=Chapter 10=

Further into the day, Amy finally woke from her nap and found Shadow on top of her with his head on her chest. Her face went a deep red. Redder than a tomato. Immediately, she tried getting the ebony male off of her without waking him. But each time she tried, she couldn't move his heavy form. The lack of movement was starting to frustrate the goddess. She thought about growing vines from the ceiling to lift him up. But before Amy could put that plan into fruitation, Shadow began to stir.

'Crap!' the sakura hedgehog cursed mentally.

Shadow smirked at her thoughts. He'd been actually awake this whole time. He was just observing his captive's thoughts and movements. The crimson-splashed male decided to vent his authority.

"Still trying to escape, my dear?" he coyly asked.

Amy growled at him and continued to try and push him away. Shadow remained right where he was and refused to budge. Amy let out a huff of disappointment.

"Would you mind getting off of me?" she exclaimed.

"Hmmmm, I am not certain. I kind of enjoy being here." Shadow replied playfully.

"Arggghhh! Seriously, get off!"

Amy resumed forcibly pushing the midnight god off her form, but he held onto her tighter. Then he moved upwards and began nipping at her neck. Amy was about ready to throw a tantrum.

"I hate you, you jerk!" she whined.

Shadow ignored her once more and continued nipping her neck. Amy finally gave up and laid back, pouting. She turned her head away from Shadow as he planted vampire kisses on her neck and shoulder. By far, the ebony hedgehog was enjoying himself even as the female beneath him was fidgeting around. He liked how the movements of her breathing in and out felt, along with the warmth she was emitting. Amy on the other hand, was quickly growing tired of this.

"When are you going to let me go?" she asked pointedly.

"Never." Shadow replied.

"I hate you..."

The midnight god chuckled. Having this much fun should be forbidden. But in the run, he was enjoying it.

"Why do you hate me, little flower?" he asked playfully.

"Well let's see, first you kidnap me, hold me against my will, and now you're harassing me!" Amy barked.

"Hmm, I don't seem to see it that way."

Amy let out another growl. Shadow lifted himself up to face her.

"But perhaps, if you allow me the chance, I can make this easier for you." he whispered.

The cherry-pink female raised an eyebrow at him.

"How about taking me back to my home?" she challenged.

"I'm afraid that's out of the question." Shadow said in a stern voice.

Amy let out sigh. That was too good to be true.

"But, like I had stated earlier," Shadow continued. "I will grant you a little more freedom if, you are obedient and a little more 'lady like'."

Amy gave him a little bit of a dirty look, but considered his conditions.

"Alright. You win again. Jerk." she ranted.

Shadow gave another low chuckle and licked her cheek. Amy shuddered and hugged her shoulders. The ebony god pinned her down and went for the goddess' neck again. Amy whined and squirmed to get away from him.

"Will you not stay still for me just once, little flower?" Shadow asked softly.

Amy made another whine and lowered her ears. She was still quite uncomfortable with the crimson-splashed male's advances. Shadow tenderly nuzzled her face while emitting a deep purr, making Amy blush.

"You're still a jerk..." the sakura hedgehog muttered.

"Am I now?" Shadow replied with a sly grin.

"Yes. You're a big mean jerk."

"I see. Well little flower, could a jerk be capable of this?"

Then, the midnight god bent forward and captured the young female in a lip lock. Amy let out a light muffled gasped and widened her jade eyes. Pretty soon however, she slowly closed them and returned the gesture. Then, Shadow wrapped one arm around Amy's frame while his other hand dug into her soft pink quills and gripped them. The sakura hedgehog began moaning, prompting her captor to increase his advances.

Amy wanted to push him away right then and there, but like before, the midnight god was just so alluring and irresistible. She found herself getting more heated than disgusted. Which was slightly more disturbing to her. After a short while, Shadow stopped his actions and looked down on his mate.

"So then little flower," Shadow murmured. "where would you like to go?"

Amy blinked in surprise.

"Go?" she inquired.

"Yes." Shadow replied simply. "Didn't you want to go beyond those garden walls?"

Amy did want to go somewhere. She remembered that place in the east where Vanilla had during gone during her travels.

"Asia." she quietly said.

Shadow gave her a quick peck on the nose.

"Then Asia it shall be." he declared.

XXXXX

Meanwhile on Earth, it had suddenly gotten colder. All the plants had died out and there was an early snow fall. The Sacred Gardens now looked like an icy cemetery. Quiet and cold. Vanilla had yet to return and Cream was slowly losing hope. The young nymph was sitting beside the trunk of a now-dead tree, shivering at the cold weather. Tails walked by and looked at her with pity.

"You know, Cream." he said. "I think we should leave."

Cream looked up at him like he was out of his mind.

"Well, everything is withered around us. There's no food or water either. We could die like this." Tails suggested.

The female rabbit lowered her head. He was right of course. Life in the Sacred Gardens was now unsustainable. But Cream didn't want to leave in case her mother came back.

"Just a little longer, Tails?" she whispered pleadingly.

The kitsune nymph paused and then gave a nod. He knew exactly how she felt, missing her family and all. Tails sat down beside her and pulled the rabbit into his lap, wrapping his twin tails around her. Cream looked at him with surprise.

"Well, somebody's gotta keep you warm." Tails joked.

Cream blushed at his advances and smiled at how gentleman-like he was.

XXXXX

Far in the east where winter had yet to settle there, Shadow flew over the Chinese provinces on his iron chariot with Amy at his side. The trees and plants there still adorned their autumn colors, with far more variety than Amy had ever seen.

"Wow," she marveled. "this is far more pretty than I imagined."

"There's a special tree here that I want to show you." Shadow told her. "I believe it's still in the bloom."

Amy gave a nod and hung onto the rails of the chariot. They landed in a secluded glen where green leaves still filled the foliage. A chilly breeze blew through the area, making Amy hug herself.

"Are you cold?" Shadow inquired.

"N-no." Amy said quickly. "I'm alright."

Shadow raised an eyebrow and removed his cloak. He then wrapped it around his cherry-pink mate.

"I told you, I'm fine." Amy protested.

"Humor me." Shadow quietly told her.

He took her hand and they walked along the dirt path. Amy found herself getting more closer to her captor than she originally anticipated. She wondered if she was wrong about him before. The midnight god was turning out not to be so bad. The cool but gentle wind made her get closer to him for warmth.

They turned a corner and Amy let out a startled gasp. In front of them was a lone cherry blossom tree. As Shadow predicted, it was still in bloom. But just barely. The wind blew away the hundreds of petals off the branches and off the ground. The flowers' colors matched that of Amy's fur. Seeing sakura flowers against ebony wood just astounded her.

"Oh Shadow!" she exclaimed. "This is so beautiful!"

"Indeed it is." Shadow agreed. "I thought you might enjoy this."

The wind went up again, blowing more flowers off the branches. Shadow was able to catch on by merely lifting his hand. He then placed the blossom into Amy's quills. The young female blushed at the gesture.

"Now you look more complete, little flower." he quietly whispered.

Amy blushed even redder, turning her head away in embarrassment. When Shadow took ahold of her chin and turned her head back to face him, he suddenly noticed tears leaking out of the sakura hedgehog's eyes.

"Why are you crying, my dear?" the crimson-splashed male asked.

"Because," she replied. "I never thought I'd be able to see something like this in my whole eternal life."

Shadow smirked and wiped her tears with his thumb. He then captured her with another liplock. This time, Amy returned it with as much passion as her mate. When they parted for breath, they held each other close.

"I love you..." Amy murmured.