Shadow sighed deeply as he looked around him, crimson eyes taking in the plain white walls of his home. He rested a hand on his chest and shivered as he thought of the warmth pressed against him mere minutes ago. It didn't take long for a smile to spread across his face, a more relaxed smile than he could muster in front of even Maria. It was a small thing, really, but monumental in Shadow's mind. A first date. It had ended better than he'd hoped. She wanted to see him again.
He wished he'd gotten to see Sonic's face as they'd left. He should have looked back! But no, no, he couldn't do that to Amy, as much as he would have relished the expression. For so long he'd resented his blue lookalike, thought he was a pompous arrogant fool, and yet he could never admit to himself why until lately. Amy had so longed for Sonic's love and affection, and Shadow had always thought him to be a fool to turn her away. Only now did he recognize that resentment for what it was: jealousy. But now Amy would not be Sonic's to mistreat and cast aside. It seemed, to Shadow, she had made her choice last night, but only time would tell if he was right. For now, he had her sweet voice still ringing in his ears and the still fresh memory of her soft fur against his own to linger on in her absence.
It almost made it difficult to go to sleep, but the dark hedgehog found his way back into his bed, content to dream of Amy for a few more hours before getting started on his day. Though his bed was uncomfortably cold, he managed to accomplish his goal and then some, not rising again until after midday. He yawned and stretched and scrolled through his phone to see what his day would consist of. Rouge had texted him, and though her first few messages consisted of thinly veiled innuendo and well wishes for his time with Amy, the most recent one caught his eye and made him narrow his gaze. Late last night, simply: Check your throwaway.
He sniffed absently as he closed the message and pulled up his most recent throwaway email account, and sure enough an unread message waited for him. He skimmed it, his expression becoming a frown that deepened as he reached the bottom of the text. Sighing, he rose to his feet and began getting himself together; it seemed he needed to pay Rouge a visit.
He changed into fresh clothes and warped to Rouge's doorstep, hoping that she would already be up for the day. A few authoritative knocks later, the door opened to reveal a red echidna, seemingly mid meal and already a bit agitated.
"Shadow." He acknowledged briskly, looking the man up and down. "What can I do for you?"
"I'm looking for your fiancée, actually." Shadow said slowly, glancing behind the man to hopefully catch a glimpse of her inside. "Is she up for the day yet?"
Knuckles rolled his eyes, seemingly irritated, though not by Shadow. "Sorry, she left a few hours ago to meet Tails."
Shadow sighed, reaching up to rub his forehead. Of course she did. "Did she say where she was going, or…?"
"Her club. God knows the woman won't be bothered to fly over to Mystic Runes." The echidna said, leaning onto the door frame with crossed arms. Even in a relaxed pose, he seemed rigid and stiff. Shadow supposed he had that effect on some people. "Did she… talk to you last night?"
"Yes." Came Shadows distracted reply. It seemed he was going to need to find her elsewhere. "I had to cut the conversation short, but she did send me a message last night."
"Gotcha." Knuckles sighed. "Shadow, will you do me a favor?"
"Depends on the favor."
"Do you think you could talk Rouge out of getting into all this mess? God knows we don't need the money, at least not anymore and—" The echidna spoke through gritted teeth. "—frankly, I don't need the kind of reputation we'll get if she gets herself in serious trouble."
"What?" Shadow said with a smirk. "The guardian of the master emerald can't be married to a big time jewel thief? Little late for that, huh?"
"Not if she gets caught doing it." Knuckles replied curtly. "You're her friend. Don't enable her."
Shadow didn't reply to this, deciding he would rather chew on the request than give a reply. He didn't have to enable Rouge, after all. She'd been in the business long before he'd ever even met her, and he wasn't going to talk her out of it, that's for sure. Besides, he didn't exactly mind lining his own pockets after a successful deal had been made. Then of course, there were certain situations that definitely made it a less than ideal lifestyle.
Which is exactly why he was looking for Rouge in the first place.
"I need to go." Shadow said with a shrug. "I'll see you around, Knuckles."
"Fair enough." The echidna said, offering no more goodbye than this before shutting the door. Once more, Shadow retrieved his emerald and set a new location to warp to.
He stumbled a bit coming out of his chaos control, nearly running into the large windows of Club Rouge as he did. Once he had his footing, he peered through the glass, hoping to see Rouge and the aforementioned fox. Yet he saw no one. Curious, he reached for the door and found it unlocked, so he decided to head for the back office. Something about the state of the backroom made his blood run cold.
It was a mess. There was a half finished drink sitting on the back counter, beside his open and seemingly rifled through log book. The chairs flipped over, loose documents had been tossed about, items knocked over and cast aside. It was a state unlike any he or Rouge would have left it in. "Rouge?" He called aloud, stopping to straighten the chairs, looking around in confusion. "Are you here?"
Something in his gut told him this was not right at all. He pursed his lips, then decided to look one more place. He headed for the back exit and stepped into the alleyway, only to have his fears realized. There had always been a trapdoor leading down to the basement, blocked by a heavy metal plate and a large padlock, to which only he and Rouge had access. It was a bit dangerous to be in, they told the staff, but he and his friend knew the truth: it was where they stored their more valuable assets. He could see the broken padlock lying a few feet away, tossed aside without a care in the world. Shadow opened the door and peered down the dark steps to see that the second, more secure door was lying broken off its hinges.
"Rouge?" He called again, brows furrowed. He glanced around himself to ensure that no one was around, then carefully descended down the steps into the darkness.