It has been four days since Weiss found the note under her pillow. She flops on her bed and stares at the ceiling. For some reason, whenever she has a free moment she finds her thoughts drifting to a certain idiot...

...and for the life of her she cannot understand why.

No doubt Smoke has been keeping tabs on him, if anything the arrogant fool knows how to keep up with the times. She wonders if she should...

Weiss lets out a groan "Why me! Why do I feel so confused!"

Lucy pops her head out from under the bed, "Are you okay Big Sis?"

Weiss sighs in reply "No...not really...why?"

She crawls up on the bed, "I don't like seeing big sister upset..."

"I'm not, Lucy...I'm just...frustrated."

Lucy looks confused, "Can I ask why?" She crawls over, and cuddles close to Weiss.

"Because of boy troubles...you're too young to understand..." She wraps her arms around Lucy, resting her head on hers.

She rolls her eyes up to look at Weiss, "Is Spike bothering you again? I can get Sifu to knock some sense into him."

"Hmmm..I don't know any more, Lucy...boys are annoying..."

"Yeah, who needs them? Yuck!" Lucy makes a face while sticking out her tongue in disgust.

"Exactly!" Weiss grins "No-one needs them. Certainly not us!"

Lucy just purrs, but despite her words Weiss just can't get the image of that wild-haired idiot out of her head.

"Godamnit...go away!" She whines

Lucy jerks, "...Okay..."

"No...not you..." Weiss frowns "I just...can't stop! It's doing my head in...maybe I need to keep occupied."

Lucy tilts her head, "Well...I heard something that might distract you." She leans in, and whispers, "I think Shadow likes Amy."

Weiss frowns "...Why'd you think that?"

"I heard Smoke say so," Lucy says. "And they both got a little red in the cheeks! Auntie Yang says that web. You blush while thinking about someone then you like them!"

"Oh? Hmmm...interesting...but how do you know they were thinking about each other?"

"Because they did as soon as he said it!" She giggles mischievously.

"I see..." Weiss smirks "So...what are you suggesting we do?"

"Wanna see if we can hook 'em up?"

"But...it's none of our business...and I don't really care."

Lucy whines, "But it'll be fuuuuuuuuuuunnnnnnnnn!"

Weiss groans "Maybe for YOU. But I have no interest in this kinda stuff.."

"But it's no fun alone... Pweeeaaaaaseeeee? Pwease me like cheese?"

"FINE! But only to get you to stop annoying me..."

"YAY!" She kisses Weiss on the cheek, and hugs her around the neck, "You're the best big sister EVER!"

"Of course I am!" Weiss smirks, and returns the hug tightly "Why wouldn't I be."

It takes fifteen minutes, but they eventually find Shadow on the roof looking at the picture Weiss had picked up for him a few days prior.

"Hey, Mr Grumpy!" Weiss smirks "What are you doing?"

Shadow looks at her out of the corner of his eye. "What the Hell do you want?"

"Ask Lucy..."

Lucy peeks at the photo, "Ooooooo, pretty! Who is she?"

Shadow eyes the younger girl for a few minutes. "...Maria."

"Maria?" Weiss frowns "She's your girlfriend? Sister? ...Lover..." She smirks

"The only friend I had in life," Shadow says, eyeing the picture again.

"You had more than I did as a child..."

"I never WAS a child," Shadow says.

Weiss frowns "Of course you were you idiot! EVERYONE was!"

Shadow shakes his head, "I was t born into e instance like you two Weiss. I was created in a laboratory by combining the DNA of a hedgehog with the DNA from an alien named Black Doom."

He stares at the picture, "Everyone on the space colony Ark had their own reasons for studying me... But Maria, my creator's granddaughter, was the one one apart from himself to treat me as a real person."

Weiss is shocked "..Created...so...you're...a cyborg..thing?"

He shakes his head, "A cyborg is part machine, I'm a hybrid." Shadow puts the picture away, Maria had a genetic disorder that was slowly killing her. My creator Gerald Robotnik had hoped that I would provide him the means to a cure... He never made one."

"So...she died?"

Shadow's expression darkens, "The humans back on Möbius feared my power, and the military unit the Guardian Unit of Nations stormed the Ark...Maria was shot down in front of me while forcing me to flee in an escape pod..."

"Wow..." Weiss gapes "I...wow..."

He turns his back, crossing his arms, "If not for the promise I made her..."

"What promise?"

