HELLO READERS!

Here is the long awaited chapter! I have a lot to share with you, especially about a new friend I want you all to support (she does amazing art) but because of the long wait, I will put my true note at the end of the chapter.

ENJOY!

EPISODE 7: Reading Between the Lines – Part 1

Rouge's Car – Enroute to G.U.N. Station Square Headquarters

~September 11, 12:48~

Rouge didn't think of herself as a chatterbox. Well, not in the way that is traditionally considered a chatterbox. Her conversations were usually developed with the sole purpose of getting what she wanted, whether that was her partners doing her work, or a male's attention. In fact she sometimes even preferred silence, especially when she was around people that she didn't consider to be her friend. However, the silence that had occupied the small space of her car since getting into it with Amy Rose was almost unbearable. She could feel tense energy coming off the small hedgehog in waves. Why had she offered to give the girl a ride?

Rouge had tried to put some music on in hopes that it would lighten the atmosphere, but it had just seemed to place the girl on edge even more so than before. Amy had shrunk her shoulders together and angled herself to stare out the window, her body rigid and her jaw grinding. Rouge sighed as she turned her attention back to the road, she'd be lying if she said she wasn't curious about the events that had transpired between her new teammate and her supposed best friends. Hell, it was Rouge's job to be curious. She was paid the big bucks for information collection by the very agency that they were speeding towards.

Not only was she personally curious, but maybe if she questioned the girl she could find out something useful to use against her. She couldn't exactly report that Amy had failed the mission, not when the girl had a nearly impeccable performance. Rouge wouldn't even be able to criticize Amy's interaction with Sonic's team, since she herself had been caught up with a certain crimson hunk of a guardian. But who could blame me… that boy is just too fun to tease, the bat smirked with the thought, and her mind instantly became filled with images of Knuckles' face adorably twisted in annoyance, and rippling biceps as he folded his arms defensively to her light provoking.

Rouge tightened her grip on the steering wheel, this was no time to get distracted by those gorgeous amethyst eyes that sparkled with irritation whenever they laid eyes on her… or that muscular physique that only seemed to improve with time... She'd save those ponderings for later that night.

The bat reached over and turned down the volume of the music, before giving Amy a side glance.

"Is there any music that you like?" She asked after a beat of silence. Amy seemed to jolt from her question as though surprised that she wasn't alone in the car. The girl turned and looked at Rouge, her fresh green eyes wide.

"Wha..?"

Rouge rolled her eyes and motioned to the radio as they came to a red light.

"I said, is there anything you like to listen to?"

Amy blinked at her for a moment, but then shrugged, "I don't really have a preference…"

Rouge felt a spike of irritation at the answer. Not because she'd truly wished to cater towards Amy's preferences, but rather that this girl seemed so… dry. No, she supposed that wasn't the right word. She'd seen the young hedgehog almost blow her top with anger twice today. Amy was obviously capable of being interactive and passionate, but this only seemed to happen when she was around her old friends. When the girl was one on one with her or someone else on Team Dark, it seemed like she held them at arm's length as though she wasn't comfortable with them.

It's more like she's looking down on me. This was not something Rouge was used to. She was no stranger to looks of jealousy or hate she got from other females, but there had always been a hint of reluctant appreciation for Rouge's obvious superiority. Amy, on the other hand, acted like Rouge was a worm beneath her foot, not worth the effort to step over, but also as a nuisance to clean from her shoe. The girl seemed to place herself higher than everyone else and Rouge found it obnoxious, yet disturbingly familiar. Although she could recognize that trait within herself, she didn't like it being reflected back to her.

"I suppose… I like to listen to Shera when I work out." Amy offered, cutting into the bat's thoughts.

Rouge's inner doubts and troubling thoughts paused, and she looked over at the young Agent once more. Amy looked a bit more relaxed, and she had a gentle smile on her face. Was I too quick to judge…?

"Well, she isn't too bad, and her songs are upbeat. Great for exercising." Rouge agreed, and clicked a button on her steering wheel.

"Play Shera, Dance Till You Drop."

There was a pleasant bell, before a quick paced song began to play over the speakers.

"Oh! This is my favorite song!" Amy exclaimed, and suddenly all the tension left the small space. Rouge smirked to herself, perfect, step one successful.

The bat let the song play through its entirety, but as soon as the next song began she cleared her throat.

"I have to say, I was impressed with you today," Rouge started, and Amy's body flinched, immediately going on edge. The bat held back a smirk, she wasn't surprised the girl was on alert at the compliment, it being different from their usual interaction. But the Special Agent wasn't about to back down easily.

"I expected you to get distracted, and compromise the mission. What with Big Blue being there and all…"

Amy laughed nervously, and she turned to look out the window, "Like I kept trying to tell you guys yesterday… I don't have that problem anymore."

