The bar was loud, and although he hated being there, he found solace in the cheap vodka and the seclusion of the back booth. He drowned himself in the alcohol to escape drowning in his thoughts. What a day. He tried to breathe through his mouth so he wouldn't choke on the overwhelming scent of cheap perfume and cigarette smoke. He hated it here, on this side of town; nobody knew him, and that's what he needed right now.

"Shadow?"

Well, he thought nobody knew him here. He rolled his eyes in annoyance and looked up from his spot in the booth and saw his acquaintance's girlfriend, Amy. At least, he was sure her name was Amy. She looked...elegant tonight. She wore an elegant black dress that hung loosely over her chest, and ended halfway up her thighs. She wore dangling black diamond earrings, and black heels that wrapped around her ankles but was open and showed her toes. She was vastly overdressed for this hole-in-the-wall bar, and her soft features squinted to get a better look at him. He nodded and to his disdain, she sat down opposite of him.

"It's so great to see you! What are you doing all the way out here?"

She tucked her bubblegum pink quills behind her ears, making her black diamonds sparkle in the dim lighting of the bar.

Shadow wanted to just get up and leave; he didn't want to sit and have awkward conversations with some dude's girlfriend. He just was just wanted to drown his thoughts in vodka and the loud grainy tv. He took a swig from his drink, and clanked the glass down rather loudly to pass the hint to her, but she just sat there waiting for an answer. Damn.

"Obviously I wanted to see the game"

His lame attempt of a joke ushered a small giggle from the woman across from him and she leaned forward to rest her chin on her manicured fingers.

"Is that so? What teams are playing? What sport?"

She teased, winking at him.

Shadow tried to think what sports were around these parts, but his prolonged silence caused Amy to laugh at him. "Well, you got me. Just here to drink my problems away like everyone else."

"Isn't that the truth. I guess we aren't that different...for tonight, at least"

She smiled, waving her hands for the bartender.

The bartender here was a laid back man who has run this bar for 12 years. He never left the bar for anything, in Shadow's experience, but as soon as he saw Amy's black nails beckoning him, he was at their booth in an instant. Shadow was impressed. She ordered her drink and waved the bartender away with her drink order and Shadow's. He was once annoyed by her appearance but if she was going to buy him drinks then he wouldn't mind keeping her around. He couldn't help but wonder what a soft young woman was doing on the run-down, unsafe part of town. It wasn't any of his business of course, but there was nothing but trouble here, and he could easily handle himself with his guns or his hands, but Amy looked like she couldn't hurt a fly. His acquaintance, Sonic, once told him that he was scared of her. Said that her strength was immeasurable, but her weapon, a mallet, was something to behold. He never believed his cobalt counterpart, always just chalked it up to him being overly cocky about his girlfriend, and looking at her now, his suspicions seemed right. If she were carrying a huge mallet, he would be able to see it.

"I'd never peg you as the drinking type. Especially not in a place like this...dressed like that."

"Is that so? You'd be surprised at the 'type' I actually am."

"Is that so? What type are you then? Does Sonic know you're in some sketchy bar with a much better-looking man than him?"

Shadow was only joking, it made him feel better to tease Sonic. He was an arrogant asshole and his girlfriend was sitting with him and not Sonic. Whatever happened tonight, he won regardless.

"The type that can drink my weight in hurricanes and vodka sodas, and who cares what that asshole thinks? I'm not his property. Not anymore, at least."

She said it bitterly, like the memory of her boyfriend left a disgusting taste in her mouth. If they were broken up, it must have been bad because Shadow remembered the last time he saw her; she was clinging onto the blue blur like her life depended on it. The bartender returned with their drinks and Amy winked sensually at him as thanks. He tried to hide his blush but failed, and Amy asked him to open a tab before he went back to the bar.

"Oh? So you ran to me as soon as you could? How flattering."

Amy giggled at his fake arrogance and downed her drink within seconds. Shadow just held his glass and watched in awe. She was right, so was no stranger to alcohol. He was impressed that soft, innocent Amy was capable of such feats. He knew that he didn't know her that well, but he really misjudged her it seems.

"Seeing as you're here, dressed like that," he motioned his hand up and down to put emphases on her outfit, "instead of crying at home, that means you came here to be seen. Which means you have something to prove. What happened?"

