My first attempt at writing fanfiction! This is heavily inspired by the episode The Answer from Steven Universe, and it includes my interpretation of the Sonic and Shadow fusion. Hope y'all enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own anything in the Sonic Franchise, Sega does. This is purely fanfiction.
The first time Cream had seen the fusion hedgehog was at a little get-together hosted by Sonic and Tails. They had invited many of their friends over, those friends being Cream herself, her mother, Cheese, Knuckles, Amy, the Chaotix, and Team Dark.
Sonic had said Shadow and him wanted to show the squad something, though nobody specified what it was.
Shadow the Hedgehog walked with his friends Rouge and Omega into the backyard where the outdoor gathering was being held. The minute he stepped in, he made immediate eye contact with the blue hedgehog. The two smiled and walked towards each other before they began hugging, and whispering words to each other, words Cream couldn't make out. The two hedgehogs were then laughing, and they began spinning, then to half of the party members' surprise, Sonic lifted the ebony hedgehog by the waist and began twirling him as well!
The two hedgehogs' bodies began to convert into some type of light. The two balls of light lost their shape and transformed into a single blob of light. That single ball of light then took shape, and to everyone's shock became a taller hedgehog!
"Surprise!" The new being said.
While Cream, her mother, and the Chaotix were left speechless at the sight before them, Tails and Rouge stepped forward.
"Cream, Vanilla, Vector, Espio, Charmy...this is Paragon the Hedgehog!"
"The embodiment of Sonic and Shadow's love and care for each other!" Rouge added.
After the introductions that day, the group had gotten used to seeing Paragon pop up. The fusion, despite sometimes showing traits that were clearly from Sonic, or clearly from Shadow, he seemed to be his own separate being. Paragon would occasionally speak to himself, and his fur would turn more blue or more black as if Sonic and Shadow were having a conversation. Sonic and Shadow liked the fusion, and each time they fused, they remained in that state longer than the previous time. Most of the time, one hedgehog would sweep the other off his feet, sometimes planting a kiss on the cheek, the forehead, or even a little chaste kiss on the lips. They would then twirl around before their two forms merged into one. A few times, they didn't even have to dance to fuse, they could just pull each other into an embrace, and Paragon would form, hugging himself.
Cream grew to admire Paragon, but she often got curious how he came into existence. So, one day, when Paragon was at her house, she approached the fusion, and asked,
"Mr. Paragon, I was wondering, how did Mr. Sonic and Mr. Shadow first become you?"
"Well Cream," the fusion began, "that's an interesting story. That story is not only the story of how I came into existence, but it's also how Sonic and Shadow first realized that they loved each other."
"Please tell me!"
"Alright," Paragon chuckled. He sat down on the couch, and patted the spot next to him, silently requesting Cream to join him. "It all started when the Black Arms invaded the planet Earth…"
All hope seemed lost. Shadow was naive enough to do Black Doom's bidding, to collect all seven Chaos Emeralds, and then hear his blood father's motives to destroy the world with their power!
And what was worse...the mobians who vowed to help him were currently paralyzed, plus Shadow himself was beginning to crumble as the invisible chains continued to pull him down.
"I-I'm sorry everyone…" Shadow gasped as he fell to his knees.
"That's a good boy Shadow," Black Doom said. "Now, I believe we have some work to do…"
Sonic, in his paralyzed state, couldn't help but feel his heart crack as he watched Shadow succumb to Black Doom's control. It was as if he had given up, accepted his fate… and he was letting it all happen! But Sonic...Sonic refused to accept this! Using all the strength and Chaos energy he had left in him, he managed to break out of his paralyzed state and run towards the black hedgehog.
"Shadow...is not...ONE OF YOU!" He grabbed Shadow and held him tight, as the two seemed to spin in midair. Suddenly, the Chaos Emeralds floating above Black Doom glowed brightly, as an even brighter light shone from the two hedgehogs' bodies.
As the light faded, everyone was taken aback by the sight before them. Standing in Sonic and Shadow's place was a taller hedgehog, one with dark blue fur. Its bottom three quills were turned down and had crimson red tips, while the top left and right quills were turned up, much like Shadow's. The center top quill was turned down and had a single red stripe running down it. Its chest was covered in white fur, it wore white gloves with black cuffs and gold rings around the wrists. Its shoes had the shape of Shadow's and the color pattern of Sonic's. The being opened its four eyes-wait, four eyes? Yup, this hedgehog had two large gold eyes, and two small, nearly unnoticeable gold eyes above them, almost looking like eyebrows.