Rouge was quiet for a moment, processing the girl's response. Just what exactly did she mean? Sure, she'd taken Amy's words lightly the day before, but after seeing the interactions earlier she suddenly realized that maybe the girl really had gotten rid of her girlish crush on the Hero of Mobius.

No… that's not accurate either. A girl who wasn't interested in a male wouldn't be reduced to tears because he ran away.

"So what? You don't like him anymore?" Rouge pried, her large ears twitched towards Amy to pick up any small sound.

Amy stiffened, and a dark energy seemed to swirl around her, but she still continued to stare out the window.

"Does it matter if I do or not?" Her tone was flat, but there was a warning behind her words, a warning to stop asking questions… and Rouge felt a little excited trill run through her. The seed of suspicion had been planted that morning with the awkward scene Rouge had stumbled upon between Amy and Cream. Rouge had heard stories of how close the two girls were, and that if you didn't know any better you'd think they were sisters. Just what had happened between them that would cause such an explosive interaction? There was obviously some very juicy gossip that was being kept locked up, something volatile and potentially damaging to Amy. That was her favorite kind, information that didn't want to be learned was always the most delicious. Rouge couldn't help herself, she smirked,

"Well, it's obvious he dislikes you even more than I remem –"

SLAM!

Rouge flinched and stepped on the brake instinctively. Loud and drawn out horns sounded from behind and whipped around them as cars blasted past in a rage to her abrupt stop. But Rouge didn't care, not when there was a small, yet furious, hedgehog staring daggers at her, her fists still pushed into the dash where she had punched them.

"What the HELL, Amy!?"

"Why are you asking all these questions?" The voice of the girl came out calmly and coldy, hardly reacting to the anger seeping off the bat in waves. Rouge almost continued to yell, but then chilling green eyes turned to stare at her with a terrifying darkness behind them as Amy continued in a disturbingly serene tone, "You seemed to abhor hearing about me this morning at the cafe, so why are you suddenly asking me all these questions you have no business asking?"

Rouge felt a chill run down her spine, and the horns of irate drivers seemed to be muted and distant. That odd darkness and fury filling into the depths of the girl's jade eyes, was one she'd never seen in Amy before, and had never thought possible for the bubbly girl. But then just as quickly as it had appeared, the growing abyss vanished, and Amy let out a wistful sigh before giving the bat a wide smile.

"Oh jeez Rouge, I'm sorry. I guess I'm just tense from the mission." Her voice was peppy now and held none of the earlier venom. In fact the change was so drastic that Rouge could only compare her to Jekle and Hyde.

"Right…" Rouge trialed off, a cold sweat began to form on the back of her neck. This bright expression was almost more terrifying than the death glare.

"Well then," Amy continued, her attention turning to the front, "Shouldn't we get going? We're blocking traffic."

And just like that, all the noise from outside the car flooded back to the bat's senses, and she shook her head before merging back into traffic. The rest of the drive was quiet, and Rouge was grateful it only lasted a few more minutes. When they arrived at Headquarters, Amy gave her a slight wave and brilliant smile, before announcing she'd take the stairs as a little work out.

Rouge didn't argue. She suddenly realized that maybe Amy wasn't someone she wanted to rub the wrong way. In fact there was something dark lurking just beneath the surface of the young girl. It was something that hadn't been there two years ago, but was something she recognized easily. It was the same type of darkness she'd seen in Shadow. Rouge shivered at the thought, and proceeded to go report to Chief Snow. Looked like for better or for worse, Amy Rose was now a permanent member of Team Dark.

G.U.N. Station Square Headquarters

~September 11, 13:13~

Amy stormed up the stairs, her sneakers made squeaks every time she turned at a landing. Now that she was alone she let the carefully placed mask melt from her face. She knew that if anyone were to see her now, they'd be shocked by the sinister expression on her face. She stopped suddenly and smashed her fist into the wall. Pieces of cement and paint crumbled to the ground, and when she pulled her fist back, she was satisfied with the decent sized dent that now decorated the landing.

Better… Amy shook her hand out, ignoring the little droplets of blood that flicked through the air. She grabbed hold of her back pack straps and continued at a slower pace up the steps.

Amy's nerves had been shot since the start of the mission from being forced to face the bunny that caused all her past turmoil, and then again when brought face to face with old scars. All those years of building a tolerance and an unemotional wall had come crumbling down around her faster than she could keep up with, and as a result she now felt exposed and embarrassed by her erratic behavior. She'd been able to recover some semblance of control in her interaction with Tails, but it had once again been shattered by the car ride back. Just the mere mention of his name had thrown her tail spinning out of control. She hated that he still had that hold over her...

In addition, Rouge had caught her off guard in the car with her interrogation. That thought made her scowl once more. She'd known there would be questions about her past, especially since she'd changed so drastically in the past couple years, but she hadn't expected it to happen so soon. It was only day one for Chaos sake! Amy felt a knot of nerves begin to form in her stomach, and she pushed open the door to floor 22 where Team Dark's office was. She'd have to work harder to prevent any more unnecessary suspicion from forming.

