After night fell, Sonic waited until almost everyone had gone to bed before treading softly out of his bedroom and down the hall. Anyone he encountered hardly knew him, and if they did recognize him, no one cared enough to stop what they were doing to interrogate him. He'd nearly made it to the entrance before he hit a snag.

He spotted Shadow standing near the entrance tunnel, staring into it with thought-glazed eyes. He looked almost bored, and Sonic wondered how he was going to sneak around him before Shadow spoke.

"I know you're there," Shadow said, a threatening edge to his voice. "Come out where I can see you."

Sonic stepped into Shadow's view with a sheepish smile. "How'd you know?" he asked.

He saw Shadow relax a little bit, letting his guard down. "Oh, it's just you," Shadow said. "I heard you tiptoeing down the hall. Thought you might be trying to attack."

Sonic snorted. "Yeah, tried once, don't feel like trying my luck again at the moment," he said with a smirk. "What are you doing here?"

"Thinking," Shadow replied.

"Brooding, got it."

"Shut up."

Sonic laughed. "No, but seriously, what's going on? I don't know if this is normal for you, but… like I said earlier, you've been distant lately. Are you sure it's not something I did?"

"I'd be lying if I said you weren't part of it," Shadow admitted. "But it's not your fault either. If you… really don't want that kind of a relationship, then that's fine. But waiting for you to make up your mind… it's frustrating."

"It's frustrating trying to make it up," Sonic admitted with a nervous chuckle. "But—"

"Shadow!" called a voice from around the corner. Moments later, Amy appeared, smiling as she looked back and forth between Sonic and Shadow. "Oh, there you are," she said. "It's getting kinda late, and Sally set up a room for us to stay in while we're here. Are you coming to bed or…?"

"You guys should go get some sleep," Sonic said, remembering his plans to hijack more supplies. But there must have been something strange in the way he said it, because Shadow and Amy both narrowed their eyes at him.

"Where are you going?" Amy asked, her tone suspicious.

"Solo mission, getting more supplies," Sonic replied. "I'll be back in like twenty minutes, don't worry."

"Funny," said Shadow. "I don't remember Sally ever saying anything about anyone going alone."

"Well—"

"We're coming with you," Amy cut in firmly.

"Amy, I'll be fine!" Sonic insisted.

Amy shook her head. "The last time you said that you both got shot," she retorted.

Sonic opened his mouth to argue, but Shadow nodded in agreement. "She's right," he said. "And I know you probably have your reasons for going alone, but it's too dangerous. And the last thing we want is for you to get hurt again."

Sonic hesitated, then sighed in resignation. No matter what he said, they'd come with him anyway. "Alright, fine," he said. "But I don't want you guys getting hurt either." He looked at Amy. "How's your nose?"

"Some quick spell work and it was good as new," she replied, smiling gently.

Sonic nodded, then sighed again. "Alright then. Guess we'd better get going."

He led the way out of Knothole, making sure no one was lurking near the entrance before he opened it fully, shutting it behind the three of them as they hurried away into the forest.

They waited along a lonely stretch of road, hoping to find at least one last cart full of supplies, as Sonic had explained on the way.

Minutes turned to hours as they stayed there, the only sound that of the crickets chirping around them. Until finally, it grew late enough that Sonic was beginning to fall asleep.

"Let's call it, guys," he said. "It's a bust."

Shadow nodded. "Too late at night," he agreed.

Amy yawned. "Let's go back and go to bed," she suggested. "We can come back tomorrow."

"Yeah," Sonic said. "I don't know about you guys but I'm about ready to pass out." He stood up, offering a hand to Amy, who took it and pulled herself up. But she didn't let go right away, and Sonic was tired enough that he almost didn't even notice.

Amy leaned her head sleepily on his arm, and Shadow came up on her other side, pulling her away gently. Without her warmth, Sonic felt cold now, the chill night breeze blowing through him and sending shivers up his spine.

He leaned towards the two of them and looked at Shadow, who sported a stony expression, looking away from Sonic. But there was something in his eyes that made Sonic's chest feel heavy.

That was when it finally hit Sonic just how much this was affecting him—both of them. He didn't even know why he'd hesitated for this long—didn't know what had kept him from saying yes. But all that mattered was that it was hurting them.

He didn't want to hurt them.

He wanted to be with them.