The being opened its four eyes, shock written all over its face. It stared at Black Doom, then at the paralyzed mobians, then at itself.
"What...is this?" it whispered while staring at its hands. The creature let out a small groan, before glowing again, and turning into Sonic and Shadow, who both let out a groan as they fell to the floor. The two rubbed their heads, sprung back to their feet, and backed away from each other. Both saw the same emotions they were feeling in the others' eyes. Confusion, shock, and fear.
"What is the meaning of this?" Black Doom's voice brought the two hedgehogs back to reality. "How dare you defy me when I gave you this life? How dare you use this pathetic creature and engage in disgusting behaviors?"
Sonic defensively stepped in front of Shadow.
"He didn't do anything, that was all me! But I-"
"You deserve to suffer as much as these humans will hedgehog."
Sonic gasped as his body became as still as stone once again, and the demon-like alien floated away. Shadow was still shaken by whatever just happened but began to advance.
"Shadow…" Sonic managed to whisper in his frozen form, "good luck… you're our last hope…"
Shadow nodded and ran to follow his blood father.
Sonic looked up at the sky as Tails announced that Shadow had done it. He destroyed the Black Comet!
As Eggman attempted to sneak away but found himself getting chased by none other than Knuckles the Echidna. As Amy, Rouge, and Tails laughed at the scene though, Sonic starred up at the sky, at the spot where the Black Comet had been before it was destroyed. Tails, noticing his big brother's apprehensive gaze, came to his side.
"Hey, Shadow will be back," he said.
"Yeah… I know he will."
Shadow looked at Soleanna in the distance. Observed the lights, the music, and the fireworks. It seemed so beautiful, even at this distance. His admiration time was cut short though when suddenly, various images and scenes flashed through his mind, almost like he was remembering events that didn't occur.
Images of another hedgehog who looked like him without a mouth flashed through his head, followed by a vision of what looked like Omega sitting in standby mode after hundreds of years. An image of his look-alike transforming into a crystal-like being appeared, seeing himself locked away, there was another hedgehog, one with silvery-white fur. He was then attacking this white hedgehog, then creating some type of portal with him.
There was some type of scepter floating in front of him.
Omega seemed hurt,
He was fighting this crystal hedgehog.
But the next flash took Shadow by surprise...
A flash of Sonic...limp, cold, dead in some human's lap.
More flashes followed, but Shadow gave them little attention. He had just seen Sonic dead! When did he die? How? Is he alright now?
Even though Shadow was certain that these flashes were part of an alternate timeline that he would never truly experience, a part of him couldn't help but worry that the blue Blur was hurt, or worse… he sprang up from his observation spot, and bolted over to Soleanna.
He shortly found himself in a busy street. He passed multiple people until he approached the bridge, which was covered in gorgeous lights for the Festival of the Sun. Shadow looked around to see if he could find even a hint of who he was looking for. Before Shadow was about to shake himself all over and tell himself he was being paranoid and irrational...he saw him. There, standing on the other side of the bridge, observing the festival, was Sonic the Hedgehog, smiling, healthy, and not dead. Without much thought, Shadow ran up to the azure hedgehog.
"Sonic…?" he whispered. Upon hearing his name, the blue hedgehog shifted his gaze from the lake view to the ultimate lifeform.
"Oh hey, Shadow, enjoying the view?" He optimistically asked. Then, to his great surprise, the black hedgehog wrapped his arms around Sonic, pulled him close. Wow, since when did Shadow the Hedgehog give free hugs? That too, one so pleasant? Shadow's grip was so firm, yet so gentle at the same time, and it sent a feeling of warmth through Sonic's entire being. As shocking as the gesture was, it was far from unwelcome. And it felt so warm and pleasant! Sonic slowly wrapped his arms around the other, squeezing him tight.
He then sensed distress radiating from Shadow. The black hedgehog's breathing was heavy, and that look he gave Sonic just a moment ago...it looked as if he just saw a ghost.
"Shadow...what happened? What's wrong?" Sonic whispered.
"Nothing...it's nothing...you're okay...you're here…thank goodness you're okay..."
"Of course I'm okay," Sonic replied, stunned, "why wouldn't I be?"
His only response was a shake of the head from Shadow, who continued to hold him tight.
