Disclaimer: I don`t own Shadow, nor Rouge, nor Antoine, but I own about ten-fifteen OCs just in that fanfiction. Which is a lot...


Chapter 8

"Alex!" Shadow said, rushing in the staircase. Just then he saw smoke coming from below. "What did he do again?" Shadow rushed to take the body of Goaler, and as soon as the corpse was freed from its handcuffs, Shadow tried to lift it and take it down the stairs.

Alexis looked around the now burning grow-op. He saw an old, ceramic bath with a few holes in it. He threw the stuff that was in it away, spun it upside down and hid below, like a turtle. He was walking blind on all fours. "Shadow! What's he doing? Taking pictures of the fire or what?" Alexis, who couldn`t see well where he was going, knocked on some nearby garbage. He knocked his head on the side of the bath because of that. "Ayoye!" A few swears escaped his mouth. He moved right, only to knock one of the plantations. "Why am I always the one in the shit?" Alexis hit the other plantation, which fell on the bath. Alexis moved around, only seeing by the three holes on the bath`s side. "As soon as I get out of here I find a desk job." Alexis hit another wall. It was really difficult to see where he was going. And this turtle shell-like bath didn`t help. Alexis looked through a hole on the side of the bath. He saw the code-locked door. If he could shoot that thing, he would be able to get away!

Shadow, on the first floor, was now surrounded by smoke. He used his sole physical force to lift the body of Michael Goaler. "Alex! Help!"

But Alexis was in other problems. He took his revolver out and passed it by the hole on the side of the bath he was hiding under. He aimed for the coded lock. He shot, but the bullet passed aside. However, the gun knocked the bath, and the resonance sound under it caused a terrible headache to Alexis. "Ouch…"

Shadow, holding the corpse the best he could, tried to advance in the staircase. However, in the smoke, there was now a strange smell. "What the fuck is that odor?" But he went down the stairs the best he could. However, Goaler was too heavy. He did his best and went down some stairs. The smell of the smoke was however weird. Shadow had no idea what it was. Unable to continue, Shadow placed the body halfway down the stairs.

Alexis really wanted to get out of this burning hell, so he prepared to shoot again. Passing the revolver through the hole, he shot again, and again, and again, only missing each time. But the headache was getting worse with each resonance. Alexis had enough. He lifted the bath off, came out and broke the door leading to the staircase. It was jus about time, as a small part of the ceiling was about to fall down on him.

Alexis reached Shadow in the staircase leading to the first floor. "Alex! Get Goaler out of here!"

"Forget about it," Alexis replied.

"Get him out!"

"No, come with me." Alexis helped Shadow go down the stairs and reach the ground floor. They rushed out from the front door. Alexis made Shadow sit in the grass. "Sit down. You`re okay?" Shadow nodded. Alexis went inside the house, hoping to go get the body, but a final explosion occurred inside and pushed Alexis back outside. Understanding they could do nothing, Alexis went back to Shadow. They walked to the street. The now burning house could crumble anytime.

Shadow took out an inhalator out of his pockets, like the ones asthmatics use as medicaments. "Hand it to me…" Alexis said.

"But it`s my inhalator!" Alexis took a puff of it. Oh well.

"I`m feeling weird all of a sudden…" Alexis began.

"Yeah, me too…" Shadow and Alexis looked back inside the house. It was now really burning in there. There were flames everywhere. Too bad for the corpse. Alexis and Shadow looked at each other. A smile appeared on their faces. And they began laughing, more than they ever laughed. They were floating high, and probably nothing could pull them down… as long as the marijuana had effect. But this was already far away in their souvenirs. They had forgotten.

FOUR-LAKES POLICE DEPARTMENT

MAY 25th, 3250

9:30 AM

Nobody likes to be lectured… but apparently, Alexis and Shadow liked it. Or at least, the marijuana was making them like it. Captain Oxen chained French swear after French swear, probably the longest chain he has ever said.

"Câlisse d`osti de sacrament de ciboire de crisse d`osti de viarge de tabarnak de simonak de bâtard!" (Believe me, you don`t wanna know what this means)

Alexis laughed again. He was breathless from laughing. "This isn't good, is it?" Shadow asked. Alexis shook the head.

"Calvaire, Alex!" Captain Oxen yelled. "You came in without the fucking warrant! You leave a suspect in your car trunk, and all that`s left you can put it in a paper bag! You think it`s normal?!"

"Calm down… there`s no reason to be so angry…" Alexis said between two laughs. "His file was longer than your arm… well now we can store him in without any problem."

"Store him in?" Shadow asked, laughing. This made Alexis laugh even louder. But Oxen didn`t find it funny.

"We had to take him out with a spatula! You blew the whole place and you forgot the victim in!"

"Er… I lost my car too…"

"DON`T INTERRUPT ME WHEN I`M TALKING, GOT IT?" Captain Oxen yelled loud enough that people in Soleanna might hear him.

"Indeed, Captain… it`s all my bad," Shadow began. Oxen chuckled. "Yes, I`m the one who entered. I thought I had seen someone in danger." Captain Oxen listened to Shadow`s version. "There was someone, but not the one I thought. And it was in danger… but not today." Alexis laughed even more. "It`s close enough, no?"

Just then, on the phone, someone entered the conversation. "Captain McKaz… you got my massage?" Shadow chuckled. It was just too stupid. "About what your crazy cop do?"

"Yes."

"He burn down a houze. He bloo up… de witeness!"

"Shadow! Is that true?" Claw asked.