Sonic reached out and took Amy's hand, squeezing gently. Amy looked over at him sleepily, though a smile appeared as she squeezed back, and it seemed like she understood. Shadow still didn't look over, and Sonic's heart sank. Was it too late? Had he made his decision after Shadow had finally changed his mind?

But looking at Amy's tired smile eased the worry tying itself in a knot in his chest, and they made their way back to Knothole without another word.

All the bedrooms were located in the same hallway, and they came upon Shadow's and Amy's first. Amy yawned and went in, giving Sonic and Shadow both a kiss on the cheek, surprising both of them before she let go. Shadow moved to follow her, but Sonic stopped him, grabbing his hand.

Shadow turned to face him, crimson eyes wide with confusion and hope, and Sonic gave him a little smile. "I've made my decision," Sonic whispered, leaning in close. He pressed a kiss to Shadow's cheek, pulling away with a smile. "I wanna try."

Slowly, a smile curved its way onto Shadow's face. "Alright then," he said quietly. "This isn't going to be easy, you know that, right?"

"Easy is boring anyway," Sonic replied with a chuckle.

Shadow huffed a laugh and went inside his room, hesitating for a moment before turning around and gently grasping Sonic's fingers, bringing them to his lips and kissing his knuckles softly. Heat rushed to Sonic's face as Shadow retreated with a chuckle.

Sonic came out of his room the next morning, his brain still foggy with sleep, and found Amy waiting outside the food stores. She smiled at him, like always, then kissed his cheek softly, the touch warm. "Good morning," she sang quietly.

Sonic blushed, unsure of how to react at first. It took him several moments to remember what he'd said to Shadow the night before. But when he did, he grinned and pulled her into a hug, kissing her forehead. "Morning," he said, his voice still a little groggy.

Amy giggled, then leaned her head into his chest. "Thank you," she said. "For giving us a chance."

Sonic smiled and squeezed her tight for a moment, then let go, and Amy pulled away, smiling wider than he'd ever seen. He swore his own grin mimicked hers.

At that moment, Shadow came out from behind the store-room door, holding a handful of apples. When he saw Sonic, he seemed surprised, almost suspicious as he narrowed his eyes at him. Sonic's smile faded. Had he done something wrong?

"Did last night actually happen?" Shadow asked. "Or was I dreaming when you said–"

"It wasn't a dream, Shads," Sonic said with a laugh.

Shadow smiled and handed Sonic and Amy each an apple. "I told you not to call me that," he said, and Sonic laughed again.

"So," Amy said around a bite of apple. "Are we going to tell people about this, or are we going to keep quiet? Because I know not everyone would be… thrilled to know you two are involved, much less all three of us."

"I think…" said Sonic. "We should tell people who are close, but… maybe not be so obvious in public?"

"Agreed," Shadow said. "I think our crew is trustworthy in that regard–what's left of them anyway. Though we don't need to tell them outright. We simply don't have to hide it."

"And Sally and Sonia," Sonic added. Sally could definitely be trusted. And he really didn't want to keep something like this from his sister, though he knew she wouldn't be thrilled either. He knew she could at least keep it a secret though.

"Okay…" Amy said. "Then… have I left anything out?"

"If you have, we'll worry about it later," said Shadow. Then he reached out towards Sonic and pulled a bit of fuzz out of his quills. "We still need to figure out our next move in terms of rescuing your brother. Has Sally updated you on that at all?"

Sonic shook his head. "I think we're still going to be trying to get supplies today," he said. "I'll go ask her about it in a bit. But I think I'd like to spend the morning with you guys."

Amy giggled and bumped her shoulder against his. "You know, you're pretty bad at flirting," she teased.

"Agreed," Shadow said with a smirk. "But we don't get enough quality time…" He leaned towards Sonic, close enough that their noses brushed softly. Sonic's knees shook and his insides felt like jelly, his cheeks flaming before Shadow pulled away with a smirk, Amy giggling beside them. "Let's go," Shadow said. "I'd like to check in with the crew."

Sonic nodded, still reeling, as Amy gently pulled him along behind Shadow. But even still, disappointment settled in his gut, and he was tempted to run up to Shadow and kiss him himself. "Jerk," Sonic muttered.

"I heard that." Shadow said, turning around, that same smirk still plastered on his face.

