Shadow sighed as he lounged on the pink sofa, twirling the red hairband around his finger. His red eyes traversed the room. She really does love pink, doesn't she. Everything, literally everything, was pink. It was almost childish, and yet, for reasons that the obsidian hedgehog wasn't at all sure about, it was also endearing.

His ears twitched as he detected her voice coming down the hallway, and he rose to his feet, his vest settling down on his shoulders. Changing had been a simple and quick task, retrieving his jacket from the campsite, then exchanging his sweatpants for his more preferred cargo pants from his quarters at the G.U.N.

Amy's muttering grew louder, and Shadow swallowed as she came into view. Her dirty and torn pink sweatpants had been replaced by a much cleaner dark blue pair, combined with a green t-shirt. Her shoes had been replaced by her regular pink boots. Unfortunately, the clothes seemed to be slightly too small for her. In the five months that they had been training, Amy appeared to have also grown an inch or two, in addition to the other improvements that had occurred in her body.

"Stupid spines. Can't ever get them to stay in place." Amy muttered as she exited the hallway. She stopped abruptly when she caught sight of Shadow. "Oh. Wow, you were serious when you said you'd be waiting for me."

Shadow blinked. "I usually am." He tossed the hairband to her. "I believe this is yours."

Amy's hand shot out, easily making the catch. "Thanks." She paused. "It's kinda funny. I never used to react that quickly before."

Shadow nodded. "As I said before, you've come a long way." He reached inside his jacket, withdrawing the Chaos Emerald from its pouch. "Are you ready?"

Nodding as she slipped the hairband in place, Amy stepped up next to him. "Yep." Her eyes widened slightly as he held the Emerald out to her. "Really? You want me to try it again?"

Shadow's gaze locked with hers, and her heart fluttered in her chest. Why does that always happen? she wondered. "Yes. You've already done it once. The more often you do it, the easier it will become. Using Chaos Control is an excellent test of your self-control."

Shifting her weight back and forth on her feet nervously, she glanced off to the side. "But, what if we land like we did last time? Ya know, in mid-air, on our backs?"

Shadow shrugged. "You just need to focus more. Concentrate on the image of where you want to go, and your place within it. It's as simple as that." Again, he fixed her in his gaze, and she felt her pulse race as he placed the Emerald in her hand.

She swallowed, and nodded as she closed her eyes. The tingling energy within the Emerald flowing through her palm and up her arm, and she frowned slightly as she tried to remember Cream's house. Unlike her own, Amy's memory of the building was somewhat more fuzzy.

To Amy, it didn't seem like anything had happened. To an observer, both hedgehogs disappeared in a flash of blue light.


2 minutes earlier


"Ow! Sonic, quit jabbing my tail with your spines, will ya! That's gotta be the hundredth time now!"

"Actually, Vector, he's only jabbed you five times. You've complained about it fifteen times."

"Shaddup Espio."

Sonic gritted his teeth, his limbs starting to ache again as he struggled to keep his rather precarious balance. "Well if I wasn't too busy making sure I don't poke my eyes out on somebody's knuckles, we wouldn't be having this problem." he grunted.

Knuckles rolled his eyes. "It's not like this game was my idea. Just give up, and problem solved."

Sonic grinned. "Heh, sure. Why don't you just move your hand outta my face, then I wouldn't have to worry about it."

The red echidna grunted. "And admit defeat? To you? Ha! I don't think so."

The reason for Sonic's contorted position, and Vector's apparent pain, was Cream's 11th birthday party. More specifically, Cream's idea of playing Twister. Both Sonic and Tails were always up for a good game at a party, and some goading on the part of the blue hedgehog had easily roped in Knuckles the Echidna. Vector Crocodile had a certain fondness for Cream's family, and was easily swayed into playing. As it turned out, the music loving croc's bulky body made it easy for him to reach most of the spots on the mat.