Amy watched him take a drink of his vodka as she thought about her answer carefully. After a few seconds, she cleared her throat and began playing with her fingers nervously. "Sonic lives life in the fast lane, if you can believe it, and if you don't match his energy 100% of the time he gets bored. When he gets bored, he looks in other places to suit his fancy. This particular time his fancy happened to be a rogue princess named Sally."

Shadow choked on his drink as a round of laughter erupted from his chest. Amy rolled her eyes and laughed too, realized how stupid it sounded when she said it out loud. Shadow raised his hand while he coughed to apologize, but she waved it off. She crossed her legs in the booth, causing her little black dress to hike up her thighs a bit more, and she rested her hands on her knee and relaxed a bit. She hadn't expected to find solace in a man she's met only twice before, but she was glad she was here.

"A rogue princess? That sounds like something from a fairytale. I'm sorry about that, Amy"

Shadow was awestruck by her story, and as funny as it was, he could see that it was really hurting her. She was with him for 5 years if he could recall correctly, and after so long of trying to keep up with that asshole it has to hurt being left behind.

"Yeah, me too." She smiled, glancing out of the window of the bar wistfully, "I'm glad it's over though. Trying to be enough for him was...exhausting. I'm finally free"

Shadow downed his drink and his glass clanked against the table, catching Amy's attention. "Yeah, you're free, and now you're in this disgusting bar with me."

Amy ushered the bartender for another round of drinks before she spoke. "That's not so bad, right? Is drinking with Shadow the Hedgehog so bad?"

Her voice was light and teasing, and maybe it was just the alcohol rushing to his head, but her voice was nice. It was like velvet in his ears compared to the loud buzz of the bar. The bartender brought over their drinks and she flashed him a flirty smile as he walked away. Shadow knew that she was flirting to get stronger drinks without having to pay extra, and he didn't mind because he was getting free drinks from it. His cheeks felt warm and his chest burned. He was drinking cheap vodka before, but the bartender must have changed it when Amy started ordering them because this stuff was stronger. He was only three drinks in and he was already feeling buzzed. In his heightened state, he examined Amy once again, admiring how beautiful she really was. She dressed up to be seen, and he saw her. He surely did.

"Since I told you the embarrassing reason I'm here, I think I'm due an explanation as to why you're here"

She smiled, resting her chin in her hand and leaning forward as if she couldn't wait to hear his story.

Unfortunately, his story wasn't as exciting. "Why does anyone come to a bar? To get drunk."

"You sure you're just not running away from Maria?"

Shadow froze when that name rolled off of Amy's tongue. He had spent so long trying to forget that name that it was almost foreign to him now. Amy noticed his mood shift and she raised an eyebrow in curiosity.

"You are!" She was excited that she got it right, which confused the black hedgehog. "Why are you running from her? Did she find a rogue princess as well?"

They both snickered at her joke, which made him relax a bit. "Uh, no. Can't say she has. The problem we ran into was after all these years on Earth without her, I changed. Suddenly she's back and I couldn't be happier, but she's still the same teenager from before. I grew up, life changed me, and she hasn't. Not her fault, not mine, it just happened."

Shadow saw a profound sadness wash into the pink hedgehog's eyes. Her features softened even more- if that was even possible- as she gave him the most pitiful gaze. "That's...so tragic Shadow. I can't even imagine. Are you still friends? Or...is she gone for good?"

There was nothing he hated more than pity. He waved off her look of sympathy and the bartender showed up with their drinks again, which he was thankful for. It was a welcome distraction to the awkward conversation we were having. Amy flirted with him again, but this time she handed him her credit card to pay off her tab. Well, this was the last of the free drinks he was enjoying. After the tab was paid, she gratefully drank her cocktail and looked at him expectantly. She wasn't going to let him dodge the question. He sighed and played with his glass to distract himself.

"We are still friends...I think. We've seen each other from time to time, but I'm boring and she's never been on Earth before so she's wanting to explore and see anything and everything. I didn't fit into her dreams so she left to find her dreams. I'm...happy for her, but I sometimes wish that she just stayed...gone. You know?"