"Even dying she was willing to forgive those idiots," Shadow says. "All she wanted was a happy life, and she knew I could have given it to her if she hadn't... As she was bleeding out she made me promise to give the people of the world a chance to live happy lives."

He blinks, looking down to see a sniffling Lucy hugging him around the waist. Weiss looks stern "Don't you dare expect a hug from me...but I'm sorry to hear that."

"Hmph," he carefully pulls Lucy off of him. "I don't know why the Hell I told you all that."

"Me neither..." Weiss sighs "Anyway..Lucy seems to think you're crushing on that girl.."

Shadow raises an eyebrow, "Maria?"

"No, Amy. The one obsessed with that other idiot.."

The barest hint of red appears under Shadow's eyes, "And you're concerned with the musings of a child?"

"No...she dragged me here." Weiss deadpans "I don't wanna be here."

"Hmph!" He turns away, and starts walking, "You have a lot to learn kid, I don't think of Rose that way."

Weiss raises her eyebrow at Lucy, and then smirks "Don't take me for a fool...I saw that blush just now...and don't EVER call me kid.."

Shadow freezes, and glares at Weiss over his shoulder. "What are you babbling about?"

"What are you, an idiot?!" She growls "I SAID I saw you blush when I said you liked her!"

Shadow narrows his eyes. "...I will admit I do have a smidgen of affection for her, but not romantically. When I had thought I had promised Maria revenge on the world, Rose was the one who reminded me of my real promise while my plans were in motion."

Weiss frowns at Lucy "You said..."

Lucy tilts her head, "Then how come you get so bothered when we mention it?"

Shadow says nothing in reply.

"Oh come on...stop being so stupid and just CONFESS!"

Shadow closes his eyes, "I always thought of Maria as a sister, and harbored the same feelings for Rose... But lately, ever since coming to this world with these new bodies, I can't help but wonder if things would have been different between us if I had been made a human."

Lucy frowns, "It's obvious you like her, nothing to be embarrassed about! You can't even call Amy by her first name!"

Weiss blinks "So...you like her...ask her out!"

Shadow growls, "Will the two of you fucking leave me alone if I do?"

"Only if she says Yes," Lucy says cheekily.

Shadow storms off.

Weiss can't help but laugh "You know she's gonna say no..she's obsessed with the other idiot.."

Lucy smiles as a little halo appears over her head, "Shall we go watch?"

"Sure..."

...

Shadow walks the halls of Beacon, ears flicking around to listen for Amy.

"SOOOONIIIIIC!" Her voice sounds "Where are you!"

Shadow follows her voice to a classroom. "Rose, there you are."

Amy blinks "Shadow? Where's Sonic?"

"No idea, but I need to ask you a favor Rose."

"Um...okay.." Amy replies, slightly surprised.

"Weiss, and Lucy have gotten it into their heads that I should ask you out," Shadow says simply. "And since I can't Chaos Blast them off the face of the planet the only thing I can do is oblige. So would you care to spend the evening with me, for the sake of my sanity?"

"But...what about Sonic? I mean...he and I...he might think...well..." Amy blushes slightly.

"I'll let him in on the situation," Shadow assures her.

"BUT THEN HE MIGHT THINK I DON'T WANT HIM ANYMORE! Shadow...wait...since when do YOU care about all this? If it was my brother you'd chaos blast him without a thought..."

"I'm trying to be a bit... Less violent," he confesses. "Last night I was thinking, and I'm convinced that if Maria wanted me to make the world a happy place she'd want me to be happy too. I can't do that if I'm angry all the time."

Amy smiles "Maria...I'm sure she'd be proud of you, Shadow...I'd love to spend time with you..."

Shadow nods, "Alright, now let's find that Faker."

"...But..." Amy frowns "What if...this ruins any chance of getting with him."

"Well it's either we try this, or you try to persuade Weiss, and Lucy to let this matter be."

"...Lucy can be bribed...but Weiss...she's...mean."

Shadow crosses his arms, "At any rate, Sonic isn't so shallow to hate you for helping... An acquaintance."

"I guess...but maybe let's keep this between US...that way Sonic won't find out and I'll still have a chance!" Amy grins, and skips over to him to loop her arm through his "Now, what are we doing?"

Shadow blinks, "I have no idea, I never considered a date in my life."

"Well...we could...I don't know what there is to do around here. We could...just...spend time together in each others' company? Go for a walk? Or...go for...food?"

Shadow nods, and closes his eyes. A moment later they appear on the streets of Vale.

Amy smiles "I'm surprised you can still do that here...but anyway! Where can we go where Sonic won't be..."