The result of the game however, was proving less than pleasant for some. Knuckles, wearing his red sleeveless shirt and shorts, had somehow managed to end up splayed under the bottom of the pile, his irate face obscured by his hanging dreadlock spines, while Vector was forced into a high bridge position right at the top, his green jacket zipped up to keep out of the way. Tails was trying to ignore the pressure on his arm as it was crushed beneath the two, while Sonic found himself almost underneath Vector's jean-clad legs. As Vector was discovering, playing Twister with a hedgehog was not the most comfortable of games.

Looking on in amusement was Vector's Chaotix partner, Espio the Chameleon. Having elected not to join the game, he remained seated cross-legged at the base of the couch, his fingers interlocked as he watched his partner's discomfort. Their other partner, Charmy Bee, was busy flying around the living room, laughing as he played tag with Cheese. Cream was seated above him with the spinner board, and Vanilla would occasionally look in from the kitchen in her orange dress.

Sonic chuckled. "Same old same old, huh Knux?" He craned his head around, causing Vector to yelp again. "Oh, come on Vec. You've got scales, how can my spines hurt?" He sighed. "Cream, wouldja mind spinning that spinner, so that this big baby up here can stop squealing?"

Cream giggled. "Sure Mr. Sonic." Even though she was now eleven years old, Cream still had the habit of calling people Mr. or Ms. "Let's see, Sonic, right foot on red."

Sonic craned his head again. "Yo, buddy! There any reds by my foot?"

Tails managed to look up. "Uh, yeah! Move your foot straight ahead. Keep going, keep going, kay stop! Now move it to your right. There, you're good!"

Straining, Sonic pushed himself as far as his body could go. Knuckles grunted as he took on additional weight. "Jeez, man, how many chili dogs did you eat before you got here? I know we ate already, but you didn't have that much." He wrinkled his nose. "And would it kill you to bath more than twice a week? You stink."

Sonic moved his head, checking that he did still in fact have one finger on a yellow spot. "You know I hate water, Knuckles. Can't swim."

"You don't need to know how to swim to take a freakin shower!"

Vector was sure he could feel his spine creaking as he was pushed into a higher arch. "I don't smell anything, and if somebody doesn't tell me to move soon, I'm gonna fall."

Knuckles glared upwards, only to find his view blocked by one of Tail's tails. "Don't you dare!" he snarled, very much aware of the consequences should that happen.

Cream turned and looked towards the front door. "I wonder where Amy is. She promised she would be here, and she's already missed the cake."

Sonic winced as he felt Vector settle down slightly. I've been wondering that myself. I know she took it hard when I told her I wasn't interested in getting together, but to disappear for five whole months with only a note on her door saying "I'm leaving"? That's not like her. "I'm sure Amy's fine, Cream. With a temper like her's, you'd have to be crazy to try anything on her." He groaned. "Now wouldja mind hitting that spinner again? I think I'm slipping."

Cream sighed. She reached her hand forward to hit the spinner, then froze when the doorbell rang. "I've got it!" In an instant, she vaulted over the back of the couch and was gone, Cheese and Charmy flying after her.

Knuckles gritted his teeth. He was strong, but trying to bear the weight of a hedgehog and a crocodile for the better part of a half-hour was proving taxing even for him. "Espio, would you mind? These fatsos are kinda heavy."

Vector groaned. He hadn't needed to hold a position like this in over two months, since the Chaotix's last case. Which would be about the last time I paid the rent and power as well. Crap, did I pay the water bill too?

A piercing shout ripped through the house. "AMY!"

Vector swung his head around at the shout. "Cream?" His feet finally slipped out from under him, and the entire twisted pile of bodies collapsed.

"Whups!"

"Ow!"

"Hey!"

"Grrnf!"

Charmy shot back into the living room, just in time to see the dog pile, Espio chuckling, and Vanilla approaching in concern. "Hey guys, guess who's at the door! It's Amy and Shadow!"

Sonic pulled himself from beneath Vector's legs, and rubbed his head. "What'd you say?"

Charmy sighed in child-like exhasperation. "I said, Amy and Shadow are here. And I gotta say, Amy looks kinda different. Wonder what she's been up to?"

As Vector, Tails and Knuckles disentangled themselves, Sonic frowned. Amy and Shadow? Where did she find him? Shads generally doesn't hang around. His frown deepened. For that matter, where has Amy been?