Amy nodded, and for some reason he felt like she understood. He knew a situation like he had with Maria would be hard to understand, but if anybody was going to, it would be gentle, sweet Amy. Or, he thought her name was Amy. She never corrected him, so he was certain he had it right. They finished their drinks, which sent him more towards tipsy than buzzed; Amy was feeling it too because her pale cheeks were flushed and her eyes were lazily hooded. He had fun drinking with her tonight, but she was starting to get tipsy and this neighborhood was no place for a gentle soul like hers to be indefensible. He opened his mouth to offer her a ride home, but he was cut off by her yawning and stretching in the booth. She held her arms over her head which pressed her chest out more, making her cleavage more prominent. She obviously wasn't doing it on purpose, but he couldn't help but notice either.

"You want to get out of here? The air is so stuffy and I could really use some fresh air"

The pink hedgehog offered, sliding out of the booth, which left him with no choice. No way he was going to leave her alone out there.

Honestly, some fresh air sounded nice. He got out of the booth and followed her outside. She wasn't tipsy enough to be stumbling around, but she was tipsy enough to trip up every so often. Shadow was too, and he held onto the brick wall of the building to steady himself. Amy giggled when she saw the moon, and outstretched her arms and spun around in the moonlight. Even with minimal lighting he could see her flushed cheeks. She looked beautiful. It was hard to believe that Sonic would just drop her like he did. That princess of his must have been something. He leaned up against the wall to ground himself from the alcohol, and watched her dance around the sidewalk. She was humming and twirling, and snickering when she tripped over her feet. It was hard not to smile at the young carefree woman as she was finally released into the world without limitations.

Who would have thought that he would actually be having fun with a woman he's met once or twice?

They engaged in idle chatter while he walked her home. She was dancing all over the sidewalk, soaking in the night and the moon that seemed to follow them on their journey. Amy talked about her friends ditching her for the night, and how she can't wait to get home to the house she kicked Sonic out of. She couldn't wait to be home and finally breathe and relax for once. Shadow thought of all the things she must have done to keep the blue asshole happy, and he knew that she must have never sat down more than 10 seconds. It must have been hard, being a hero's girlfriend. It made him appreciate being single and alone in his house; not having to worry about anyone else but himself. It was a quiet life he took for granted, and he couldn't wait to crawl into bed and go to sleep.

"Where do you live, Amy?"

In her giggling, tipsy conversation she paused and looked at him expectantly. "You don't know? I thought you and Sonic were good friends?"

"Hardly."

"It's not close. Where do you live? We can crash there for tonight because there was is no way I can walk that far!"

Shadow mentally groaned. He didn't really like guests at his house, but she was right, it was too far to walk. He could always use his shoes to glide faster, but seeing as Amy just left her boyfriend in the fast lane, it didn't seem like much of an option. She was enjoying taking her time, and he had nowhere to be so he was fine walking the few blocks to his house.

"Fine. My house is 5 blocks that way."

He pointed in the direction of his house, and Amy groaned about her feet hurting in her heels.

"It's too far! Let's just get a hotel or something."

"I don't do hotels. Here, I'll carry you"

He stopped in front of her and crouched down, allowing her to climb on his back. He was annoyed that he had to do all this, but deep down he was happy to have the company. She was light, and he carried her with ease. She giggled and talked away in his ear about things that didn't matter, and her naiveté made him laugh with her. She worried about silly things, and he envied that. She had her arms wrapped around his neck and her hand had somehow slipped under his shirt and her soft fingers caressed over his fur with every step he took, and her chest pressed against his back was hard to ignore when she bounced with his footsteps. Her dress had hiked up because she was on his back, and he tried not to notice her exposed thighs glowing in the moonlight. How Sonic could let her go was beyond him; she was beautiful.

He didn't allow his thoughts to run wild, seeing as she was under the influence and that wasn't the type of person he was. Instead, he focused on her drunken harmonious voice rambling on about silly things, and eventually his house came into view. He thanked his lucky stars to finally be home, not because she was heavy, but because he could get her into bed and not have to look at her for the rest of the night.

Amy gasped when she saw his house. "Shadow! You have a beautiful house!"