"Anywhere you would like to take him on a date," Shadow suggests.

"I'd take him for chilidogs!" Amy giggles "Or...to the country..."

"Country?"

"Yeah...the countryside...for a romantic stroll..or run in his case..."

"Ah," Shadow nods, looking around. "Is there anything you're particularly hungry for then?"

"Uh.." Amy thinks "...ICE CREAM!"

Shadow nods again, and walks her across the street to an ice cream parlor. He looks over the menu with mild interest.

Amy giggles happily "What's your favourite?"

"I don't know," Shadow replies. "I never really stopped long enough to enjoy it."

"Well now you can! How about...strawberry? Or...chocolate! Or maybe a mixture of different ones...hmm..."

Shadow eyes the list again, and raises an eyebrow, "Cookie Dough is an ice cream?"

"OH YEAH!" Amy grins "It's delicious...I highly recommend it!"

Shadow nods, "Alright then, I'll have a cone of that."

"And I'll have...chocolate!" Amy chirps "Hey, Shadow...you don't look like the kind of person to like sweets.."

"I wouldn't know," Shadow says as he watches them scoop the cones.

Amy shrugs, and takes hers with a smile "Well let's just have fun today...wait...maybe Sonic would get jealous if he saw us!"

Shadow frowns as he takes his, and looks at her, "So you want to rub this in his face?"

"Well...maybe..." She replies, "I..don't know. Just, you're rivals right?"

Shadow deadpans, "If you're thinking this will goad Sonic into a competition over who could be a better boyfriend then let me say now that's not going to work."

"WHAT?!" She pouts "Whyyyy!"

Shadow licks his ice cream, and opens his eyes. "... Delicious."

Amy's eyes brighten "You think?! Oh I'm so glad! I knew you'd love it! Maybe we could make it a regular thing!"

Shadow smirks, "I suppose that wouldn't be such a bad thing."

"Really?" She grins, and starts to eat her ice cream "That's great!"

She's sure Sonic will get jealous...

Shadow looks around, "Should we get a table , or go for that stroll you mentioned?"

"Ooh, let's go for a walk!" She links her free arm through his "That is...if you want to..."

"Sure," he says, and they head out to the streets.

"So...do you like it here?" Amy smiles

He nods, "It's... Rather nice." He looks at the people walking on the other side of the street, "So this is the lifestyle I swore to protect, though Maria saw little to none of it."

"So...you're going to follow through with your promise?"

"Yes," Shadow says, and looks at her. "I plan to never go back on my word for so long as I breath."

"Good." Amy smiles up at him "Maria will be pleased to hear it! Any news on getting back home then?"

"As far as I know there hasn't been any contact with Möbius since you arrived," Shadow replies.

"I see..." She sighs dejectedly "Okay..."

"HELP!"

Shadow jerks, ears alert as he runs ahead to an alleyway. Three men have a pair of Faunus siblings cornered. Shadow glares, handing his cone to Amy, "This will take only a moment. HEY YOU!"

Amy jumps at his tone, grasping both cones firmly "Shadow...be careful..."

Shadow steps into the alley, casting his namesake over the five. "You, humans, I suggest you leave before you regret it."

One of them, presumably the leader of the bunch, frowns as he steps forward "Regret it? Please..the only thing we'll regret is not beating YOU to a pulp!"

Shadow stares calmly at him, "I'm on a date, at least I was until you interrupted. As you can imagine..."

He stabs a hand into the brick wall beside him, "I am not..." He pulls a brick free, and crushes it to dust singlehandedly. "Happy," he finishes with a growl. "Now LEAVE!"

The group, with the exception of the leader, gasps.

"L-Look...he just..."

"Come on man, we should go."

The leader growls "You don't scare me..."

"You don't know who you're up against," Shadow growls. "Why don't you listen to these two, they're obviously the smarter ones."

"And you're obviously an idiot to think you're better than me...get lost...now..."

Shadow sighs, "I tried being nice..."

He blurs forward, sweeping a leg, and breaking the leader's knee with a kick. Then he glares at the other two, "Get lost, and take him with you!"

The two just run for their lives...leaving him behind.

"Hey, fools!" The leader shouts "Get back here!"

"Pathetic," Shadow sneers, knocking out the last human. Then he turns, walking back to Amy. "Sorry Rose, I didn't mean to make you wait."

"It's...okay.." She blinks. "Are you alright?"