"...'ve you been Mother and I've been so worried and why're you so late you disappear without telling anyone where you're going

"Cream!" Vanilla frowned at her daughter as she led the two hedgehogs into the living room, escorted by Cheese. "If you don't give Amy a chance to talk, then don't be surprised if you don't get an answer."

Cream glanced down, clasping her hands. "Sorry." Abruptly, she spun around and hugged her best friend tightly. "It's really great to see you, Amy. I've missed you."

Amy smiled as she wrapped her arms around the younger rabbit. "I missed you too, Cream. Sorry, but I didn't have time to get you a present. I actually only got back home an hour ago." She turned and smiled at Shadow. "Chaos Control is pretty handy."

Cream smiled as she stepped back to join her mother. "That's okay. You're here, and that's the best present I could ask for."

Sonic stared at the pink hedgehog, hardly able to believe his eyes. Whoa. Amy's...different. She was kinda pretty before, but holy crap. What's she been doing, working out for five months? "Hey Shads. Wasn't expecting to see you here."

Out of the corner of his eyes, Shadow noticed Amy's posture go rigid. Hmm. This isn't going to end well. "Sonic."

Vanilla frowned as Sonic grinned. The tension in the air was thick enough to cut with a knife, and judging from the hard expression on Amy's face, it wouldn't take much for things to explode. "Well, now that everyone is here, why don't we get to opening the presents."


Hours later, Amy stepped out onto Cream's back porch for some air. Vector, Espio and Charmy had left an hour before, saying that they needed to get back on a case. She smiled. It was good to see everyone again. Cream had grown a little, Tails had managed to clean most of the grease out of his fur, and even Knuckles seemed to have chilled a little more since the last time she had seen him. A lot can change when you disappear for five months.

"Hey there, Ames. You look good."

Amy sighed. Of course, just what I needed. "Don't call me Ames, Sonic. What do you want?"

Sonic frowned as he turned and leaned against the railing. "Haven't seen ya in a while, just a little curious about what you've been up to."

She scowled and turned away. "You don't need to worry about me anymore." she muttered darkly.

The blue hedgehog sighed. "Come on, Amy. It's been five months, can't you just let it go? All I did was tell you the truth, are you going to hate me for the rest of my life for that?"

She closed her eyes. Arrogant sonuva... "You want me to just let it go? I wasted years of my life thanks to you, because you were too much of a selfish coward."

Sonic gritted his teeth as he straightened up. "Hey, that's not true and you know it. How is it my fault that you couldn't take a hint?"

Amy whirled around, her jade eyes blazing. "Take a hint? What hint? All you ever did was run! That's all you ever do! Sure, you're always up for a fight, but when it comes to facing something actually difficult, like how someone else feels about you, you duck and run!"

Sonic glared back at her. "Hey, don't turn this on

"Ahem."

Both hedgehogs turned, and were confronted with the folded arms and stern face of Vanilla Rabbit. "In case you both forgot, this is a party. My daughter's birthday party. I won't allow any arguments here tonight." Her voice carried a no-nonsense tone that suggested that both hedgehogs follow her advice.

Amy turned and leaned against the railing, gazing up at the sky. "We're not arguing. Sonic was just about to go back inside." she said in a voice that was slightly cold and bitter.

The hedgehog in question looked between the two women helplessly, then sighed. "Amy, for what it's worth, I'm sorry."

She bowed her head. "Just leave me alone, Sonic. I'm done chasing you."

Shaking his head, he walked past Vanilla and back into the living room.


Across the room, leaning against the wall by the door, Shadow watched Sonic return. After much pleading from Cream, and a quiet request from Amy, he had decided to stay. Even from there, he could hear the argument, and was silently thankful that Vanilla had stepped in when she did. He had been concerned that something like this would happen. Between Sonic's cocky pride and Rose's temper, this needs to be resolved quickly, otherwise it will end badly. he thought to himself as he quietly grimaced.


Vanilla gently laid her hand on Amy's shoulder. "Amy, do you want to talk about this?"

