Welcome, everyone, to Shadow's coven.

Things will start picking up now, I promise! Much thanks to all of you who support with your lovely reviews, you can't imagine how much it helps out. Look, guys, this time I didn't edit too much. This is how I really write, and I wanted to test it. I just hope it still keeps interest.

In case it would confuse, here are a few things to know:

-The main character is Amy, but there will be three main viewpoints throughout the story.

-Words in italic for now are telepathic conversation. As in mind to mind.

-"Alpha" refers to the leader of a coven or small group of vampires. The alpha is usually the strongest and oldest.

Chapter Three

Intuition

His golden eyes watched his target carefully from the shadows as she adjusted the strap of her handbag. She was a young cat, her face retaining its youth. Couldn't have been more than twenty, maybe younger. Her hair was blonde, tangled, and short. A strong scent of some cheap perfume carried with the wind. The girl leaned onto the wall of the alley, eyes trained on an apartment door beside her. Every now and again, he would hear her sigh hopelessly or shake her head in disbelief. Poor thing—must have been locked out.

Observation, he thought. He was only here for observation.

The cool breeze was a welcome sensation slipping through his fur after crouching still for so long. His bright color betrayed him in the dark, and he needed to stay absolutely still to blend. Maybe she wouldn't be too frightened of him at first, but everything changed when he came closer. He hated that the most—not being able to get involved. Just one more perk of his lovely little curse.

A shudder of anticipation passed through him as his eyes traced the curve of her neck, so unprotected…so breakable. He could hear the beat of her heart resonating loudly in his ears. With a soft growl he closed his eyes and tuned out the world, if only for a moment. Perk number two: the thirst. It proved to be controlling, driving, and dangerously unbearable if not satisfied. He was a mature vampire for his youth, but even an immortal centuries old couldn't ignore the call of blood.

His eyes snapped open as a short cry pierced the night, followed by a heavy thud against pavement. The girl was gone, snuffed out as quickly as her cut-short scream. A familiar scent drifted with the air and mixed heavily with the perfume—a sort of darkness that could only come from one like him. He cursed under his breath, sprinting to the alley in a blur of white. This was bad, especially if the other turned out to one of…

He paused, skidding to a halt in the darkness to find a familiar face crouching over the cat girl's body. Rouge looked up at him in surprise, then flashed a smile and winked. "Oh, Silver. Was this yours?"

He shook his head, watching the mature bat notice the red on her fingertips and bring them to her lips. A feeling of disappointment settled in his throat as he watched her victim stare with wide eyes into the darkness, unable to move. Rouge had made a clean cut across the back of her neck; a little trick for paralyzing. But on a lighter note, at least she was another member of his own coven and not…one of them.

"Are you crazy?" he hissed.

"Well, if you don't mind sharing, you're welcome to."

"No," he shook his head. "I meant, what were you thinking? Shadow specifically said—"

"Yeah, yeah, 'no hunting until I return'. What's he going to do, yell at me?" She snorted, lifting her victim's limp body into her arms bridal style and running her fingers through her hair. Vaguely, Silver thought it seemed like she was a child playing with her life-sized doll. "Please."

He smirked. "Mm. You haven't seen someone defy him yet, have you?"

The ivory bat rolled her eyes. " I wish I knew why you're so afraid of him. You and Espio alike."

A dry laugh echoed from seemingly nowhere, surprising them both. The empty space beside Rouge began to ripple and a clear silhouette surfaced. Espio showed himself clearly then, eyes trained on her with flat seriousness. "Fear is for the enemy."

"Then why is it so important to listen?" she challenged. The girl below her had started to recover from her strike, and muffled sounds of panic were squeezing through the tight line of her mouth.

Espio gave Silver a sideways glance, and received his nod of approval. "It's better to listen to one who could easily…well…"

"…Tear you to shreds?" Silver offered. The chameleon dipped his head in agreement.

Rouge shrugged, smoothing the fur around the girl's ears. "Well, I'll believe it when I see it."

"Don't worry, you will." Silver's gaze returned to the girl, now able to twitch her fingers. "And just end it already, will you?"