He smiled at her excitement. His house wasn't that big, just a 4-bedroom house, but he understood that she was enjoying the small things in life, and a nice house was something she was happy to sit back and admire. He didn't mind, he was just happy that he could get her inside and safely put in bed. She asked him to put her down, which he did and she fixed her dress before walking up the steps to the front door. Shadow slid the key in and allowed an excited Amy fling open the front door and go exploring. He smiled at her carelessness and locked the door behind him, heading to the kitchen to grab some water for the both of them. He leaned up against the counter and sipped on his water while he listened to the pink hedgehog open every door and swoon over the decoration, even though he had hired someone to do it for him, he couldn't help but smile at the compliment.

His buzz was wearing off, and a headache was settling in so he went to the sink and splashed some cold water on his face to sober up. It helped a little bit, and while he was drying his face off Amy entered the kitchen. She thanked him for the water and downed it. He chuckled at her, which made her blush. She quickly leaned over to take off her heels to hide her blush, but all that did was expose everything her entire cleavage, which made Shadow quickly look away before he blushed as well. He swore he never saw her having this kind of body, it was wild to see this side of her. When she got her shoes off and fixed herself, she yawned, and Shadow gratefully capitalized on that.

"Tired?"

"Yeah, too much excitement for one day. Where can I sleep? I'll get out of your hair"

She smiled softly, tucking her quills behind her ear again.

"You're not bothering me, but here, I'll show you the room. Do you need some clothes? That dress can't be comfortable"

She seemed relieved at his offer. "Oh my god yes! Thank you so much, this stupid thing has been killing me all night. Such a shame too because it looks so good."

Shadow just nodded stiffly at her comment before leading her to his room. He didn't have any guest bedrooms to deter overnight guests, but he made an exception in this case. He rummaged through his drawer to find anything for the woman, and in the depths of his drawer he found the t-shirt Maria got him on her trip to Yosemite. It was this oversized white shirt with a picture of the mountain side on it. He had never worn it, but always kept it because he cared for her. He didn't have any shorts, but Amy didn't seem to care about shorts. She saw the shirt in his hand and gratefully snatched it before going into the master bath to change. He went to the kitchen to get her more water and some pain reliever in case she woke up with a headache. He placed the items on the nightstand next to the bed, and grabbed the remote from the drawer of the nightstand and placed it next to the water in case she got bored.

She came out of the bathroom wearing nothing but the shirt he gave her and hopefully some underwear. When he saw her his eyes went wide and he quickly turned around so he didn't embarrass her. Amy snickered behind him and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Don't act like you haven't seen a naked woman before. It's fine, I don't care. You're letting me sleep here so the least I can do is give you something to look at"

She teased, nudging him.

He didn't know what to say to that. With great reluctance and bright red cheeks, he turned back around and looked anywhere but her. He pointed at the nightstand and showed her the medicine, water, and remote, and pulled the covers back for her. She looked like she couldn't wait to jump in the sheets. With her still being buzzed from the alcohol, he helped her into the big bed and pulled the covers over her, breathing a sigh of relief when she was covered up. She giggled at his trepidation and swooned over his modesty.

"Such a gentleman, Shadow! I feel like a princess in this big bed!"

She giggled, settling in.

He smiled as he placed the tv remote within her reach. "A rogue princess?"

She snickered at his joke. "I guess so. Can I be your rogue princess? You're much nicer anyway."

"Sure, you can. Goodnight, princess"

They both smiled at his words, and he awkwardly nodded goodbye to her before leaving the room and closing the door behind him. He ventured back into the quiet house, exhaling sharply as soon as he reached the living room. He hadn't even realized he was holding his breath in there. He certainly hadn't expected his night to devolve into drinking with Amy, and he certainly hadn't expected to see her so exposed and vulnerable. He blushed again at the thought of the beautiful woman lying in his bed, unsure of how to feel. He was obviously fired up about seeing such a gorgeous woman all night, but something in him was intimidated by how carefree she was. She had only met him a few times before and now she was sleeping in his bed. Sonic must have really sent her on a spiral, but he didn't mind that. She was in much better hands with him anyway, he wasn't an asshole.

He shook off his nerves and pulled a blanket from his closet. His headache had progressed and he just wanted to go to sleep. He crashed on the couch and pulled the scratchy blanket over him, not even worrying about a pillow, and drifted off to sleep.