Sonic in turn, gently lowered his head until it was resting on Shadow's shoulder. They stayed like that until their bodies began to brightly glow, and meld together. This caught the attention of many passersby. They stared at the scene, when the large blob of light transformed into a tall hedgehog, hugging himself, and a single teardrop rolling down his peach cheeks.
The fusion opened its four eyes, before jumping back in shock. Its gaze drifted from the people in the street staring at them to its hands.
"Again?...is this…?" The fusion gasped, as its form returned to a single blob of light, which then turned into two blobs of light, which then turned into two hedgehogs, falling to the ground screaming.
The two hedgehogs stood up and scanned their surroundings. Several people were giving them looks. Some of shock, some of horror, even some of disgust. Sonic could feel his body heating up. That thing...whatever it was...happened again! In front of this crowd too!
A sense of embarrassment washed over Shadow. He turned his attention away from the crowd, and to the hedgehog next to him who was currently red in the face, and somewhat hyperventilating. Without a second thought, he stood up, grabbed Sonic's hand, and bolted away from there. He ran throughout Soleana, his blue counterpart flying behind him.
"Shadow! What are you doing? Where are we going?" He frantically yelled. The black hedgehog didn't answer and continued speeding down the path. Once they were far from the festival, Shadow pulled out a chaos emerald, shouting those familiar words.
"Chaos Control!"
In a flash, they landed on a grassy hill and tumbled down it until they stopped at the flat ground. Once again, the two stood up, brushing off the grass and dirt clinging to their fur.
"That thing…" Shadow began, "it happened again! It was the same thing that happened when…"
"When I tried to save you from Black Doom," Sonic finished. "Which I'm still upset about," he mumbled.
"Pardon?"
Sonic stayed staring at the ground for a moment, before turning around to face the ebony hedgehog.
"I don't understand your thought process! You were just going to give up that easily? He was going to kill you along with the entire planet! And that wasn't the first time you gave up your life, I tried to save you from falling from the ARK, and you refused!"
"I had fulfilled Maria's last wish, there was nothing left for me to live for. Besides, I almost blew up the planet she loved...twice."
Sonic quickly fired back.
"You almost destroyed the planet because you were manipulated and used by...well, everyone! Eggman, Black Doom, even Professor Gerald! That wasn't you Shadow! You're a person, not a tool!"
The ebony hedgehog was taken aback, soaking in the words of his blue counterpart. He had nearly destroyed the world under someone else's influence. Still, though, had he gone through with their plans, the blood of millions of innocent lives would be on his hands, right? And he had the choice to decline Black Doom's offers, but he had complied to them willingly. Sure, it was at a time when he was desperate, but that doesn't make any difference! And when Eggman dragged him into his scheme to use the Eclipse Cannon to destroy the planet, he could have decided to not fight fire with fire and...and…
A water droplet hit Sonic's nose. Then another one fell.
Then another,
And another.
And soon, the two hedgehogs were standing under nature's shower. One which was gradually getting heavier. And those dark clouds in the distance rang alarm bells in Sonic's ears.
"Come on. Let's get out of here." he began to walk away but quickly noticed his companion was as still as a statue, drowning in thought. Sonic approached him. Very gently, he wrapped one arm around the ebony hedgehog's back, and the other around his legs. A quiet gasp escaped Shadow's mouth as his feet left the ground and he was pulled back to the present.
"Come on, let's find a place where we can't get soaked." Sonic held Shadow close to him and began running away from the area. He ran for a good amount of time until he spotted a small cave. He walked in, quickly inspected it, and placed Shadow on the ground.
"Alright, this should be good for now," he said.
"Thank you," Shadow whispered. He and the blue blur locked gazes for a few seconds before a chilling breeze filled the air. Sonic visibly shivered and wrapped his arms around himself.
"You cold?" Shadow asked.
"A Little."
Sonic and Shadow were sitting in front of a bonfire which Shadow made using a concentrated Chaos Blast.
"Hey, sorry I got mad earlier," Sonic apologized.
"It's alright," Shadow replied. "I'm sorry about what happened back in Soleanna… I saw a vision of an alternate timeline. And you were dead! And I panicked...and, and..."
"Hey, It's alright. I'm alright," Sonic assured the ebony hedgehog as he scooched closer to him.
"I wanted to make sure," Shadow continued. "I never expected...that to happen."
Sonic reached out his hand and almost placed it on Shadow's shoulder, before changing his mind and pulling back.
