way to become famous." They parked some distance away from where Shadow parked his bike. They followed him on foot, trying to avoid both his attention and that of any security guards that might be around. He touched part of the wall which then opened up to an elevator. Amy was completely confused and looked at Rouge questioningly.
"What is this place?"