"No. It's fine." She yawned, and shook her head. "Actually, I'm feeling kind of tired. It's been a long time since I slept in a real bed, so I think I'll go home."

The elder rabbit frowned. "Where have you been, Amy? Cream was right earlier, we were worried about you. You didn't tell anyone where you were going, and all your note said was that you were leaving."

Amy sighed. "I'm sorry for worrying everyone. I just, I needed some time away."

Vanilla was silent for a moment. "Does this have something to do with Shadow?"

The pink hedgehog smiled. "Shadow...yeah. He's been training me, helping me get stronger. He made me realize that, as long as I was relying on others to save me, I'd never be able to move on." Her smile broadened.

Vanilla frowned. She didn't really understand why Shadow would do something like that, especially since he hadn't been seen much in almost two years. But then, she barely knew Shadow at all. "I see." She sighed. "I'm still going to worry about you Amy."

Amy smiled, turned, and hugged her. "You're the closest thing I have to a mother, Vanilla, since, ya know." Her expression dropped for a moment. "Thank you, but I'm okay, really. Thanks to Shadow, I can take care of myself."

Vanilla nodded. "Alright, Amy." She smiled. "If you are leaving, at least say goodbye to Cream."

Amy laughed. "Of course."


Shadow ears perked up slightly at the sound of Amy's laughter. He found it...energizing. He rather liked the sound. He opened his eyes and turned to see her entering the living room.

Cream stood up from the game of Monopoly with Knuckles and Tails. "Amy, are you okay? I heard you and Sonic arguing."

Shadow studied Amy's tired smile as she hugged the younger rabbit. "It's fine Cream. I'm actually a little tired, so I'm going home and getting some sleep." She turned and smiled at the others. "Tails, Knuckles, it was great seeing you again." Shadow noted that she purposely left out Sonic. Well, that certainly could have gone much worse.

As Amy walked past, Sonic raised his hand from where he laid on the couch. "Later Ames." Amy froze, and her hands balled into fists. She gritted her teeth, inwardly seething again, until she caught Shadow's gaze. He didn't move, didn't blink, just gazed at her, waiting to see what she would do.

"Don't call me Ames." The barely restrained anger in her voice was clearly evident to everyone in the room, and with those final words, she walked past Shadow and out the door.

Knuckles sighed, laying back on the floor. "Still mad, huh?"

Sonic rolled his eyes. "I don't get why she's still mad. All I did was tell her the truth."

Tails frowned as he moved his piece. "Well, Amy did keep after you for a long time, Sonic." Cream nodded. "She loved you."

Shadow gazed out the door, where he could still see Amy standing on the lawn calming down. "Hmph. Idiot." As everyone turned to look at him in surprise, he pushed away from the wall and left.

Knuckles frowned as he layered his mitted hands underneath his head. "What's his problem?"

Sonic shrugged. "It's Shadow. Who knows with him."


Amy took deep breaths, her eyes clenched shut, trying to calm the angry tide within her. Stupid, arrogant, self-centered, cocky little...

"I'm almost impressed."

Her breath caught in her throat at Shadow's voice, and she turned to face him. He gazed at her steadily and without expression, his hands thrust into the pockets of his vest. "You managed not to assault him. I guess you did learn something these past five months." he said, his voice devoid of emotion.

She sighed. "I'm sorry for almost losing control. He just...I can't believe he thinks he did nothing wrong!"

Shadow smirked. "I believe I told you that faker was immature."

Amy sighed again, then turned away and started walking towards her apartment. She paused, and looked behind her, where Shadow was still standing, gazing up at the star-filled sky. He seems to do that a lot. Maybe he's looking for the ARK? She looked up, her expression softening, then back at him. "Shadow?" she called out.

He glanced her. Strange, she looks different in the starlight. Subtle, but different. "Hmm?"

She glanced at the ground, then back up at him. "Do you...would you like to stay at my place? Just for the night?"

He blinked. Hmm. No one's ever asked me that before. He frowned inwardly. Is that even a good idea, with these blasted emotions? "Why would I do that?" he asked, his tone measured and careful.