"Can I tell you something?" He quietly asked. Shadow nodded. "When you fell from the ARK, I missed you...and I got worried about you when I realized you lost your memory. I liked you Shadow, and still do."
"You… care about me."
"We both cared about each other. We just didn't know how to show it. But, for the record, I think you did a better job than me."
Shadow smiled at the blue hedgehog.
"That thing we did, that fusion...as unusual as it was...it was nice."
"Heh, yeah, it was…" Sonic said, slightly blushing.
The next morning, as the sun cast its light onto the world, two hedgehogs began to wake up from a long night of peaceful slumber. Shadow was the first to wake up, and he peeked outside. The rain had come to an end, only small water drops dripped from leaves. Sonic woke up as well, stood next to Shadow, and gazed out to the world.
"So...now what?" Sonic asked. "We could go back, but...I don't think that's the best idea."
"What do you mean?" Shadow inquired.
"Well, you saw what people thought of that, didn't you? I guarantee by now the word has spread...I don't think I'm ready to face the world yet," Sonic said, his head lowering.
Shadow couldn't help but share his concern. While his first desires were to take Sonic back home, and then look for Rouge and Omega, a new feeling of embarrassment came over him. How many people were in that crowd? There had to be at least 20 sets of eyes on them back there! And Sonic was right, the word of the fusion hedgehog has probably spread to the entire kingdom of Soleana, and perhaps even further! Sonic was likely worrying about what would happen if any of his friends found out, and Shadow couldn't help but think the same.
"You know what? I don't think I'm ready to go back either," Shadow said. He then began to walk up a hill in front of them and was taken aback by the sight. The sunrise looked so...gorgeous! "Wow.." he whispered. "I never realized how beautiful it was!"
"What, the sunrise?" Sonic asked as he stood next to the black hedgehog, who nodded. "Yeah, it is beautiful," Sonic agreed. "You know, I do like going fast, but until we get caught, I think I'm just going to take it slow and enjoy nature."
"Then let's go," Shadow said, as he began marching down the path.
"Let's?" Sonic asked, tilting his head slightly.
"We're both here with nowhere to go, why not take it slow together?" Shadow remarked, turning his head back to look at the blue hedgehog.
"Yeah… Let's." Sonic walked up to Shadow and wrapped an arm around his back. Shadow, in turn, rested his head on Sonic's shoulder, as the two continued to gaze at the sunrise.
The two hedgehogs continued to explore the area. They stopped to smell the flowers, taking in the scent of each one, and placed some in the other's quills.
They also stopped as a small butterfly flew around them and landed on Shadow's nose. While he was initially startled, he calmed and smiled at the little creature.
"You should smile more often," Sonic commented. "A smile from you is all I need," he told the now blushing ultimate lifeform.
Later, when the night fell, the two lay down on a grassy hill and looked up at the stars.
"The stars look different from down here," Shadow commented. "On the ARK...You could see nothing but stars. Maria thought that would be the one thing she wouldn't care less about on Earth. But down here...it's so different." He then turned his head and noticed Sonic staring at the sky, with regret etched onto his face. "What's wrong?"
"I'm still thinking about what happened, and… I still feel bad about it."
"You accidentally fused with me, and I accidentally fused with you. It's alright, don't be sorry."
"I'm still wondering how exactly we did that. I mean, initially, it felt like I was going super, but then…"
"We just disappeared," Shadow finished. "I have a hypothesis that this might be some unusual chaos power none of us were aware of until now, but I can't be sure."
"You've never heard of something like that before? You know more chaos techniques than I do." Shadow only shook his head.
"Well hedgehog, I think we made something entirely new." He said placing a reassuring hand on Sonic's.
Shadow led Sonic through the forest, where they walked until they arrived in a clearing. They stopped and admired the beauty of the place. Shadow turned around to face Sonic, who lovingly looked into his eyes. Shadow then placed his free hand on Sonic's shoulder, who in turn, wrapped an arm around Shadow's waist. They took small steps. Those small steps turned into a slow dance, which then led to Sonic lifting Shadow off the ground and spinning him in the air many times. At that point, their bodies had turned into merging blobs of energy, and in their place stood a taller hedgehog.
The fusion hedgehog was stumbling around like a young toddler learning how to walk. Unlike a toddler though, he figured out how to walk at a steady pace rather fast. Feeling he was getting the hang of this unusual form, he continued marching forward.
And then he fell.
