11 - Miles To No Zone

A yellowish-orange fox with grey swerved up hair, and a red and gray looking uniform emerged from underneath the bed before Sonic could unveil it completely. He crawled out, but lost feeling in his hands and arms, falling flat on his face. He was small just like his little brother. He was moaning and mumbling in what sounded like, pain. He was really weak, and he couldn't even hold himself up. Instantly recognizing the vulpine, Sonic hurried over and knelt down to help him up to his feet.

"Miles, that you?" He asked softly. "Can you hear me?"

The little fox couldn't respond, he just grimaced as he tried to open his eyes. When he tried moving his leg, he cried out and hissed. Sonic quickly placed him back down to the floor and made him sit instead. Sonic sat beside him, while still making sure he could sit up. Shadow just peered at this fox with a questionable glare. "Isn't that Tails' real name?" He felt the weird energy get even stronger as he was just talking. "He looks similar to him, so this has to be his anti-double, right?"

Sonic nodded wearily. He didn't like the look of this. "Yeah. This is him."

"Let me guess, he hates Scourge as well."

"Right again, Shads." The blue hedgehog propped his body against the wall, and gently let go of Miles. They should probably get him on the bed. "Tails and I are basically brothers, and I love the little guy. I know he feels the same for me too, but these guys...They despise each other, and they both would love to see each other get killed." Sonic stood up and walked over to the messy bed to fix it up a bit. Not make it tidy, but nice enough so that the little fox won't wake up with a crook in his neck. "While Tails does misbehave once in a while, Miles is a complete rebel. He hates being taken care of, he hates being dependent on anyone. And he hates anything that may seem 'childish', like having the nick name Tails for instance. When I called him that the first time I met him, he nearly cut me, haha." The blue one made a small laugh at old times. "He's way too serious, super picky, a complete coward and treacherous at that. And while Tails and I respect each other, he just loathes Scourge. And, he's terrified of him."

Shadow picked up on what Sonic was trying to do, so he gave a hand to help. He picked up the fox in his arms and placed him down onto the soft mattress. When he laid him down, the child began to toss and turn.

"M-Make it stop...Perimeter...field.." He rambled unconsciously. This made Shadow widen his eyes. If this was the anti-Tails, and if Tails-prime had extreme intellect in mechanics-

Sonic put his hand out on top of the fox's head. "I got an idea." He suddenly said as blue energy gathered in his palm. It glowed against the child's temple, and soon engulfed him entirely. The boy woke up and sat up straight while looking around with a start. His eyes were briefly red swirls, but then disappeared from the blue energy. Sonic made it disperse in his hand, satisfied with the results. He had a feeling that'd work.

"H-Huh?!" Miles was startled. "W-Who are you!?" He shouted at Shadow, but then he saw Sonic right beside him and made a look of fear. "You!" He scooted away from him in the bed backwards until he hit the wall behind him. "Get away!" He demanded.

The hero of Mobius sighed. "We're not here for you, squirt."

Miles scowled at the nick name as an insult. "How dare you..What do you want from me?"

"A thank you would be nice." Sonic replied impudently with a frown.

"Wait, it was you that woke me up?" He scratched his yellow head, his ice blue eyes looking down at the bed. "All I remember is that green snotty bastard beating me into a pulp and throwing me in here. Then he used some kind of red thing in my eyes. Speaking of which," He looked up at the two hedgehogs. "He's gone, right?"

Shadow stared at the Tails double with great interest. "The king isn't present, including his band of the thieves. You're safe, for now."

Sonic sat at the foot of the bed. "What else did he do? Do you remember anything else?"

Miles bit his lip, looking frightened at something. Was it something in this room? Did he fear Scourge would pop out at any moment? "He put me in here, and kept repeating over and over to have the castle doors locked with magic. Then he kidnapped that demented pink shrew, and put her in the front of the castle to act as a guard dog while he was gone. Made her think anyone who was a hedgehog was him, so she would try and kill them." He narrowed his eyes. "He did say you two would try to come. Sonic and someone black with red stripes."

This made Sonic rolls his eyes. Of course he would predict that they would come, but why run away? And why leave these two on guard duty?

