Unusual Encounters:

Chapter Nineteen: Tikal and Shadow

Suggested by my sister

(yes, I'm allowed to take request chapters from offline people too ;p )

The chao gardens were typically peaceful, settled places. The sort of places that naturally attracted brooders and those that liked to think about their purpose in life. Perhaps that was why, to everyone else's wonder, Shadow liked to stay there, often with a side-purpose to visit "his" little chao, Shadow. (Well, you see, it looked so much like him that he just had to take that naming opportunity).

And it was one of those days, particularly, where he just felt the need to soak in the gardens' energy and be with the chao. The sky was overcast, perhaps threatening to rain, but he didn't mind. It was still the perfect weather to sit down, even in the cold grass, and to watch the tiny creatures...especially his own.

He held out his hand to his small chao and it came to him eagerly. It didn't hesitate either to sit in his lap. Shadow was fine with this but absentmindedly looked elsewhere to make sure no one was around to see. And when there wasn't, he relaxed, sighing deeply.

It wasn't unusual that his mind would roam around until he'd had enough of the conflicting thoughts and ideas. He did have a long life ahead of him, and he had an eternity to decide...but he also had no idea where the turns of the centuries would take him. After his current "lifetime", when G.U.N didn't work out any longer, when Rouge was long gone and Omega long forgotten by the world, what would he do then? After all, he also had to consider the fact that he wasn't sure how the loss of Team Dark would affect him. He knew he had quite a while to dwell on that morbid point, but he was almost certain that it wouldn't make it easier when it actually happened. But he was the Ultimate Lifeform, and that emotion would stain him, but it would eventually fade, too. So he'd have to move on. He might have no interest in G.U.N afterward, by then it might have gone astray anyway. And of course he would still be watching over the planet that she had loved, but it would probably look quite different from the way he did it now. And that was an interesting thought, because throughout his lifetime, the same Shadow he was now would not exist. He would be a completely different Shadow then. Just like his chao, Shadow. They would both be different through their rebirths, for as long as the planet lasted.

Personally, Shadow didn't care much for the ambiguity of that thought. He wasn't limited by many of the moral restrictions that held others back (so long as the methods stuck to his end goal), but as time went on the fluidity of his idea of morals could possibly become more concrete, and that was slightly concerning to him. Not by much, but still. As long as he held his ground on aiding the people of the planet, that part was certain, but the means to that could mean anything, really. And that was the part that he often pondered. Alas, even if he had made this decision many times, he never could truly answer it.

Yet, even through the thoughts running rampant through his mind, it came to his attention that there was another presence in the chao gardens.

He looked around, scanning cautiously for whatever the presence might happen to be. And when he saw a strange echidna- one he had never seen before- in a sort of ancient clothing he had not seen until then, kneeling down towards the pond to watch a small water chao swim around….he wasn't quite sure how to react. How had she even gotten there without his noticing?

Apparently, the two of them had been very deep into their own thoughts.

He looked away, lest she notice he was watching, and he went back to minding his own. The little Shadow in his arms seemed to have other plans. He bounced out from the protection of Shadow's arms and went running, arms outstretched, straight for this strange new presence. Shadow began to open his mouth to express his disapproval, but decided to stay quiet in favor of seeing how she would react.

He wasn't quite past using the chao as a test for hostility, but at the same time he was at the point where he got jealous when the chao willingly left him for someone else.

The echidna turned, still not noticing the hedgehog himself, and she scooped up the chao into her arms as if it were the most usual thing for her. Shadow was silently furious.

"Well hello, little Shadow." She smiled at the chao in a peaceful manner, and stroked its head the same. "What kind of mischief have you been getting into?"

Shadow was shocked that, somehow, she even knew his chao's name. And apparently it knew her all along.

The chao replied to her with a happy mumble of some sort, and the stranger laughed quietly. "So I see. And you've been getting along with the new hatchlings, I think? It seems to be going well, anyway. They're already swimming and everything." She looked back towards the pond and seemed to beam with pride at the sight of it.

It was at this point that Shadow realized trying to be alone with his chao and his thoughts were going to be hopeless. He stood up, somewhat pretended to have come from the direction of the entrance to the chao gardens, and he walked up to her, as subtly as he could.

"Oh hello. I never expected that you would be the one to approach me...but I'm happy nonetheless." She turned towards him right away, almost like she had been expecting him, and the Shadow chao looked up at him eagerly from her arms. Shadow frowned at the chao quickly before looking back up to face this stranger.

"Well, hello. I'm not quite sure what you're talking about, but if you're going to explain please do," he was sure that he wasn't coming across as friendly at all, but he had more important things than that to think of right then.

"I often see you here in the chao gardens, thinking very deeply it seems." She gazed off at the pond as if she, herself, were still thinking deeply, and she only hesitantly looked back to resume her conversation. Perhaps he had interrupted her thoughts as much as he had thought she'd interrupted his. "And so I do not interrupt you from that, as I think that you might not want to be interrupted...but you never seemed to notice when I came by to see the chao."

"Oh. Funny that I wouldn't notice that…" Shadow muttered.

"Yes, well, that's alright. I often come here, anyway. It's sort of my job, I suppose, watching after the chao..."

"Hmm."

"Oh! I've forgotten. My name is Tikal. And, judging by circumstances, I think your name is Shadow."

"You aren't wrong. However, I'm...in the middle of something right now. Can I please have my chao back?"

"Surely. I understand. You seem to take very good care of him, Shadow. It is a high honor to be able to take care of a chao, and you seem to excel at it," she handed him the chao with slight caution and watched as he took it and left back to his spot, without any acknowledgement of her statements.