The fusion tripped, tumbled down a hill, falling face front on the ground.
"Ow…" he stumbled back at the tip of a machine gun shoved in his face. The hedgehog let out a yelp and screamed at...whatever was standing in front of them. "Don't hurt him!... Don't hurt… me?"
"SOURCE OF CHAOS ENERGY READING DETECTED," a familiar robotic voice said. The fusion-hog looked up.
"Omega?" He whispered. Indeed, standing in front of him was the robot known as E-123 Omega, who was currently retracting his arm cannon.
"AFFIRMATIVE. ARE YOU THE FUSION THE PEOPLE OF SOLEANNA SPEAK OF?"
Too shocked to say anything, said fusion only nodded.
"When I first saw you, I thought I was imagining things, but when an entire kingdom said they saw two hedgehogs fuse, I had to see it for myself!" Another voice said. Arriving at Omega's side was Knuckles who was looking at the fusion all over.
"Knuckles, we… we didn't mean to fuse!" The tall hedgehog said. "Well… we kinda did this time...but we'll unfuse! We'll-"
"There you are!" Another voice. The fusion didn't even have time to react as a two-tailed fox flew up to him. Additionally, a bat flew behind him and landed next to Omega and Knuckles. "Sonic! Er, Shadow, both of you, fusion… whatever, I'm so happy to see you!" Tails cried as he threw his arms around the tall hedgehog.
"Tails...you're not mad at us?" The fusion asked as he returned the hug.
"Of course I'm not mad! I got worried though, you-well, Sonic didn't come back, so Knux and I went looking in Soleanna, and we found Rouge and Omega, and the people kept on talking about 'two hedgehogs merging and running away!' I was so scared of something happening to Sonic or Shadow or you...what should we call you?" The fusion tilted its head at the question. "We've got to call you something other than 'the fusion', right?"
"I-I don't know," the fusion responded. "Sonic and Shadow-we… this is so confusing! How did I come into existence? How did Sonic break free from paralysis when the Black Arms invaded? Why did Shadow feel the need to run all the way to Soleanna only to see if Sonic wasn't dead? Who am I? What am I?"
"Hun, calm down," Rouge said. She approached the fusion and placed her hand on his. "I don't know the answers to all those questions, but I'll tell you what I'm inferring. I'm inferring that you are a combination of Sonic and Shadow's forms, which would likely make you a very powerful individual. But you're more than that. I first saw you when Sonic wanted to protect Shadow. And you say you fused again when Shadow wanted to make sure Sonic was okay, correct?"
The fusion nodded.
"Well, then… Sonic and Shadow care about each other. And when they decide to express it, you come into existence. And, I'm no genius when it comes to chaos energy, but you seem to be chaos energy responding to a strong emotion, and becoming a physical embodiment of that emotion."
"And what emotion do you think that is?" The fusion inquired.
"Love," Rouge said smiling. The fusion looked down at his hands, thinking over the bat's words.
"Huh, Rouge, your theory might not be far from the truth!" Tails chimed in. "After all, you do emit large amounts of chaos energy!" Rouge nodded and turned back to the fusion.
"It does make sense that this would only happen as a reaction to a strong emotion you both share." Knuckles commented.
"I DO BELIEVE ROUGE THE BAT HAS A HIGH CHANCE OF BEING CORRECT" Omega added.
"Again, we don't know the answers to all the questions. But I have a hunch that you exist because of the love between two powerful beings," Rouge said as she brushed a tear off of the fusion's cheek. "Which would likely make you a paragon," she added.
"Paragon..." the fusion tested the word on his tongue. "I like that. I have my name figured out!"
"Well then, Paragon the hedgehog," Knuckles began, "let's go home shall we?"
"Yes, we shall."
"Wow!" Said Cream. "Did anything happen after that?"
"Well, after we got home, I tested some of my abilities, and Tails did a few small tests. He didn't do too many, but the ones he did do confirmed a lot of our suspicions. Of course, we have to split up to take time to ourselves and be with our friends on our own, but we always get back to each other in the end!"
Cream smiled.
"I like it when Mr. Sonic and Mr. Shadow fuse because that means their love is very strong. That also means I get to have tea parties with you!" She exclaimed, hugging the fusion. "Mr. Sonic, Mr. Shadow, and Mr. Paragon are three of my favorite people!"
"And you're one of ours," Paragon said, returning the hug.
~The End~
-Izavella