"Magic?" Shadow asked with wonder. "That energy that I couldn't comprehend on the front doors, that was you?"

Miles scoffed while crossing his arms. "Are you that pathetically ignorant? Of course it was me. I'm the only one in this world who's able to use magic at all. Are you not aware of our heritage? Foxes with more than one tail have magical capabilities." He swished his two tails around in a propeller at the mention of them.

Ignoring his insults, Shadow hit the nail in the head. "Of course, kitsunes." He looked over at Sonic with a confused expression. "Why doesn't Tails possess these abilities?"

Before Sonic could reply, Miles butted in with his own smart remark. "Because that fool wasn't born with our powers like he should have, but instead clings to those filthy things he calls machines." He sneered and laughed. "What a clod. Turning to the predictability of machines when magic is obviously the superior."

The hero wasn't all too impressed by this. He looked bored of this, actually. He glanced over at Shadow and made a flat line with his mouth. "So yeah, those opposite traits. I feel like I forgot to mention arrogant as all living hell."

"More like vainglory." Shadow pointed out. "But the both of you are still both intelligent. Meaning, you're the third party I suspected." He walked closer to the bed, making Miles flinch. "You have to be the brains in all this. I knew he couldn't have been the mastermind. It all makes perfect sense. He was probably the brawn, but double crossed you at the last minute by brainwashing you."

The yellow Moebian looked between the hedgehogs back and forth before making a smirk. "Your Miles only has knowledge in mechanics and technology, while I have intellect in magic and political power. I don't blame you for thinking that. But," His smirk began to dull. "While I wish I had a hand in tormenting you morons back in your world, I'm afraid I had nothing to do with this." After he said that, Sonic moved close to Shadow and playfully elbowed him in the arm with a smirk of his own.

"Told ya so."

Miles continued. "This is all his doing. I know where he is, and I know some of what he's planning as well. He gloated his plans to me right before he did that weird red thing."

Sonic leaned back against the bed posts and crossed his legs. "Alright, so where's his majesty and his knights?"

The fox relaxed himself and looked down at the sheets. He squinted his eyes angrily, wishing he could have stopped Scourge from doing what he did. He wished he could have gotten his revenge. He felt so foolish that he let him take advantage of him like that. "The Perpendicular Zone, No Zone."

"What!?" The blue one exclaimed, standing up from the bed immediately, making both Miles and Shadow look at him with stunned faces. "W-Why, why would he go to No Zone?"

Miles tried to pay his reaction no mind. "When you beat his lackeys into nothing the last time you were here," Ah, he meant when Scourge first captured him. "He realized he needed better equipment. Apparently, he was given knowledge from Fiona who acted as a spy, that the Zone Cops got new upgrades. So, he planned a fake attack on No Zone Prison as a diversion to kidnap some of their soldiers to study their armor."

Sonic threw his hands to his head. "Holy crap, I'm such a freakin' idiot!" He yelled to the ceiling.

"Well I'm glad you finally came to terms with yourself-"

Sonic glowered at him before he could even finish that taunt. "Shut it, kid." He growled with a death glare. It did its intended effect, and it made Miles shut right up and look somewhere else. He didn't want to say that he hated Miles, but he surely didn't like him. He couldn't hate someone who looked like his best buddy. However, now wasn't the time to piss him off.

"What is No Zone, faker?" Shadow quietly asked beside him. Sonic blew out a puff of stressful air and ran his hand through his long blue quills.

"Remember when I said I had a close friend who told me everything he knew about Moebius?"

"Yes?" The black hedgehog's tone was trying to gesture for Sonic to go further.

"Well, he's not from this world, or ours. But he's from No Zone. And No Zone is an alternate world like this one."

Shadow promptly held up his hands and shook his head. "Hell no." He was not having it. He was damned if he had to deal with more than two Sonics.

Shadow's reaction to that was almost funny. He laughed nervously. "No no no no no, he's not another anti. That world is totally different, I promise you. Most of them are real good people." He assured. "Almost everyone who has a job in that world is a zone cop, or has some kind of public service duty. They work for their people and protect them, and they make sure nothing crazy happens between other worlds and arrest super dangerous criminals from all kinds of places." He smiled with pride and pointed to himself. "But my friend's an elite over there. We should have went to him in the first place! He's arrested Scourge more than once before."