When she opened the door to the office space, Amy was surprised to see that she was the first to arrive from the mission. She sighed and stood in the doorway for a moment to calm her nerves. Looking around, she saw three desks, two of which had papers and office supplies spread across them, while the third was bare except for monitor, keyboard and mouse. She guessed that it was hers, and made her way to it, grateful that she didn't have to track someone down from the IT department to get her own computer.

She signed in with her credentials, and proceeded to fill out a mission report. As she typed away, she couldn't help but feel exhausted. Writing the mission report didn't help either as it forced her to go through unpleasant events with a fine tooth comb in order to keep the report as relevant to the mission as possible. She sighed, cracked her knuckles and buckled down to get to work..

The young Agent was just over half way finished, when the door to the room was smashed open.

Her head snapped up and she watched as Shadow stormed in and beelined for his desk. He collapsed dramatically into his chair, and angrily pushed on keys to turn on his computer. Amy rolled her eyes, and ignored his melodramatic display. She didn't know what had happened to put him in this mood. When they'd parted ways a couple hours ago he'd seemed normal. Well, at least he'd been his usual brooding, aloof self. Maybe, if she hadn't been in such a poor mood herself, she would've asked him what was wrong, but as it stood she didn't feel like adding more stress to her day.

"I'm almost finished with my written report, if you give me your email I'll send it your way for your addition." She blurted, her gaze lazily scanning over what she'd already written.

Shadow didn't respond for a long moment, and she inwardly sighed. This was starting to really get on her nerves. Maybe she'd made a mistake in accepting the position on Team Dark when it had been offered to her. She'd just been so excited to be on a team again she'd jumped on the opportunity. But if her teammates were just going to criticize her and place walls between them that blocked cooperation, what was the point? Maybe she should talk to the Chief and see about a transfer to another –

"You're writing a report?"

Amy hadn't expected Shadow to speak, so when she heard him she flinched. She blinked a couple times and wheeled her chair to the right to see past the wall of monitors to look at him. Shadow was staring at her with narrowed eyes, but they weren't filled with anger or criticism like she would expect, instead he just seemed mildly suspicious if not curious.

"Um… yeah. Isn't that standard procedure? I thought I could get a head start on it since I was the first one back."

Shadow's eyes widened slightly, and he seemed to relax slightly. He huffed, and rolled his eyes as he turned back to his screen, "Well not everyone follows procedure like you."

Amy felt a pleasant little spark of shock ran through her. If she didn't know any better, was that a compliment? No… there was no way... Shadow didn't seem the type to throw people a bone. Maybe she had done something wrong again and he was being sarcastic? So she stopped typing and inquired,

"Do you guys not write reports?"

She heard a small grunt from him, and without having to look she knew he was glaring in the direction of the vacant desk in the room. Nail polish bottles, and make–up brushes littered it like a vanity in the backstage of an opera.

"I do. But I usually do it alone." The sound of clacking and clicking developed from him, and she was about to return to her work when he spoke once more.

"Experimentshadow at gun . gov," his voice came quietly and with a hesitation she hadn't heard from the dark male before. However, she realized the reason almost immediately. G.U.N. emails usually consisted of some abbreviation of each Agent's name. Her's was at gun . gov, so the fact that his was so different and referenced his origin, spoke to some sort of bad joke…

...or discrimination.

As though he could see her thoughts, his voice came forth in a growl, "I don't need to hear it about the address. Some guy in IT was being a smartass, and I didn't feel like making a thing of it." He added the last statement a bit quickly and she realized that he'd probably had this conversation with someone else in the past.

It was obvious to her that it bothered him, but she understood his hesitation at making an issue about it. Once you brought the bigotry to light, it would only get worse and serve to further isolate you within the company. The peers who had been 'snitched' on disliked you more, becoming more aggressive and sneaky with their biased assaults – not returning emails, ignoring you in meetings to more dangerous actions – like not responding to calls for backup. The higher–ups were no better, they'd look down on you for not being able to handle the situation yourself. Making underhanded comments about lack of loyalty to the team by tattling... Her own past experience with assholes in the cadet program played in her mind. Images of cruel hazing and cold sergeants flipped in her memory like a photobook, and she felt her chest tighten and her vision tunneling. Think about something else Amy… you can't let it bother you, not now.

She took several, quiet breaths, careful not to alert the hedgehog sitting across from her. Once she had calmed, she felt another emotion replace the panic, understanding. She hadn't realized that Shadow had similar struggles and that thought alone made her feel a sort of comradery with the sullen hedgehog.

"That's cruel," she stated, once again leaning to the side to look at him in the eyes.