"Of course I am," he says simply, and looks over his shoulder. The young Faunus, a brother and sister, stand there with the girl tugging on the back of Shadow's hoodie.

"Thank you mister," she says quietly.

Shadow nods, "You're welcome, and your best run home now."

The brother nods, and takes off, pulling his sister by the hand.

Amy smiles "That was incredibly kind of you..."

Shadow raises an eyebrow, "Well I wasn't about to just ignore it."

"Course not...Maria would be proud." she hands him his ice cream.

Shadow accepts it, and with a smirk he offers his arm. Amy giggles and threads her arm through his "Where to now?"

"The countryside?" He licks his ice cream again.

"Sure! Maybe we'll see Sonic!"

Shadow shrugs, "Chaos Control!"

Amy sighs happily as she observes their surroundings "It's so beautiful here...Just like home..."

Shadow nods, "Rolling green hills, some trees, blue skies..."

"Perfect, right?" Amy giggles and finishes eating "Makes me feel better about being here."

Shadow nods, grimacing when he realizes his ice cream is melting over his hand. "Ah dammit..."

Amy laughs "Just lick it off or something...it'll be sticky otherwise."

He fishes around in his pockets for napkins. "Oh come on Shadow...it's not that bad.."

He nods as he wipes up the mess. "I think I've lost my appetite."

"Why?"

Shadow shrugs, and tosses the ice cream away. "Shall we start walking?"

"Sure!" She laughs "Let's not get lost though..."

"Doesn't matter if we do," Shadow says as he offers her his clean hand. "So long as I know the destination I can always teleport us."

"Okay!" She shrugs and takes his hand "Thanks..."

He nods, and walks leisurely towards a dirt path.

"S-So..."Amy starts awkwardly "Um...I...well..."

He blinks, "What's wrong?"

"N-Nothing..." She blushes "Nothing...I just...I can't help imagining...Sonic..."

He chuckles, "Remember when we first met, and you thought I WAS him until I didn't start running?"

Amy laughs "Oh yeah...I remember alright! Still...sorry about that...Shads." She smirks, teasing him

He folds his ears down, "Please don't call me that."

"Why? Sonic does!" She giggles.

"I don't like it when HE does either," Shadow grumbles.

"Oh come on...nicknames are cute! You don't call me Amy!"

Shadow looks off to the side, "I am Shadow."

"And I am Amy." She giggles "Shads is cute though! It suits you! I'd give Sonic one...but what could I shorten his down to..."

"Nick?" Shadow raises an eyebrow.

Amy blinks "What kind of nickname is THAT Shadow?! Look...just deal with it, Shads...that's what I shall call you from now on. Get used to it!"

He sighs, "There never is any point arguing with you."

"Exactly!...Wait, what! Why!"

"One just simply can't win," Shadow says.

"Because I ALWAYS win!" She laughs "Now come on, Shads, let's go!"

"Where are you in such a rush to go Rose?"

"Nowhere in particular...hey, Shadow...have you ever had a girlfriend before?" She innocently questions him

"No," he replies. "Faker always picks at me saying I'm going out with Rouge, but in truth she's just a shameless flirt."

"Have you ever thought about dating her? Have you ever LIKED her? Have you ever liked ANYONE? What about kisses?" She drills him with questions, a grin on her face, ever the hopeless romantic.

"No, no, no, and none," Shadow says. "We have a professional partnership, and she's a loyal comrade."

"Ohhhh...so you've never dated...ever...what about crushes? Had one of those? What about Sonic? He's soooo dreamy..." Amy giggles hopelessly as she clings to Shadow "One day we'll marry...one day...I can feel it."

"Rose, you're cutting off the circulation in my arm," Shadow informs her calmly.

Amy blinks, and immediately relinquishes her hold "Oops...sorry, Shads...didn't mean to!"

He smiles, and then blinks, looking away abruptly with a tinge to his cheeks.

"Shadow?" She frowns "You alright? You look...ill!"

"I'm fine, I can't GET sick remember?"

"But you look all flushed...are you sure you're okay?" She puts her hand to his forehead in concern "Very hot...perhaps you should take it easy."

Shadow growls, "I said I'm fine... Just an arrant thought..."

Amy frowns and steps back "Well fine! Excuse me for showing concern! Hmph!"

He sighs, "For a moment... I... ah forget it."

"It's okay Shadow...you can tell me.."

Shadow growls loudly, and pinches the bridge of his nose, "When you let go of my arm I thought..." He sighs "I thought you..."

"Thought I what!" Amy folds her arms impatiently.