Miles just rolled his eyes. "There's one underneath the bed right now...Threw his body there along with mine..." He muttered, but no one paid attention to him.

Huh, a soldier-like version of Sonic? Even more interesting. "While this is great news, you couldn't have remembered that sooner?"

"Shadow, if I wanted to be bitched at, I would have stayed in Mobius with Tails and Amy."

"Language."

"Whatever. Anyway, that's where we should go next. There's no way Scourge could beat both us, and the zone cops. We're sure to beat him!"

Miles cut in as he tried to wobble out of bed. His body still didn't feel right. "Yup. In fact, if you were smart, you'd leave right now."

"Huh?" Sonic blinked. "Wait, why?"

"Scourge already knew you would pull something. Said something about you going super or whatever. So he packed a hidden part underneath his throne with loads of anarchy beryl. If he goes super along with that strange power, you both don't stand a chance, trust me. That monstrous ability is making him stronger every second he breathes." The vulpine in the red and gray uniform placed one hand on the wall to help him move. "He should be returning any moment now. He left to attack No Zone almost a week ago, and he should be done by now. If he catches you two in here...I'm sure you can imagine the consequences."

The hero groaned in annoyance and self threatened to pull his quills out. "Daaaamn iiiit," He seethed. He was in bed that whole time, wallowing in his own nightmares! He could have stopped Scourge, and he completely missed the chance. But it was just like he said before. Even if they did confront him, it wouldn't have been enough for Scourge. It was too easy to just go Super, because obviously Scourge already had a plan up his sleeve to counteract both him and Shadow.

"...Maybe..I don't think he'll return today," Miles said suddenly while looking at Sonic's distressed expression. "He was supposed to, but he's late. I know for sure he'll return tomorrow at the very least. So you two better do whatever you have to do here, and leave while you still can." He looked at Shadow as well. "They may have cleared the dining hall, but there's still some extra food in the pantry. Go there and steal some. There's a bed and breakfast place going west that's not too far from here as well, and it hasn't been destroyed yet. Use that to rest and get out of here by morning." He took his hand off the wall and tested his balance to see if he could stand correctly. His body was sore, but he could walk okay again. "I assume Miles-Prime made a warp ring for you?"

"Uh, yeah but-" Sonic stammered.

"There are coordinates in the lab on one of the warp rings that lead to No Zone, if you truly plan on going there. Use that on your own ring to get there when you're both ready." He advised carelessly. Shadow raised a brow.

"And why are you helping us?"

"If you two have the potential to kill Scourge, I'll swallow my pride and happily help you in any way I can." His face when dark when he said that, and his tone matched it. So this was what Sonic meant earlier. Those two really did hate each other. Nothing but pure hatred. "When you have a tyrant like that in your life, childish things such as 'brotherhood' don't exist." Miles then brushed past this and changed the subject. "When you both travel to No Zone, I will find a way to get in touch with you. Until then, get out of here, now." The child ordered while pointing to the door. Shadow and Sonic looked at each other again, both seeming to have the same thoughts in mind. They watched as he looked around the room, probably looking for anything useful here.

"..Um, thank you, Miles." Sonic almost whispered. He couldn't believe he was actually thanking him. Miles just scowled and looked away while flagging them both off. Feeling his parental instincts go off the radar, he said one final thing. "Don't get yourself killed, and don't do anything stupid." He advised sternly. Sonic took a few steps backwards before turning around to walk out the door. Shadow let his eyes linger on Miles for a while, but soon joined his partner through the exit of the room.

Miles with his back still turned, sighed to himself. So that's why Scourge had such an attraction to Sonic. It was because even in the end, he still cared for people. Even if they were enemies from the past. He almost wished he had someone like that.

He always knew that Tails had all the luck.

Without wasting anymore time, they went off to the pantry in the dining hall. They grabbed only what they needed, enough food to get by the night. Sonic had swiped a blanket from one of the bedrooms, and stuffed the food in there like a makeshift sack. Shadow had put the food in small containers so that they wouldn't get damaged from the trip. After that, they scurried to the lab that was in the bowels of the castle where the large warp rings lied. Shadow had checked the coordinates through the machines they were hooked up to, but Sonic said there was no need. When the hero took a small quick glance at them, he said he could memorize it no problem and that he could take them there with his chaos.