He didn't return her stare, and she was surprised to see that he'd frozen at the comment. His face was blank, and his hand was still above his computer mouse, his mouth was slightly open as though he'd been prepared to quickly retort. After a few moments of awkward silence his ruby colored eyes slowly moved until they locked onto hers. His stare wasn't unkind, but it made her feel unnerved… it was as though his gaze was boring into her and examining her very soul. Looking for something, testing her. She couldn't imagine what Shadow was searching for, but she felt little ripples of shivers run up her arms and spine.

Amy knew she should look away, escape the silent interrogation she was being subjected to, and yet, surprisingly, she didn't want to. She felt something stir within her as she stared back into blood red irises that seemed to reflect a multitude of emotions, yet no emotion at all. They were a contradictory existence and she found she was trapped within their hold. It was bewildering… After a few seconds, which felt like hours, she gulped and laughed a little nervously to break the odd atmosphere that had developed between them.

"Do you want me to beat them up for you?" She asked, her voice teasing, her joke shattering the heaviness in the air.

The question seemed to jolt the dark Agent back to reality, his eyes blinked and tore away from her own and he scoffed as he turned back to his computer.

"I fight my own battles."

His voice was stiff and his demeanor had returned to its regular indifferent aura. Amy raised her brow and rolled her eyes, but strangely she didn't feel irritated at his snide remark. Amy supposed it was because she could understand his discomfort and aggressive reaction. She'd certainly been in a similar situation with a comparable response… her own words screamed over cream soda at her blue hero pounded within her ears.

"Alright tough guy," Amy conceded as she clicked the send button, and stretched her arms while leaning back in her chair, "I sent it, you're welcome to change anything you want."

"I don't need your permission. I'll probably have to re–write the whole thing anyway."

This time she did feel a spike of annoyance stab her, and she gritted her teeth. Don't give him the satisfaction of reacting, Amy. Just smile and ignore him.

"Well," she replied while standing, "If you really do have to make a lot of changes, I'd appreciate it if you could show me what I did wrong so I can improve."

She gave him a large, bright smile, but he didn't look up from his screen. Rolling her eyes once more, she walked around the island of desks and started towards the door. She was about to leave without saying anything else, but then something occurred to her.

"Hey… where should I go to turn in my Hard–Drive?"

"Didn't you learn anything useful in that 'official training' of yours? IT Department, floor 12, and stop distracting me." He replied, never glancing her way. She made a face at him before exiting the room. Gosh! What a brute! Can't believe I thought we might have something in common!

She huffed and left the room, stomping her way to the IT department.

Meadow Road – Enroute to Team Dark's Living Quarters

~September 11, 17:47~

Once again Shadow found himself deliberately taking the long way home. The roar of an engine beneath him vibrated through his body like the hum of honeycombs. He shut his eyes, unconcerned with the empty country road before him, enjoying the sharp chill of late afternoon wind coursing through his quills. In these few moments of pure bliss he could remove himself from this world and empty his mind of all thoughts. He could even convince himself he was free.

He felt the smooth asphalt beneath him change to choppy gravel and he opened his eyes to see he was drifting off the road due to a curve. He corrected his path and resisted the urge to sigh in disappointment and frustration. He'd done that too many times already since this morning and he was honestly to the point of indifference. Any control over his life that he'd thought he had was proven to be false from the day's events.

Grinding his teeth he twisted his wrist, feeling the machine below him rev in response and jolt forward in a burst of speed. He wasn't one to be dramatic (at least in his own opinion) but damn it he almost wanted to scream. Even the ride could no longer block the horrid memory of the day's events. He saw images of the mission, and of Amy perfectly performing her duties. He saw her twisted features as she dealt with her old friends, and he saw her face as she gazed at him with understanding.

That was probably what had irritated him the most. She didn't seem to pity him, or think he was being cowardly in regards to his email address. No, she'd understood him. How dare she try to understand him. Amy Rose couldn't possibly understand the discrimination and bullshit he had to put up with on a daily basis. She was a heroine, a pretty hedgehog female that had everything she ever wanted laid at her feet. What kind of turmoil or pain had she ever had to go through? The pain of unrequited love?

HA! Shadow scoffed, his anger rebirthing within him at the thought, that's the most absurd excuse I've ever heard!

Amy Rose was a stain in his life that no amount of bleach or cleaner could remove. And oh how he'd tried.

Once Rouge had returned from the mission, he'd confronted her about her supposed plan to rid them of the pink menace, but that bat had winced. She'd explained the inane deal she'd struck with Chief Snow in regards to the mission and Amy's performance. A deal that had now completely killed any chance they had at getting rid of the girl. There had been no faults found in her performance, she hadn't gotten any more distracted than the rest of them in the presence of Sonic and co, and she had thought outside the box when completing the mission. But it hadn't ended there.

His interaction with her in the office served to further set him on edge. There was something about her that made it easy for him to lose any sort of composure he held. He'd sat staring at the door to their office after it had closed behind her, his brain going a mile a minute. She had left behind an unwanted feeling… the warmth of companionship. He'd physically gagged at that thought, and frowned as he opened his inbox.