She shrugged. "I don't know. I just figured that, since we've been camping out the last five months, and in that time you've always slept sitting against a tree, you might like to sleep in an actual bed." She looked at him, and found a rather strange expression on his face. He almost seemed to be studying her, like he was trying to perceive some hidden motive.

For several seconds, silence reigned as Shadow considered her offer. He had no reason to accept, in fact he could just as easily sleep in his bunk in his G.U.N quarters. On the other hand, she has offered. And if I have no reason to accept, I also have no reason to refuse.

Silently, he nodded and walked towards her. "Would you like to try again?" He held his vest open, indicating the Chaos Emerald that he kept.

Amy shook her head. "No, thanks. I'd rather walk. It's not good to try and sleep when you're in a bad mood."

And so they walked, side by side through the darkness. The shattered remains of the moon had gone into its new phase, invisible without the reflected rays of the sun. The night was late enough that most of the houses were dark, leaving the only sources of light to be the passing street lights and the stars. For the most part, both remained quiet, Amy absorbed with her own thoughts, Shadow simply having nothing to say.

Every now and then, Amy would turn her head and look at him. When they walked between the bright circles of the street lights, Shadow was all but invisible, his dark clothes and ebony fur making him a true shadow in the night. The only indication that he was there at all was his faint footsteps, and the red markings on his body, which managed to catch even the faint starlight. Once, she would have found the sight intimidating. Now, it only made him seem even more mysterious, like some etherial creature as opposed to real flesh and blood.

Who are you, Shadow? What are you thinking? I can never tell, and you never say. she wondered. She noticed that even as he walked, he kept his gaze on the sky, though she had no doubt that he still kept watch of the sidewalk before them. He'd probably notice something before I would. Shadow was a conundrum, and for reasons that were beyond her, she wanted to unravel that mystery.

"I don't get you."

Shadow glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. Impressive. She managed to stay quiet for all of ten minutes. "Is that so."

"You always keep everything inside, hardly ever say anything, you always keep this...mask, on your face. It's like you keep this wall between yourself and the rest of the world, and I don't understand why you do that."

He glanced at the concrete beneath their feet, considering her words. For good reason. "Your point?"

Amy frowned. Like you don't know. "So, I want to know why."

"Hmm." He returned his gaze to the stars. Relentless thing, isn't she? "Few others would be able to understand, Rose."

"And I want to try."

Exasperated, he finally turned and looked at her, his crimson gaze locking with her determined malachite one. "Why?"

She frowned, and looked away for a moment. "I'm not sure. It's just...you're so mysterious. I know so little about you, and it seems like the more I learn, the more questions I have. I"

He suddenly held up his hand, silencing her. "Shh." He turned and looked around them, his crimson eyes probing the darkness beyond the circle of light that they had stopped in.

Frowning, she looked around. "What is it?"

Shadow's nerves were at a hair-trigger, every sense primed. "Someone is watching us, and has been for some time." He could feel the Emerald within his vest humming silently, and he could feel a rather powerful source of Chaos energy nearby. Which usually only happens when there's a...

His ears flicked back, catching a faint noise behind them, and he threw them both to the ground. Something flew overheard, casting a fleeting shadow on the pair, before disappearing into the darkness.

Shadow looked up and glanced around. Damn, it's fast. "Split up. Make it choose."

Amy nodded. Okay, now we'll find out just how good I am. Almost before she knew it, Shadow had shot off to her left, and she started running right. Trying to keep her breathing even, she searched the darkness for their mysterious attacker.

As Shadow took a long curve into the street, he concentrated on the energy impression that he could sense. So, whoever you are, you're carrying a Chaos Emerald. How are you going to use it. A blue flash appeared off to his right, and he lunged in that direction. He didn't expect to find anything there, and as he hit and rolled along the pavement, a second flash appeared behind him. He came into a crouch, facing the way he had come.

Nothing. The darkness appeared to be completely empty. Shadow frowned, his eyes flicking around in search. Hmm. You can use Chaos Control. But where did you go? Even if you were as fast as I am, I would still be able to see you moving. His brow creased. Unless the whole point is that I can't see you. A chameleon? But chameleons aren't normally able to move that fast.

