Shadow was surprised. He had started hearing sobbing and crying a little ways off. He was perfectly relaxed by the brook but, something told him to get his lazy ass up. At first, he thought it was a little kid. But, then he heard high pitched screams that could only belong to an older girl. Determined to investigate it, he got up from his relaxed position next to the brook and dashed off toward the noises. Stopping momentarily, he saw a familiar figure. The dark one hated any kind of pure sadness; the same was for Rouge's unstoppable crying earlier this week. He leaned against the trunk of the tree atop a thick branch. He wasn't as taken by surprise when he saw it was the bat again. Make-up streaming down her face, she angrily wiped it off. She shivered slightly and stopped crying. Amused at what was playing right in front of him, Shadow decided to hang around for a little while longer before revealing himself. He saw the anger and rage that wracked her body and how hurt she was. Mood swings. He thought to himself. She was probably having woman problems or something. He was curious either way to know why she was like this; he hopped down from the high branch and landed soundlessly next to the poor bat. He put a careful hand unto her shoulder and the sobs ceased. She whirled around and came face to face with him. He smirked as she fell and moved away a little she quietly asked,

"How long were you here, Shadow?" while wiping her face of her tears and flowing make up. Helping her up; he answered,

"Long enough to know something's bothering you." Motioning toward the destroyed tree she colored and looked away. They both sat on the freezing bench and she fidgeted. Shadow waited patiently for a response.

"Weren't you supposed to be at the cinema with that echidna?" he inquired suspiciously. He noticed that he'd made the wrong move when her face fell and her glassy eyes teared up again. He listened to her story. She spoke quietly but gained tone as she went on. Soon, she was speaking normally and all traces of the past incident were wiped clean off her face.

"So…that's it?" Shadow asked. He smirked inwardly; again, his hunch was correct. Woman problems with the echidna. Rouge nodded and slumped slightly,

"Now, what am I supposed to do?" She questioned out loud. Shadow thought deeply about the question.

"Well, I don't know. I don't control your thoughts or what you'd want to do…but…" The bat's face became stony but, she waited for Shadow to go on.

"Don't you want to talk it out with someone else other than me? Never forget, I'm still Shadow." The hedgehog's face was serious, but Rouge's face softened, and she smiled for the first time that night even though his voice was covered with sarcasm.

"You think I should talk to…?" she paused. Shadow nodded and lay back on the bench.

"Unless you want to beat him up before that, you should talk to him." He glanced at her and shrugged, showing that he was losing interest in the topic. The hedgehog didn't think he gave such great advice, but at least the tears stopped. She was recomposed and that was comforting. His conscience struck at that moment. It kept nagging him, telling him to reach out toward the bat. Shadow's mind was set in reality though; just talking to her mildly was enough for him.

"Are you okay now?" he managed to ask, his mind was still a little jumbled up. He had enough reflexes to remember what had happened before, and he blocked his head in case of a hit as he waited for a response. She giggled and replied,

"Yes, I am." She paused for a moment and then spoke again,

"Oh and…um, what do you if you yelled at someone earlier but meant nothing that you said?" she shyly fidgeted and Shadow raised an eyebrow and smirked,

"I'd say I'm sorry and apologize."

"Oh, thanks. I'm…"

"Yea, I understand, it's fine. We're just both impatient and irritable people." Shadow cut her off but, Rouge smiled anyways.

"Do I look okay?" she questioned teasingly while pushing some snow-white fur out of her face. Shadow shook his head and sighed,

"Make up or not, it's fine." He replied lazily. There was an awkward silence and then Rouge spoke up again,

"So, I guess I got to go home and sort things out in my mind." Shadow nodded as she got up to leave. She stopped abruptly and turned around to face the dark one.

"Thank you, Shadow." She quietly whispered and she hugged him…

Everything was happening so quickly, like a domino effect one right after the other. It was really too quick for the solemn hedgehog. Their consciences were definitely conspiring something. Shadow growled inwardly at his body. It was frozen still and wouldn't move. The white bat saw the dark hedgehog's eyes light up when she made contact and stay that way, he was in definite shock. She felt his warm fur against her and calmness pervaded her soul. Rouge felt the strange urge to nuzzle into him…he had fur, it was warm. The bat thankfully resisted. That would've made Shadow very irritable and it wouldn't be the best situation to be in for both people. They stood there for a good ten seconds before Shadow coughed, signaling to let go. It was nice that she was trying to repay him but, he really didn't need all the attention. He could tell, Rouge would've stayed there hugging him and he would get anxious. She noticed and they finally came back to Earth again. Laughing nervously she stepped back, giving her room to spread her wings, and ascended into the air leaving behind another friend. Feeling those crimson eyes staring at her, confused, she soared higher and farther away from that park until she was out of his distance.