Sure enough, the very first email listed was from her, titled 'Mission Eggman Knotehole Base – September 11, 20XX.' Even her way of titling was so stiff and procedural it was like it came from Omega. He'd hovered his mouse over it, but he couldn't seem to click it open. Why, in Chaos name, did it aggravate him so much? Wasn't he, just yesterday, wishing that he had a teammate that pulled their weight, especially when it came to reports? The more he'd dwelt on it, the more pissed he'd become. It wasn't like the girl was doing anything wrong or damaging to the team. In fact it was the complete opposite. She was literally, from what he could gather, a perfectly polished G.U.N. agent.

Maybe that's exactly why I hate it, he realized, she is everything I can't be. A mirror image that is unattainable.

He slowed his bike slightly as the thought washed over him. The understanding helped to focus the confusing whirlwind of emotions he had been struggling with, and he could finally think rationally.. She was perfect, effortlessly perfect. While he… well to put it simply, he was like a bomb. The higher ups kept him at arm's length; more than a few times he'd caught them whispering and muttering things under their breath. Things like how he was an abomination, a tarnish on the good name of G.U.N.

If he confronted them, they would look at him with hateful eyes as though offended that he had heard them, and like he was nothing but a weapon to be used. However, despite the contempt they had for him, he knew they would never actually get rid of him. He was too valuable a tool, and too dangerous to let loose on the public. No, they had to maintain the image of having him on a leash. Of having some semblance of control over the Ultimate Lifeform.

Shadow was their scapegoat, the black knight that they used for things they didn't want to waste or tarnish their regular agents on. He would never be given recognition, or praise, he would never feel the warmth of gratitude. And yet she was different. He could already see it happening. Even Rouge had given up in the face of her efficiency. Amy would be able to climb the ranks of the agency and earn awards and reputation, while he would never go further than where he was right now.

Reaching the crest of a hill he could see Team Dark's base a little past the bottom. The sight of his home should have made him feel relaxed, but he instead felt reservation. There was more than a 90% chance he would run into her.

"Fuck… stop letting her get to you," He chided himself with a shake of his head. For his own sanity, he would have to find a way to ignore her erratic and yet annoyingly stiff personality.

Pulling up to the large compound, he went around to the back where the vehicles were stored in a huge garage. Pressing a button on his watch, the door to the garage opened and he rode into it, his ears pressing to the back of his head as the sound of his bike reverberated against the walls. He turned it off before crouching down to assess what needed to be done to bring his motorcycle back to its shining glory.

He was grateful that there only seemed to be minor bumps and scuffs in the paint from its trek through the forest, and it would only take a couple hours at most to fix. He brushed his hands together and threw his leather jacket over his shoulder before making his way into the living quarters. The garage let into the kitchen and he tossed his jacket onto the island and opened the refrigerator to get a bottle of beer. Once he felt the cold glass through his glove, he became aware of a deep thumping noise coming from above him.

He narrowed his eyes and slammed the door to the fridge shut. He didn't remember seeing Rouge's car parked in the garage, which meant she was still out. He couldn't imagine Omega bopping his head to any sort of tune, which left only one option to the source of the abrasive sound. The corner of his mouth twitched in a sickening smile and he stalked out of the kitchen and up the stairs. Reaching the top he expected the music to originate from the left where his and Amy's room was located, but to his surprise it was coming from the right. His head tilted in it's direction as his ears trembled against his head to protect his sensitive eardrums. Maybe it is Rouge… he started down the hallway, his curiosity getting the best of him.

Moving down the hall he could now feel the music pounding through his very bones, and it was giving his chest a very odd feeling. When he reached the door to the Gym and looked inside, the source was made quite clear. Amy was inside dressed in G.U.N. athletic wear, her quills in a ponytail, and her hands covered in boxing gloves. Her back was to him, and she was kicking and pounding her fists into a sandbag hanging in front of her. Small grunts and huffs were heard each time her hands or feet connected, and her limbs were a blur of pink at the speed of her attack.

As he watched, a particularly loud verse came on over the speakers, and he cringed in disgust. The sound was made worse by the young Agent proceeding to open her mouth to sing along with the female vocalist. Her repetitive punching and kicking slowed to match the beat of the song, and eventually the girl devolved into dancing. It started out with a few taps of her feet and pats with her boxing gloves on thighs, and Shadow could not tear his eyes away.

He felt shivers of second hand embarrassment wash over him. Where the hell does she think she is? He scowled in disdain, and leaned on the door jam as he watched her jump around and sing at the top of her lungs. The song only lasted about half a minute longer, but to the ebony male it felt like a lifetime. Amy's back was still facing him, and she leaned down to reach for her hot pink water canteen as the last beats of the song faded away.

"I would appreciate it if you would turn down the volume, some people need to rest after a mission."