Standing only a few feet away, Amy could just make out Shadow in the darkness. She didn't know who they were fighting, or why. Her eyes flicked around nervously, searching for any sign of their attacker. Movement caught her sight, and she watched Shadow slowly move towards one of the street lights. What are you doing?

He was almost a foot away from the circle of light on the pavement when he jumped forward and to the right, and a faint...something, rippled through the spot that he had formerly occupied. Shadow came up standing, and Amy ran towards him.

He barely had time to register her approach, and sensed the second Emerald's approach. Again, it was incredibly fast. Ducking down into a crouch, he spun around, aiming to sweep his opponent off his feet.

Instead, he sensed the Emerald come to a dead stop. Shadow looked right in the direction that it should have been in, and saw nothing. Changing strategies, he lunged forward, trying to grapple with his opponent.

"Uuuun!" Something collided with Amy, something that was very, very hard. Instinctively, she grabbed hold, her body moving into auto-pilot. Wrapping one arm around...whatever it was, she shoved forward, hoping that her foot was in front of its feet. Instead, her attacker seemed to rotate around her, and she drove her elbow backwards. Her arm exploded in pain, and she bit back a yelp. Sonuvabitch, this thing is hard!

Shadow growled as he teleported behind Amy, enveloping his fist in Chaos energy as he drove it forward. Judging by the pained expression on her face, her attempted attack had had the opposite effect that she had intended. Sure enough, as his fist struck something several inches away from her body, he could feel the solid resistance of metal. A machine? Eggman!

Whatever it was flickered into view briefly, but the darkness kept Shadow from getting more than a vague shape before it disappeared again. The three of them grappled and fought in the darkness. Whatever they were fighting was proving itself to be very skilled, reacting and counterattacking almost everything that they attempted.

Finally, a break came. A block-like shape smashed into Shadow's stomach, the incredible force of the blow sending him flying backwards and crashing into the pavement. Amy struggled alone briefly, before the same blocky object struck her temple. The blow made her limbs grow slack and her vision flicker, her thoughts a jumbled blur as she fell to the ground.

Shadow managed to raise his head enough in time to see her fall. "Rose!" He tried to push himself up, but his unseen opponent abruptly pushed him back down, cracking his head against the pavement. He struggled, and through the red haze that the blow had rendered on his mind, he felt his opponent searching for something on his body. He wants the Emerald! He felt the unseen hand slip inside his vest, and withdraw the gem. Managing to intercept, Shadow found himself in a tug of war.

Taking a guess, he swung his free arm up, wincing as it collided with a solid object coming down towards his head. He growled, his teeth tightly clenched as he fought. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Amy lying limply on the ground. No! I...will...not...LOSE! Drawing on the Emerald, energy surged through his body, and a faint red aura surrounded him. "Ch, Chaos...BLAST!" A solid sphere of red Chaos energy erupted off his body, slamming into his invisible opponent, dislodging its grip on the Emerald and throwing it backwards. A heavy metallic crash sounded nearby as it struck the sidewalk.

Shadow rolled onto his stomach, coughing as he pushed himself up. He raised his head, and saw a rectangular red, black and white metallic foot just inside the circle cast by the street light. The foot retreated into the darkness, and a pair of glowing red eyes rose from the ground. Shadow got to his feet, glaring across at the mysterious machine.

"Who are you!" he demanded, panting from the sudden energy drain of his attack. Even when using the Emerald, a Chaos Blast took its toll on him.

The eyes flickered once, like they were blinking, then blue light obscured them, fading away to reveal nothing. Instinct told Shadow that his opponent had retreated.

Quickly, he rushed to Amy's side. Her eyes were closed, and as he lowered his head, he could hear faint, shallow breathing. Good! She's still alive. Noticing a dark mark on her temple, he gently touched it. Feeling the fingertips of his glove become wet, he pulled away and cursed, the white leather turned red. Damn it. Gathering her in his arms, he closed his eyes.

"Chaos Control!"