Sonic glared at him a little. Then he darted a glance around, catching up to Shadow in the space of a second and…

Shadow's lips were warm and soft, and he could taste the sweet tartness of apple on them.

Sonic pulled away after a moment, smirking at Shadow's stunned expression. "Don't start what you can't finish," he teased.

Amy was crying with laughter.

Shadow led the way down to where the crew was staying, a little deeper underground than where the three of them slept. They were all in a little cluster of rooms next to each other; Tangle and Whisper in one, Tails in another, and Silver staying with Blaze in the last one. Tails's and Silver and Blaze's room was empty, and Tangle and Whisper's door was open. Tails was in there with them, sitting on the bed. Tangle's hand rested on his back, a worried frown on her face.

Shadow cleared his throat, all three heads turning quickly towards him. "Good morning," he said. "How are you all faring?"

"Tangle and I are fine," Whisper said. "But Miles is…"

"It was just a dream," Tails said, his tone clipped. "I'm fine."

Sonic raised a concerned eyebrow. Had their conversation yesterday done more harm than good? He looked over at Shadow and Amy, who both seemed to be thinking something similar. But Shadow simply nodded. "We've got a lot to do today, so you'd better get moving," he said.

"Yes, sir!" they all replied, and immediately filed out of the room.

Sonic reached out a hand and grabbed Tails by the shoulder. "Hang on, bud," he said. He turned to Shadow and Amy. "You guys go on ahead, I'll catch up."

They frowned in confusion for a moment before understanding dawned in Amy's eyes and she pulled Shadow along with her, who didn't protest.

Sonic turned back to Tails, who was looking up at him apprehensively. "What?" he asked. "Why did you wanna talk to me?"

"You doin' okay, bud?" Sonic asked.

Tails's tails drooped as he looked down at the ground and shook his head. "I had a nightmare this morning," he said. "I don't think I should have told you about… that."

"You mean Martin?" Sonic asked, and Tails nodded. "Did you dream about him?"

Again, Tails nodded. "I really don't want to talk about it," he said.

"Fair enough," Sonic said. "But if you change your mind, I'm all ears. Go get some food. You'll feel better after you eat something."

Tails nodded once again and waved goodbye before turning around and hurrying away.

Sonic watched him leave, then sighed as he turned around and hurried to catch up to Shadow and Amy. Hopefully the kid would be okay.

When he caught up to the others, he managed to startle Amy, earning a playful smack on the arm. "How's he doing though?" she asked once the laughter had died down. "He looked pretty upset."

"He's…" Sonic began. "He's struggling a bit. He didn't want to talk too much about it. I'm gonna keep an eye on him though."

"He's been through quite a bit," Shadow said. "I think we all should keep an eye out for him."

Sonic and Amy nodded in agreement. After a few minutes, Shadow cleared his throat. "So," he said. "How should we spend our morning before we have to be responsible?"

Sonic grinned. "Race you through the halls!" he called, and he immediately took off. He heard Amy complaining behind him as she tried to run after him, saying something about how it was a bad idea. He also heard Shadow's boots running after him, and felt a tap on the side of his head as the captain passed him.

However, they quickly realized how stupid the idea was when they both screeched to a stop in front of a solid wall, Shadow stopping, and Sonic bowling into him, resulting in the both of them lying in a heap on the floor. Amy caught up to them, breathing hard. "Not… fair!" she said between gasps. "You know I… can't go that… fast!"

Shadow raised his head and leveled a glare at Sonic. "I don't even know why I went along with that," he said.

Sonic smirked. "Because you don't want to admit I'm faster," he teased, earning a light punch to the shoulder before Shadow stood and helped him up. Sonic laughed as Shadow huffed and walked away. "Okay, I'm sorry!" he said. "No more running in the halls."

Amy rolled her eyes. "You guys are older than me and yet you act like toddlers," she teased.

Sonic put a hand to his chest in mock offense. "I am wounded, Ames," he said. "And for the record I'm only a year older. Shadow's the fossil."

Shadow stopped and turned around, narrowing his eyes at Sonic. "Fossil, hmmm?" he said, a smile twitching at his lips. "I suppose that's what you'll be next year then."

Amy laughed as Sonic playfully elbowed the captain in the ribs, earning a cuff behind the head for his trouble.

Sonic smiled wider than ever before as he looked between the two of them. He didn't know where this was going to go or where he'd end up, but he was happy just to have this moment to goof around with them.