"Well, er… considering the whole situation, and also what we`ve been through, er… would you mind repeating the question, please?" Shadow asked. Alexis chuckled.

"Wait-e-ness! Waitness!" Oxen reminded him in far from great English.

"No, I got an alibi…" Shadow began. "I was at Alexis` daughter`s ballet recital." The cops couldn`t help but laugh, while Captain Oxen was in a blacker anger than ever.

"What?" The French captain asked. Alexis posed as a ballet dancer, just to explain the whole situation.

"Shadow come back in Station Square right now, we`ll arrange the whole thing later." Captain Claw was obviously in fury too. "It`s no more our business, get back home!"

"Anyway, I`ll be way better if I don`t have a tourist to look for and guide around," Alexis said.

"Sir, let me fix all that…" Shadow began. The cops were no more laughing. "I`ve spent like half of all the time watching out for that excited Rambo on steroids… I can fix this." Just hearing how Shadow was calling him, Alexis chuckled more.

"Vos gueules! Vos gueules! VOS GUEULES!" Captain Oxen yelled. (It means "shut up", but worse)

"Ayoye…" was all Alexis could mutter. (It`s like your "Ouch")

"And you," Captain Oxen began. "My stoopid squared-head of an Ainglish imo headgehogue… Ass of now, y`er offe de suit-case! OFFE THE SUIT-CASE!"

Shadow was trying his best not to laugh at this pathetic English. Ya go bak two Staycion Squouare. That`s hit, that`s oll. Don coll oss, will coll you!"

Shadow was reall trying his best not to laugh, but it was too difficult. That English was pathetic.

"It`s finished! FINISHED!"

Now Alexis too had problems not to laugh. They were still high, no matter how much Captain Oxen was trying to get them back down. Maybe a slap would help, but Oxen wasn`t the guy who acts. He was more the kind who yells. The barking dogs don't bite.

"And you, Alexis… Oll I wante frome you… Is to send that square-head of a hedgehog back to the airport and back to Station Square. That`s your fucking job today!"

"Come on, Cap`n…" Alexis began.

"OUT! Get out of my office! Gait oute! Gait oute off herre!"

And the cops left the office. As soon as they were out, they began laughing again.

FOUR-LAKES POLICE DEPARTMENT

MAY 25TH, 3250

11:00 AM

Alexis and Shadow no more had the effects of the marijuana… luckily. They were high long enough. Now they were downer than down. Alexis was desperately trying to get a snack from a machine while Shadow had taken a coffee from the other machine, which worked perfectly.

"Come on, spit the goddamn Smarties!" He yelled.

Shadow took a sip out of his coffee. "All I can say is that it`s been an education for me." Shadow took a break. "But two victims, all from Four-Lakes… the suspect, dead, a Four-Laker as well… a killer, which I suppose is a Four-Laker as well… I`ve got nothing to do on that case. Tell Annie I`ll email her once in a while."

Alexis looked at his past partner. "What the hell with Annie? You`ve seen her only once!"

Shadow groaned. "Four-Lakers are really all the same. There`s a lunatic killing hulo-related people about a team that no more exists, and look at how you act just when I mention the name of your ex." Shadow took another sip of his coffee. "What`s your city`s motto already? Oh yeah, right. "I regret nothing". You guys live in the past, get over it."

Alexis turned back to the machine. The Smarties still weren`t coming out. He punched the machine, hoping the treat would go down. Or maybe he hit the machine because he wanted to punch Shadow instead…

"At least, we still have our own lives. All you guys got is attack over attack by bad guys, like thirteen years ago. And because of all that, your wife is almost always gone now…"

"Hem hem…" someone said. Alexis recognized the voice.

"Antoine."

"Yes, it is I. Antoine D`Coolette, your cousin. We have to talk. And with you too, Shadow."

"Urk… I got nothing to do on that case anymore. I`ll just erase yesterday from my memory."

"Yeah, right," The Acorn swordsman said. "You know, after everything that happened yesterday and this morning, I am at one meter from firing you two at the same time?"

"You wouldn`t do that!" Shadow screamed.

"Yes I can. If I add everything from this case to the case five years ago…"

"No way," Alexis said, not believing it.

"…If I do that, it won't be long that your locker`s gonna be empty and you`ll need to find a desk job. If you can give me only one reason not to fire you…"

Alexis thought about it. "…Fine, I got one. I`ll hide until things get back to normal. Get me off the case, I don`t mind, but don`t fire me. I`ll leave with Shadow for Station Square, and I`ll wait there for some time, maybe a day or two."

"You swear you won`t try to solve the case?" Antoine asked.

"I swear."

Antoine also thought of that deal. "I`ll think about it. I can`t tell you that I will not fire you, but if you try to get back on that case and hear of it, you better buy a tie because you`re gonna need it. Anyway, I`m putting the Chaotix on the case. If you get in their way, they will tell me everything."

And Antoine left the place. Luckily, just then, a human taxi driver, an afro-Mobian probably due to his black skin, arrived. "Shadow the hedgehog?"

"Yes?"

"I am the driver who`ll bring you to the airport."

"Wait for me, I`m coming," Alexis said. After Shadow and the cab driver went down the stairs, Alexis took his gun out and aimed for the treat machine, but some of his fellow cops saw him doing and stopped him. "Bye guys, see you soon," the French detective said. And Alexis left without any Smarties to munch on.


Author`s notes: A shorter chapter again, but this one is some kind of transition... because I got half the movie done by now! I also imagined everything that was not part of the original movie. Antoine`s appearances are not from the movie, as an example.

P.S. Anyone noticed the desk job thing is a running gag?