Amy felt a jolt run through her, and her heart leapt from her chest. She swallowed a scream, and turned around with wide eyes and a boxing glove to her chest. She saw Shadow leaning on the door of the Gym, his arms crossed and one hand holding a beer bottle. His face was twisted in a judgemental expression, and his eyes looked up and down her frame.

Oh shit…

"Oh, um, sorry Shadow! I didn't realize you were here… how long have you been standing there?" She laughed nervously, trying to control the heat now spreading across her face and the frantic beating of her heart. I wish I could melt into the ground.

Shadow stayed silent for a second, his glare boring into her like a laser, and when the next song began to play he scoffed.

"Long enough to judge your dancing abilities. Maybe you would've known I was here if you hadn't been blasting that horrid music." He wasn't yelling, but his words pierced through the music and her small shell of confidence just the same.

Amy laughed again and fumbled with one of her gloves to remove it, and quickly pressed an icon on her watch. Instantly the music stopped and she tried to give Shadow a friendly smile. The ebony hedgehog merely glowered at her, and pushed off from the door.

"You would do well to remember that other people live here and not everyone is inclined to your childish tastes."

This comment brought a scowl to Amy's face, and she crossed her arms in indignation.

"I'll have you know that Rouge also likes this artist. So you can just shove it –"

A ringing tone interrupted them, and Shadow put his hand up to cut her off. Amy huffed at the rude action, but the dark Special Agent ignored her. He glanced at his watch, and Amy was surprised to see an appresensive expression darken his face. His free hand came up, and tapped the inside of his ear, and she wondered if Shadow ever removed his ear piece from his ear.

"Special Agent Shadow awaiting your command, sir."

Amy's eyes went wide as she watched Shadow say a couple "yes sirs", and "of course"s, all the while his face was stiff, and his body at attention. She wondered who was on the other line that could make the Ultimate Lifeform speak with resignation in his voice. The call lasted just over a minute, and when it was finished Shadow immediately turned and left the Gym without so much as a glance in her direction.

"Hey!" She yelled after him, but by the time she'd gotten to the hallway his afterimage was already disappearing. Amy headed for the stairs, and made it just in time to watch Shadow drive off into the late evening, the headlight of his motorcycle lighting the way. Weird… Amy thought, before shrugging and returning to the Gym to finish her workout.

Team Dark Headquarters

~September 11, 18:46~

Rouge parked her car and turned her music off before smacking her head onto the top of her steering wheel. What a day… She had failed, and failed royally. She'd been too confident in Amy's lack of ability, and it had cost her dearly. Chief Snow had been a gracious winner, but she made sure to reiterate that she would no longer tolerate any complaint on Agent Rose's placement.

She glanced over to her right and saw Shadow's G.U.N. motorcycle parked in it's spot. Shit… after her more than difficult conversation with him earlier she dreaded seeing him before he'd had time to cool off. She sighed, and turned off her engine, there was nothing she could do but hope that he had locked himself in his room and wouldn't be seen until tomorrow morning. Rouge was walking towards the kitchen door, her car beeping pleasantly to announce it locking, when the door blasted open aggressively.

She squealed slightly, and jumped back as a yellow charged black hedgehog sped past her to his bike. Shadow sat on top of the machine, his arms thrusting roughly through leather sleeves and he reached to the ignition of his bike.

"What are you doing?!" Rouge yelled over the rumble of the beast. Shadow didn't look at her, but she saw his ears twitch towards her to confirm he'd heard her.

"His highness called with one of his special solo missions."

The bitterness was not hidden in his voice as he spat out his response, but she knew it didn't have to do with her. She gulped, she hated it when this happened, and she hated that they were powerless to stop these 'high profile solo missions,' from happening. They were always black ops with no hope of back–up should something go wrong, because on the official records of G.U.N. they never existed in the first place.

"I see… be careful."

This time Shadow did turn towards her, and an almost sad gratefulness entered his expression.

"You know I never am."

With that cryptic statement, he sped off into the night, the growls and revs of his motorcycle disappearing over the top of the hill. Rouge stared after him for a few minutes before turning to walk into her home. Locking the garage door behind her, she moved to the cabinet above the sink. Opening the wooden door, she stared at the lines of wine bottles. Deciding it was the kind of night for one of her more expensive – free to her – wines, she pulled a bottle from the back row.

Purposely forgetting to take out a wine glass, she uncorked the wine and gulped down a few swigs before making her way upstairs. It was quiet on the second floor, and she slowly went about putting on her pajamas. Soft, baggy pants and delicate tank top, replaced tight black and purple mission jumpsuit. She removed her bra and as the clasp snapped open a contented sigh escaped her lips as she felt the release of pressure on her breasts. She brushed out the styling gel from her hair, and used a large clip to pin up her bangs.