Shadow's emotions were out of control. He felt this strange longing now. Clutching his head he sat down on the same bench. The hedgehog never remembered feelings like this; only around Maria did he once feel them. They were all warm and fuzzy. He made a face. These feelings were so different and foreign. He had no idea how to take care of people. He was always indifferent and cold to everyone. How was he to change? That was very uncalled for, he confirmed it with himself. It just caught him by surprise and he was still in shock…that was all. His conscience pestered him again. It kept insisting that this was one of the first signs of…affection. Shadow glared at himself in the brook that ran through the park and splashed his reflection, splashing the water. The dark hedgehog wasn't easily convinced though. He would resist, for as long as time demanded. His feet ran him away from the park; he would feel better when he wasn't at the "scene of the crime". It took only a couple of minutes to reach his box again. It was drizzling when he reached the grey alleyway. Color was drained from everything except Shadow himself. Crawling into the soaked shelter, he rethought about Sonic's previous request. He grunted to himself. No, he retorted himself. The raindrops kept the hedgehog awake and he thought more and more about how the meeting went. It was…uncomfortable. His conscience questioned Shadow again about his feelings. Disgusted, he managed to drift into a light sleep. The rest was only temporary though. Immediately, he heard shuffling and someone…no, three people walking around his area. Sighing, he muttered,

"Guess it's just not my day." Leaping out of his box, he caught a glimpse of the mysterious figures. They came closer and Shadow recognized them as just another group…trespassing. It was a relief. At first, he thought it was the bat again. Mentally, he slapped himself in the face.

"Hey, look, it's a hedgehog." A member whispered. A tall, grey squirrel turned around along with two other members flanking him. His fur was slightly mussed up and he looked irritable.

"What are you doing?" Shadow simply questioned.

"What's it look like? We're gonna label this territory as our own." The squirrel gave a look that almost said, "Dumbass." A short, brown bird glanced at Shadow uneasily, as Shadow raised an eyebrow,

"Boss, I think he owns this part." Shadow smirked and nodded. The squirrel shrugged and replied,

"So? He probably has some other good things around here." He shoved past Shadow and immediately, he'd made a wrong move. The shadowy hedgehog charged into the passing by group and slammed them into the brick wall on the side. The other silent member, a lime fox, glared at Shadow as well as his "boss". Shadow raised and eyebrow. The fox stalked over but, the squirrel stopped him.

"Let's go get 'em boys." The squirrel wasn't about to let the fox take control yet. Unfortunately for them, they didn't know who they were dealing with. The hedgehog smiled and beat them quickly. He slipped behind the bird and hit him hard on the head, shaking him up for a moment. Swiftly, he crushed his poor wing and the bird's scream penetrated the stillness of the night. Shadow finished up by knocking him to his knees and the bird clutched his wing in obvious pain.

"Shut up. There's going to be more attention if you don't." Shadow threateningly whispered. He kicked the squirrel into the other brick wall and slammed his face once more. The big "boss" fell into a heap and crumpled up, moaning something about his face. The fox was next in Shadow's mind. Surprisingly, he put up a good fight. The lime competitor wasn't as speedy as Shadow, but he got a couple of light attacks on him. That didn't faze the hedgehog for a split-second though. It was useless. Shadow tripped him and he fell face first into his other friends. The quick hedgehog smashed a foot into his back and the fox bit his lip in pain to prevent himself from crying out like his other friend. Shadow smirked and the fox grimaced as he dug his hard shoe deeper into his back. When the hedgehog finally stopped toying around with the worthless, low-life stealers, he tossed them over a tall white fence and into another alleyway. They weren't killed and they should've been thankful, Shadow thought to himself. He could've ended their poor lives right then and there. That made him think of his own life though. It was just as worthless. Frowning at the thoughts, he mentally hit his head. What a weird thought. He was the ultimate life-form, better than anyone. Inwardly, he made a note to always put that in his mind. He shook his head and slunk back into his drenched box and slept lightly.

AN: I DO NOT OWN SONIC THE HEDGEHOG OR AFFILIATED CHARACTERS. Need I say more? ...thought not.