I heard the repetitive footfalls of my feet as I ran through the unfamiliar streets and the rasping of my breath created the illusion of being alone, as I could hear nothing else. Nothing else apart from Trilox trying to get me to talk to him that is.

'Charlie, you've got to talk to me! What's wrong? We won the match didn't we? So why are you running away from them?'

I didn't reply. I wanted to tell him but something was holding me back. If I could, I would have blocked Trilox's thoughts from entering my mind, however, that was impossible. So I was forced to listen as Trilox became more and more desperate to find out why I was running and why I suddenly didn't want to talk to him, neither of which I could answer.

'Charlie, please! Please talk to me! What's wrong?! Say something! Charlie… please don't be like this again… please.' The last sentence was spoken as soft as a whisper. If he could, I'm sure there would have been tears running down his face(s).

I couldn't take it anymore. I'd been running for too long and my body just wasn't used to it. In the time I was that building I had developed more upper body strength from all the launches I had pulled. On the other hand, stamina and endurance weren't really my thing, I much preferred walking from place to places. Also, what Trilox had said brought me back to my senses. I felt a wrenching in my heart as Trilox sounded so dejected. Why couldn't I tell him? Why could I talk to him?

I stumbled into a dark alleyway where I leaned on a wall for support. All I could hear was myself taking in gulps of air as I tried to get my body back to what was normal for me. My body shuddered with each drawn breath and I closed my eyes as I felt the oxygen reaching my aching muscles. Sighing, I opened them again and I tilted my head up until I was able to look at the dark sky. The stars went on and off like white Christmas trees lights as they played hide and seek with clouds the same colour as its backdrop.  As I was staring into space I felt a water droplet hit me squarely on the nose. Great, just what I needed. Rain. I slid down the wall so that my back was still on the wall and just below my chin was my knees with my arms hugging them.

The soft pattering of rain grew in volume as the rain steadily became heavier. All the while I continued to stare up at the clouds as the rain splashed onto my face. Trilox had been silent for some time now. I guess it was because I still hadn't responded that he stopped trying to get me to talk. My hair was plastered onto my scalp already as the downpour drummed onto my skull. Over the noise of someone running down the street and the half-shouts of "Shadow? Where are you?" as they faded in and out of my hearing.

'Why did Ah leave?' my mind brooded. 'How could Ah have thought Ah would have been able to fit in? Ah'll never be able to fit in. Ah'm too strange to fit in with other kids and with adults, they treat me like Ah'm somethin' to be tolerated, as long as Ah'm useful. Ah don' have feelin's (apparently) so Ah don' feel pain. Ah'd be shunned by the kids and Ah'd be tested over and over again by the adults. What would have happened when Ah couldn't improve anymore?' I wondered.' Would they have gotten rid of me or could they have given me a new drug to see what they would do?' My brow creased and I frowned. ' But if they did that, there could have been a bad reaction between the two 'medications' and what would that have done? Make me even better? Or kill me instead? Ah guess it wouldn't have mattered, they would just go and find another kid off the streets or they could get my blood and find out if they could have done something to the second drug so it was more compatible with each other.

While I was thinking, I didn't notice the splashes of someone running were coming closer to the spot were I was. I continued my thoughts of whom I should go to or if I should stay alone as I stared at the brick wall in front of me. My jumper moved slightly as someone ran past the alleyway stirring a gust of wind as s/he did. I was now thoroughly soaked. From my trainers to my hair, everything had water in it. And yet, I still gazed blankly in front of me and my body didn't do a thing to try and get warmer; like shivering. My blank eyes saw the person who had run past retrace their steps but the message didn't connect with my brain. Either that or it couldn't reach my brain because of my thoughts that never seemed to stop. My eyes saw the person stop as she glanced into the alleyway and start when s/he saw me. My ears picked up the vibrations of his/her voice as she said something but I couldn't comprehend what s/he was saying. I was still so engrossed in thinking that I had seen and heard him/her but my brain said that I hadn't.

Suddenly I was jerked away from my musings as s/he shook my shoulder to grab my attention.

"What?!" My eyes finally focused on the person in front of me.

"Finally! When you didn't answer I started to get worried." Talon, what does she want? Why did she run after me? She started to walk away but when she saw I wasn't following her she stopped and looked over her shoulder. "Aren't you coming?"