She took another gulp of wine, before taking cool, wet make–up remover wipes to her face. The chill made her shudder, and she hummed to herself. Once her routine was complete, she stuck her feet into fluffy purple slippers and made her way down to the living room to watch some dramas before bed. However, when she made it to the bottom of the stairs she was disappointed to hear sounds coming from the living room. Someone had beaten her to the television already. None of the options were particularly attractive to Rouge; Omega only watched documentaries, and Amy was not someone she wanted to see at the moment.

She turned to go back upstairs when she was stopped in her tracks by a voice.

"See Omega, that's an example of anger. Spike is angry that Stella was hanging out with Rocky."

"Anger: a feeling of annoyance, displeasure or hostility. Omega remembers Amy Rose stating that Spike loves Stella… love is defined as an intense feeling of affection… Spike can not both love and be angry with Stella according to logic."

Rouge rolled her eyes, and leaned on the handrail of the stairs. This was an impossible battle that she had waged before with the robot to no effect. On more than one occasion she had screamed at Omega in pure frustration at his lack of empathy and emotion, and eventually she had given up. But surprisingly the soft voice of Amy responded with gentle patience.

"I know that it is confusing, but that is just how the Mobian heart works, people can feel many things at once for one another – kinda like a bunch of programs running at the same time. Remember how I explained heart to you?"

There was a pause and then Omega's monotone voice recited, "A heart is more than a muscle within the body, it is an intangible center for emotion and expression. It is not defined by the physical, but rather made up of a person's experience and spirit. It is a beautiful yet mysteriously abstract part of all creatures."

Rouge's mouth opened in shock… even if Omega didn't actually understand what he was saying, it was amazing that the robot had actually retained and stored the information within him. Before she had only been able to get him to retain commands and actions. She slowly got closer to the living room, her large ears angled to hear as much as she could.

"That's right," Amy said brightly, and Rouge saw the silhouette of her arm reach over in front of the bright light of the TV in a dark room. It settled onto the metal chest of Omega and the robots head angled down to look at it.

"It doesn't matter if you are made of flesh or metal, if you have a spirit and a will, then you have a heart. That includes you Omega."

"Omega's understanding of this subject is not sufficient to evaluate Amy Rose's statement…" There was a pause as the small humm of turning gears battled with the soft voices from the TV, "Omega does have a save file that could possibly relate to this subject. Currently it is unmarked and in Omega's miscellaneous folder as it does not match any other operating system program installed. It was a malfunction that happened in response to Amy Rose smiling. Would Amy Rose care to analyse said file?"

Rouge heard the girl gasp, and the TV froze as she paused the screen. Amy adjusted her sitting position so that she was fully facing the robot and she was practically hopping in joy.

"Tell me about that 'malfunction,' Omega."

"Accessing memory file named untitled... " then there was the sound of static and Amy's recorded voice juttered out from the robot's speaker, "'You truly are the best friend a girl could wish for,' Amy Rose said this at 06:03 this morning with a smile on her face. This caused a spark within Omega's internal hardware. Normally Omega would go in for maintenance, however it seemed like it might be something Amy Rose could explain."

Rouge felt a prickling jealousy enter her heart. Why was everything this girl did successful? From the sounds of it, Omega was responding to Amy's coaching in emotion. Whereas Rouge's many attempts over several years had always failed and left her frustrated. The brat had only known him for maybe 48 hours and she had already progressed this far? It was unfair.

"Wow, buddy! That's amazing. See? You definitely have a hea –"

"What are you guys doing?" Rouge loudly interrupted, entering the room and making her way to the couch to sit herself between the two agents. Amy scooted out of her way, a surprised look on her face. Rouge barely looked at her as she flopped backwards into the couch and kicked her feet up onto the coffee table.

"Amy Rose is explaining heart, and emotion to Omega. Omega does not logically understand what Amy Rose is saying, but it has been labeled a priority in Amy Rose Relation program. Memory file has now been added to Amy Rose Relation."

Rouge scoffed and chugged on her bottle like a sippy cup before ungraciously wiping her mouth.

"Don't worry about it Omega. It's actually not that important, you'll just end up frying your circuits trying to understand it."

"Hey!" Amy said indignantly, her jade eyes narrowing, "He was doing just fine before you showed up."

"Oh yeah?" Rouge snidely remarked, matching the girl's glare with her own. Without breaking contact she said loudly, "Omega, do you love Amy?"

Amy's face took on an embarrassed look, and her demeanor instantly softened in shame.

"Omega does not have loaded reactions to 'love,' Omega does not have this operating program. Do you wish to program reactions now?"

Rouge smirked as the robot spoke and Amy seemed to shrink before her. That's right, if I can't have the satisfaction of teaching him, no one can. Ignoring the robot, she turned to the TV and stared at the two young mobian actors on screen.

"So, what are we watching?"

Amy sighed, and reached for the remote and pressing play. "Starry Nights."

"Is that the corny drama about highschool theater club?"

"Yeah, so? Got a problem with that too?" Amy hissed, her body rigid and guarded, Rouge felt slightly guilty. She had been pretty critical of Amy all day long, so it was no surprise the implied judgement at her choice of show was met with hostility.