Shadow, meanwhile, was not very glad to learn that all this time, he had not had isolation in the chao gardens. He supposed it wasn't the best spot for trying to be by himself, as the chao gardens did get many visitors. But now he actually had to find a new spot to go to. Perhaps his house was the best option...but he had to get out of it sometime anyway. Maybe he could just stand outside his house instead?

Or maybe it just didn't matter. It's not like she could know what he was thinking of anyway.

He absentmindedly heard her talking to the chao, and realized the frustrating similarity between her voice and another's. He sighed, gave in, and watched her cautiously step into the pond in pursuit of the water chao.

So much for thinking.

"You all swim so well, don't you?" The chao, circling around her in the waters, chaoed at her in agreement. "It seems as if you were made for it."

Shadow gradually made his way over to where she was again, with his chao still in hand, and he set it down into the waters as well. "Well I guess there's no point in that," he muttered aloud.

"Why is that?"

"My chao needs a break."

"Ah."

They both watched, in a strangely serene silence, as the small creatures swam in circles around each other, while the overcast sky began to spill with the beginnings of a spring rain.

"It's a calm place here," Shadow murmured, somewhat to himself.

"It is. I am very glad to be able to watch over it….whatever point in time it may be." No matter what she said, her eyes held a distant look to them.

Shadow didn't respond to this, for uncertainty of what to say, but he had a feeling a response was not required.

"The chao have such a strong influence on all of life, really, but it's sad that very few take time to notice them," she said.

"That's true, but very few people actually notice things worth noticing, anyway. If you haven't seen, people will waste their lives on very stupid things."

He had a harsher way of speaking things then she probably anticipated, but she didn't seem taken aback by it.

"Yes. And I'm sure that their small choices indicate the paths of the rest of their lives, but they do not believe in the power of those subtle choices. As in the chao gardens, how the chao's future is built by the subtle things in their early lives; what people they spend time with, what animals they are around, what chaos drives they have. But the chao's very future, for years and years down the line, are made up of those very things."

The hedgehog nodded. Though, at least, he had known that for as long as his thoughts on the chao garden existed.

"Unfortunately, most people don't have as long as the chao to live," she added, albeit quietly.

Shadow wanted to mention the bleaker fact that, hey, he had all of eternity. But he kept this to himself in case it caused too much question. So instead he just gave her a slight sound of acknowledgement.

She looked over at him and for once she lost the distance in her eyes. "I have a feeling…" And she looked back out at the clouds and the rain.

"What?"

"I get the feeling that you come here to wonder about your own life path," Tikal said.

"That's rather private, really," he replied, with a little bitterness in his voice. " But I suppose you're mostly correct."

"I thought so. I can't really tell you where to go from here, or what you'll be doing then, unfortunately. That is something you can't even really tell yourself, until it happens. You just...you don't know the paths that will open up in the future to take. I didn't know, many years ago, that I would be here, able to watch the chao gardens, travel through time eras...seal Chaos, any of it. But you must be a very grounded person before you are able to take on any life paths. And maybe those will change you, but you cannot forget that grounded part of yourself, because it, too, will always shape who you are. It all is...just as the chao. They must choose what sort of chao to evolve to, before they can transform into an entirely new creature." She gave a slight pause. "But I get the feeling that you have set a foundation for yourself, already. That's a great thing, though I'm sure it was hard to do."

"I'm well aware. I'm not sure how it is you seem to know about me...But trust me, I understand what I'm doing," Shadow replied. He had known somewhere that it was true; that he could not know the future of his life, that he could only control his own self, that it was impossible to try and guess from the present's circumstances. But for some reason he thought too often of it anyway. He just wouldn't let her know that, perhaps, he hadn't really been that 'well aware' at times. "But thank you."

"I'm sorry if I over-explain too much. I guess it's just been so long since I have spoken to someone- especially someone on the subject of life and purpose. I suppose trying to give direction has always been my own purpose, and perhaps I don't know where to stop sometimes," she laughed to herself.

"It's alright." He wanted to add something, but there was nothing that came to mind quick enough.

"Well, thank you" She stepped up out of the water and motioned a wave to the chao left swimming. "I suppose I'll be heading off now." She went up the slight incline and motioned a wave to Shadow as well. "I hope to see you again! Hopefully next time we will both have clearer minds." And like that, with a slight smile she vanished. Quite literally vanished.

Shadow stood in shock for a few quick moments before deciding that, yes, he'd seen stranger things.

Tikal reflected for a while afterward, wondering why it had happened to be that particular day that the black and red hedgehog first noticed her. Knowing that somehow, it must have played into the grander scheme of things.

A/N: I'm not sure if it was quite as clear as I wanted it to be, but I wanted to draw the similarity between Shadow and Tikal in this, in the way that both were there to contemplate their respective purposes, and both of them used the chao garden as a sort of comparison to their life situations, both of them are immortal (even though Shadow doesn't realize that Tikal is). The main difference is the very contrasting ways that they each serve their purposes.

I guess if I'm explaining this and a reader needs the explanation I've failed writing this chapter. But, hey, maybe I did show this intention well enough and someone was just wondering if their thoughts were leaning the right way. I'll hope for that. : )

P.S. I am very unsure of Tikal's time and place in the Sonic canon. Everyone seems to interpret the time and place which she went with Chaos to after SA differently and sooo that's confusing and I really don't know. So in this, she is just like one of those spirit-ball-thingies that she appeared as in SA for awhile, except in this she can also take physical form and time travel through chao gardens.