Shadow balls a fist in his own hair, "Damn it all to Hell, I thought you looked cute!"

Amy is stunned "C-Cute...me.."

Shadow grits his teeth, and waits for some violent outburst. He's really put his foot in his mouth this time, this is EXACTLY why he hates interacting with others.

"THANK YOU!" She gushes "That's so incredibly sweet of you Shadow!"

Shadow opens his eyes, "Wait... what?"

Amy engulfs him in a hug "You! That was so cute! Oh Shadow...I wish Sonic would..."

Luckily she doesn't squeeze the life out of him since he was built to be able to hug live grenades with the pin pulled. "...Rose...Why do you pursue him? All it does is hurt you when he rejects you."

"Because I know deep down he likes me...he wouldn't have saved me so many times if he didn't! Sonic is special..."

"Sonic saves everyone," Shadow says, slowly hugging her back.

Amy blinks a tear away, "Y-Yeah...I know..." She whispers "But...there's something different about him...I'm sure he likes me!"

Shadow closes his eyes, holding her a little closer out of protective instinct for the innocent. It's not her particularly, but he cannot stand to see someone like her hurt so badly. "Please Amy, don't cry."

"I-I'm not..." She swallows the lump in her throat "I'm fine, I'm...fine..I'll..Sonic..."

He closes his eyes, and strokes her back, a gesture called up from memories of lounging on the couch with Maria, his head in her lap. So lost in memories is he that he doesn't even realize he's begun to purr.

Amy blinks "Sh-Shadow...? Um...are you okay? You're making a weird noise."

He opens his eyes, suddenly becoming aware of the vibrations in his throat, and chest. He lets her go, clearing his throat in his fist. "Yes... I'm fine..."

"You sure? Because I've never heard that noise before...maybe you're getting a cold, my poor Shads!"

"No, I was... purring," he says.

"..Why?" Amy frowns, concerned "You never do that."

"Not for over fifty years," he agrees.

"Why now then?"

Shadow makes loose fists at his sides, "...I loved Maria, even if only as a sister because we were different species... and you remind me so much of her I sometimes wonder if she was somehow reborn as you..."

Amy smiles gently "Who knows...what if I WAS Maria...what would you do..."

Shadow looks up at her, thinking...

"I'd never leave you to your own again," he replies.

"...Why?"

Shadow crosses his arms, "Because i know how that feels, I don't want you to have to endure that."

Amy laughs "Sonic does it all the time..."

Shadow's face tenses, "Amy I know you're infatuated with him, but why...? I thought we were out here for US..."

"We ARE!" She blinks "WE'RE spending time together aren't we?"

"Then why bring HIM up?"

"Because I...I don't know!" Amy frowns "Why are YOU so bothered?!"

Shadow blinks, and looks down at his shoes, "...A fair question, not one I'm certain I can answer."

"Well apparently you Ultimate Lifeforms are supposed to be perfect..."

Shadow scoffs, "After seeing me, and my sister you really believe that?"

"Well...Shadow...no-one is perfect...so why do you put so much pressure on yourself all the time?"

He sighs, "It's my responsibility."

"But you should relax every now and then...it won't kill you..."

He looks up at her, "...It's too easy to do so around you."

Amy raises an eyebrow "It is? Why? I thought you were one of those types that always kept their guards up...like my brother and Reave?"

Shadow smirks, "Your brother NEVER has his guard up, and Reave isn't as strict about it as I am. Yet you... You seem able to worm your way into the cracks of my armor.

"Your armour has cracks?! An enemy could use that to their advantage!" She scolds "Shadow...that's irresponsible!"

It takes him a minute to process this, "...You're joking with me, aren't you?"

Amy laughs "Maaaaaybe! Anyway...it's good for you to relax...give yourself a break..."

He nods with a sigh through his nose, "I see... Thank you Amy."

"You're welcome, always Shads!" She smirks, teasingly. He smiles, and then they start to walk again.

"Hey...Shadow...you do realise Sonic will get annoyed that he can't call you "Shads", right?"

"If I hear him complain once he's going to lose a few teeth," Shadow replies.

Amy laughs "Well...maybe don't go THAT far..."

Shadow smiles, reaching backwards for her hand. Amy slips her hand into his "Thank you, Shadow...it's been nice here with you...and thank you for giving me the time of day..."

"You're welcome Amy."

Amy blinks "...What...?"

He blinks too, "What's wrong?"

"You...you just...I...nah, forget it..." She tugs at his hand and pulls him along. "Come on."