The smile she returned him was dazzling, purposely flashing her fangs. Silver had never particularly known Rouge that well- he'd never particularly known anyone from the time period. Though there's a certain bonding that comes with being the one to steal a person's life away and turn them into something else. Even if he didn't know much about her then, it didn't matter now that things were different.

As he left the alleyway, ignoring the familiar sounds of feeding, he felt Espio fall into step beside him. His yellow eyes were narrowed in concentration, and he knew the temptation was pulling him more than usual. Though, he thought bitterly, even if he wanted an answer all he'd get was an excuse. "Are you alright?" Silver ventured.

"Super," he muttered.

Silver smiled warmly, bumping encouragingly into his friend's shoulder. "I'm sure Shadow will be back soon."

The two came to the edge of the darkness, stepping just to the boundary between it and the flickering lights of the city. It was quiet, still; a safe haven for creatures of night. His left boot bumped a glass bottle with a soft clink, rolling it a few inches. With a wave of his hand, an aqua glow enveloped the object and he lifted it into the air, levitating it around a bit. His companion looked up at it in interest for a moment, but the shift in attitude quickly faded.

"It's not…that," Espio said slowly, folding his arms. His eyes stared out among the buildings, and it seemed he'd rather be lost within them than speaking now. "I…"

"Yeah?" Silver prompted, refusing the pauses.

He closed his eyes. "I sense something changing. And not for the better. Be it premonition or vision, it feels close."

"Premonition?" Silver frowned. "You mean—"

It was then he felt a brush against his consciousness, soft like the touch of a fingertip to a petal and just as fragile. The familiar sensation pushed at him, asking for entrance to his mind, and he relaxed to allow it in.

Finally.

Shadow's mental voice was loud; he was close. Silver glanced over the patches of cover deeper through the city, but saw only darkness and discarded papers. He cringed at the tingle of the connection between the two. No matter how many times he'd gotten used to that telepathic stuff, it always made his stomach churn.

Sorry, I was…preoccupied.

So I have heard, Shadow mused. A premonition of some sort.

Silver smirked. Reading minds without permission again, are you? No self-control.

I do not need permission, and you do not need to question me, he growled. Besides, he added lightly, if you possessed the ability to do so, tell me how you'd resist the urge.

I wouldn't be able to, Silver replied.

Exactly.

He felt the connection closing, and his head clearing of the other hedgehog's thoughts. Espio had stood unmoving beside him, watching lights. His hand still held the bottle in the air, and he floated it closer to him for better control. "Shadow?" The chameleon asked, glancing briefly in his direction. He nodded, resting his back against the wall beside him and flipping his new toy in the sky.

As an answer to his question, quiet footsteps from behind them alerted them to another presence, and Shadow walked up between the two. The black hedgehog set his crimson gaze on Espio, lingering for a long moment before his expression cleared in understanding. Most likely taking whatever answers Silver wasn't able to give him from his own memory.

"Join Rouge," he instructed, jerking his head back towards the dark streets. "Make sure there aren't any more accidents."

"M-hm," the ninja replied curtly. With that thoughtful look on his face, he darted through an alley and out of sight.

The two hedgehogs stood in silence for quite a while. The aqua light of Silver's psychokinesis danced over the walls. The glow usually so comforting looked ghostly on the stone.

"Did you find out what the whole 'premonition' thing was about?"

Shadow huffed. "I don't believe even he knows what he meant."

"He says something is coming. Something dangerous."

The stronger vampire nodded, leaning against the wall and folding his arms. "There will always be danger. When we live so close to another coven, how can there not be?" He lifted his eyes to Silver's, raising an eyebrow.

"He has as much to fear as we do," he reminded. "Well, besides all of his connections."

Shadow scoffed, turning away from him.

"Well, maybe," he offered, "it won't be as big of a problem as you think it will. We could talk with the others and work out a deal."

Shadow's crimson gaze hardened. "So foolishly true to your heart. That will end up killing you if you aren't careful."

Silver gave a bitter chuckle, letting the glass shatter to the ground with a flourish of his fingers.

"It already has."

There goes everything! Really, tell me if it's written too...well, anything.

I know, I know; you were hoping for a Shadow POV. Don't worry, it will come soon!

Au revior!