I shook my head. 'Why would they want me back? They think Ah'm weird and why they were staring at my eyes before?'

"But why not?"

"Why were you guys starin' at me?" I mumbled, countering her question.

She winced at my comment. "Oh… that. Well, it was 'coz of your eyes." Seeing my blank look she added more to it. "Your eyes, they were like, um, they had purple bits in it and well, we've never seen with purple eyes before. So sorry if we offended you or something by staring." She apologized.     

'Purple bits? Waitaminute.

** Flashback **

I leaned up closer to the mirror to see if I could see what I thought I had seen. I stared at my glacier blue eyes and just when I thought it was a trick of light, it was there again. That flash, that sudden change in tint.

What I had seen was a flash of purple float into my eyes.

**End Flashback**

'So that's why they were starin' at me.' I hear a rustle of clothing as Talon shifted uncomfortably. When I didn't say anything in return the silence between us grew and it seemed to me like my hearing had sharpened as the level of noise of the rain increased. We then heard the distant sound of someone running in the rain.

"Talon! There you are! When you ran out after Shadow, Geode told me to go after you. Of course you had a heard start and you're our second fastest runner in the gang so it took me a while to catch up with you. What are you starin' at?" The other person blabbered.

'Geode? Could that be the guy I ba''led?'

"Hi Blaze," Talon replied distractedly. "I'm starin' at Shadow."

I flicked my eyes over to the other person and saw it was other girl with the red hair. Big wonder she was called Blaze. I saw her look in my general direction but her eyes over looked me.

"Shadow. Please, don't be like this. Come back with us." I gave her a sharp look. How does she always do that? Whenever she says something it's got something to do with my past or somebody else who I know has said that before. Unfortunately for me, she saw that look. "What? What was that for?"

With a sigh I heaved myself onto my feet because I had a feeling that she wouldn't go away without me whatever I said or didn't say.

"What the?! Where did u come from?" it looked like Blaze was surprised by my "sudden appearance. I suppose it was because I was sitting in the shadows (like my name would imply) but when I stood up I was lit up by the streetlights. She was also looking in a different direction when I stood up so to her, it looked like I had just popped out of nowhere when she looked back. "I didn't even see you before, where were you hiding?" that's when Blaze started to stare at my eyes again. When I looked at Talon she was staring at them as well. I looked away from both of them and closed my eyes. That told Blaze she was staring at me yet again. "Oh! Sorry!" I heard Blaze say. "It was just that your eyes had changed colour again." opening my eyes slowly I looked at the two girls in front of me. They looked guiltily back at me. Now I was totally confused. Changed colour? To what now? Red? Black? And why did they look so guilty? Because they were caught staring? That can't be it. Ugh. Too many questions.

"What colour?"

"What?"

"What colour are my eyes?"

"Really light blue."

"Before you ask, I don't know why my eyes were purple. The colour that my eyes are right now, that's the colour of my eyes normally." Some people are so easy to read when they're about to ask a question.

"Blaze, before you ask how he knew, could we go back now? I don't know about you guys but I'm soaked."

It was funny how Blaze's mouth opened and closed like a fish when she was about to ask a question but to then be interrupted.

She gave an irritated sigh but she nodded and said, "If you're soaked, what do you think Shadow's goin' to be like?"

When she said that, it caused me to think of my own predicament. I had been sitting on the cold ground for who knows how long and when it start to rain I didn't head for shelter. I just let the rain fall on me. I touched my arm as I rolled up my jumper and found that my skin felt cold, clammy and goose-bumps had risen.

We walked out of the alleyway and headed back to the warehouse. Talon and Blaze were walking in front, talking, leading the way in a pair with me walking a little way behind them and following. Every few minutes Blaze would look over her shoulder and look at me with a confused frown and when she saw me she seemed surprised. What was she expecting? Me to run away again? When she did that about ten times I was starting to get annoyed so when she did it again I asked her,

"What are ya doin'?"

"Huh? Well, it's just, um," while Blaze was trying to think of something to say she stopped which Talon soon realized she was the only one who was waking and turned back to find out why we had stopped. "You didn't make any noise when you were walkin', so I thought you had stopped walkin' or somethin'."