"Not yet," Rouge said tentatively as she faced the screen again. This time her thoughts folded effortlessly inward.

Rouge rarely tried to put herself in another person's shoes, but there was something about the pink hedgehog that made her do things she least expected. Since Amy was now a permanent member on the team, she supposed she should try to get a long. She'd made a deal, after all… and trying to get rid of Amy so soon after was… ill advised. She didn't want to become friends with the girl, but it would be better if they were at least acquaintances that could work together. She sighed and turned to the girl, looking her over.

Amy was wearing a grey sweat suit that was G.U.N. issue and her quills were pulled back in a messy bun. The sweat suit was worn from excessive use and Rouge was once again struck with the difference between the brightly dressed girl from her memories and the drab girl that now sat before her.

"Do you only own G.U.N. issued clothing?"

Amy flinched, and she started to fiddle aggressively the the hems of her sweat shirt, "No…"

Rouge narrowed her eyes, catching the long pause and humiliated expression crossing the young Agent's face. The bat drank some more wine and rested her head in her hand as she looked the girl over. This was an issue, she wasn't about to have a member of her team looking like a cement brick all the time.

"I have some pencil skirts and blouses for work, as well as some workout outfits…" Amy rattled on, her voice nervous.

Rouge chuckled a little, and placed a hand on the girl's shoulder, "Hon, those aren't clothes, they're professional uniforms. And a crime to fashion at that. What happened to that red number you always wore?"

Amy looked away from the bat, her form curling in on itself and her voice came forth quietly,

"I grew out of those…"

Rouge stared at the hunched figure before her, and once again her maternal instinct kicked in like it had this morning at the cafe, and she stood, grabbed the remote and turned off the TV. When Amy snapped her head back to protest, Rouge held up her hand and pointed up stairs.

"Get to bed Agent Rose, I'm taking you shopping first thing tomorrow morning, no one on my team will be a walking fashion disaster… not after I finally got Shadow to wear that leather jacket. And I will not take no for an answer."

Wow! I hope ya'll enjoyed this chapter! I love hearing from each and every one of you.

Okay, first order of business, THANK YOU Laineybug04! Seriously guys, without her this chapter would've never been uploaded. Please check out her stories, I beta for her too and I have a link to the story in my bio! Check her out, she also does Shadamy.

SECOND: A HUGE HUGE HUGE VERY IMPORTANT SHOUT OUT TO MY NEW BUD: mysuperlasserpiss ON TUMBLR! She does fanart of my story and has a running comic of her own that begins at the end of Chapter 6. She guessed some things right like the shopping and training scenes (I was surprised she was so close to what I was planning... hope I'm not predictable :'D) But my scenes are different and will be what I had originally planned. STILL her art is AMAZING and I can not express in words how honored I am that she loved my story so much that she drew it. It truly is the highest compliment I could recieve. And what a gift to see what I write brought to life. I will put a link to her page in my bio. Please check her out.

THIRD: Thank you to my LOVELY and LOYAL and WONDERFUL reviewers! champion lyra, ThePurplePyroHedgie, XoxILoveyouxoX, Shooting Star Dragon 3000, TheOneBriarRose, Janttun3n, TinyShinyy, , Angel-kohai, dannyphantomlover7, Abril378, ROCKCHIC179, Amefloza13, CherryTheRose, shad-amy01, Dreamwalker44, Shyla the Hedgehog, Nightstar95, Aragorn Van Hellsing, Pirilaxa, mewfatima, unfortunesadblob, Naya Zephronic, fuumiiku

Guest 1: Thank you dear! I am so glad you enjoyed the story! Hope to hear from you again!

ROCKCHIC179: No worries! I totally understand how busy life can get! Thank you for always leaving such in depth and detailed reviews! I always look forward to hearing from you. Amy outsmarting Shadow is always nice XD Thank you for your comments about Amy and her experience. As every one will come to find she has gone through some difficult times and has not come out of it the same. It will be a long, hard but fun journey for her to heal. Tails is definitely just listening to one side of the story, but like you said earlier its something that is very realistic and happens all the time. Knuckles and Omega are cinnamon rolls and I will fight anyone who say otherwise lol. No Cheif snow in this chapter but I hope you enjoyed it.

Thank you all!

FINALLY: THIS IS ALSO VERY IMPORTANT: a little bit ago someone sent me a link to a story that was similar to this story, Team Dark's Rose. I am grateful for you guys looking out for me, I took a look at the story, and the reviews on the story. There were some similarities to my story, but someone pointed them out in the review section. The author kindly addressed the reader's concern and promised to review her story and said that it shouldn't continue. So I felt no need to say anything or look into it further. I am excited to see this author grow, and develop an amazing Shadamy as we all know we can always use more of those.

And that is all. Please let me know what you think and as always:

Happy Reading!