I didn't make any noise? I guess that would have been because of all the time I had been told 2 walk quietly when I was with Doctor. I shook my head, mentally clearing my thoughts of him and everything to do with him. "Don't worry. I won't run away again."

Both of them nodded and started to walk away again. Glancing up at the sky once more I thought I saw something in the corner of my eye. A piece of material perhaps? Turning around I saw that there was nothing there. Running my fingers through my wet hair, more to get it out of my eyes then anything else, I turned back to walk after the retreating backs of the two girls.

* * *

"There you guys are!" I saw Geode walk quickly towards us with Zero walking after him. Geode looked at me, more specifically, my eyes. When he saw that they were more of a normal colour he gave a small nod. "Why did you run away?"

 I looked down from his questioning gaze. "Ah don' know. Ah think it was 'coz you guys kept on staring at meh."

When I said that Geode looked at Talon. "Talon, you never said he was Scottish." 

"Scottish? That's where his accents from?"

'Scottish? Scotland? Is that where Ah'm from?'

'Charlie? Do you want to talk now?' Trilox seemed more tentative than usual but who can blame him? I don't normally ignore him. Come to think of it, that was the first time I had don't that to him.

'Yeah. Sorry about before. I don't know why I didn't try to talk about it.' even though Trilox couldn't see my face I had an apologetic smile on. 'Ah'm just glad that Ah know where Ah come from now.'

"Uh, Shadow?" someone said hesitantly, snapping me out of my private conversation with Trilox.

"Hmm?"

"Why are you staring at me with that goofy smile and far away look in your eye?"

"Ya what?!" I blinked and I clearly was staring at someone with a goofy smile and a far away look in my eye. The thing was, it wasn't a girl.

It was Geode.

I felt my cheeks redden in my embarrassment. "Ah was… Ah was thinkin' bout somethin'. I saw Geode frown and he was looking at my eyes.

"Your eyes. They've changed a bit again." something must have happened because he did a half shrug and looked away again. "Never mind. Anyway, you guys are soakin'. There's some stuff upstairs to dry yourselves with."

"Thanks Geode." Talon and Blaze ran up the stairs, two at a time. I on the other hand walked up them. Although I didn't show it, I was happy that I was taken in by these people and it looked like I was going to be looked after them as well.

*~*~Somewhere else in the city*~*~

 ??? P.o.V

I picked up the mobile from the breast pocket of my jacket and dialled the number I had committed to memory. I listened to the tones of the mobile as I waited for it to finish dialling up and start ringing on the other side. It only ringed once before it was picked up.

"Yes?"

"I've found him." I heard my employer give a humourless laugh.

"They said you were good. I just didn't think you were that good."

"Is there anything else you want me to do?"

"No. Nothing else. Just track him."

"Sir, there's something else. There were some other children with him."

"Hmm, they could have already been told. Get rid of them or in the very least make sure that they won't tell anyone of the boy."

I frowned slightly. "Yessir." Sure that I would do his bidding, he switched off this phone. Adults were one thing, they had already lived out most of their lives. Children though, they had only begun theirs. 'He said that they were to not talk about it so I don't have to kill them. What does he want with the boy though? He was paying so much for such a minor job, how could I refuse? Well Charlie, I guess I'm going to find out why this person holds you in such high regard that he would be willing for other people, kids, to be killed to keep you a secret? What could those children have been told? Hmm, if he's that willing for kids to die, what will he do to me when I've finished this?'  I shook my head, freeing some water droplets that had gotten past my hood. Sighing, I turned around and started to walk away thinking of the only rule I had.

Don't ask questions. 

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Yey! I've finally finished! Since it took me so long it's uber long for my reviewers. Speaking of which, Thank you;

Dudems: Lol. Hmm, the way you phrased it looked like you had only read this and The Experiment for the first time. The Dude? Lol. ^__^ of course I reviewed your story! I don't get many reviewers in my fics so I read theirs.

Wingcanine: I'm glad that you thought I used an original idea. Well, I sort of tweaked Talon a bit.

Did this chapter answer some of your questions? Did it raise a few more? Oh, I was hinting it a bit in this chapter but give me you views. What do you think triggers Shadow's eyes? The first time he sees he's got purplish eyes doesn't count. That was just his body compensating the effects of the drugs. So please review! What do you think of this new person? Please review what you think! 

Dark Ice Dragon