After double checking to make sure no one else was around to stop them from escaping the lone castle, they treaded up the stairs to get back to the front doors on the ground floor. They assumed no one would be waiting for them, and Shadow was sure Rosy was still knocked out, even with his chaos spears gone. But right as they were about to get to the main floor, Sonic remembered something.

"There's one underneath the bed right now...Threw his body there along with mine..." Wait a minute, Miles mentioned that there was a body underneath the bed with him while he was held captive? The body of a zone cop? And they completely gleamed over that!? Sonic bonked himself in the head. He made a sharp turn and hurried past Shadow.

"Shads, we gotta make a U-turn! Stat!"

"What are you on about now?" Shadow grumbled. He followed him anyway, back in the same direction they came from. The direction of the hall where the torture room was. Sonic nearly tripped in his steps, that's how fast he moved to that room. He entered without warning, not caring if Miles was still there or not. And, he wasn't. Sonic searched the room with his eyes, scanning top to bottom, but the little one just wasn't here. How did he leave so quickly? Or did he go to another room while they got the food? As much as Sonic hated to say this, he hoped he was okay. He was still a kid at the end of the day, no matter how much he despised him. Shadow joined the hero seconds after, and questioned just what he was up to. "What is it, hedgehog?" He pressed. "We need to leave, now."

"Just a second." Sonic answered dismissively. He got down on his knees and crawled towards the bed. He looked underneath the sheets once again, and saw a body. It was tucked all the way against the back of the wall, but it didn't seem like a zone cop. This person wore no uniform. Strange. Sonic reached his arm out and stretched it far enough to reach one of their limbs. It was pretty dark under here, so he couldn't make out who it was, or even their fur color. He just grabbed the nearest thing that felt like an arm or leg, and pulled. With a grunt, he managed to get the body out from under the bed. He stood up and looked down to see who it might be.

Both he and Shadow were taken back by this person. Because they looked exactly like the ultimate life form.

"H-How in the..?!" Sonic couldn't even begin to finish his wording. He was too distracted at trying to figure out why another Shadow was here. His dark partner was doing the same, just looking at the body up and down. This person had black and red striped fur, quills just like Shadow's, tan muzzle, white chest fur. Hell, he even had similar looking shoes. "Miles said there was another body here but, it's him? Who is this?"

"I was about to ask you that. You seemed to know everything about this place."

"No, I have no idea who-" A light bulb shattered above his head. Wow, his idiot streak just kept going and going today, wasn't it? "Holy crap, this guy is a zone cop. Meaning, he works with my friend. Scourge must have captured him somehow, too! And I don't think he's dead either." Sonic lifted the sack of food over to Shadow and looked across at him. "Trust me, this guy is important, I feel it. I need you to carry the goods while I carry him."

"You sure you can handle that?" Shadow asked as he lifted the sack onto his shoulder behind him.

"Positive. I think." Sonic bent down to pull and hold up the fellow hedgehog, and he struggled a bit thanks to the weight, but ended up managing.

They both ran or skated out of the large gray castle. They saw on their way out that Rosy and her hammer were gone as well, which was odd. They thought she'd be out for hours, but, somehow she must have got up and left on her own. Shadow's chaos spear might have woken her up from Scourge's control, so when she woke up, she was confused and just wanted to leave. Who knew?

They ran to the west, across dirty cracked roads of nothingness. Passing by abandoned apartments and stores, dead tree branches and city animals. They even passed a children's park, that was almost creepy to look at. Swing sets were coming to and fro, with no one sitting in them. Was it the wind pushing them? Broken slides stood still in eeriness. A rusted metal part on the monkey bars fell off and just rolled away. A raven sat atop the swinging tire that was hung below a thick bare tree, and more ravens perched themselves on the branches.

They were watching them.

The atmosphere was...Sonic couldn't even say. He was just glad that they ran away. But when he saw that it was a playground, he remembered how he used to take Tails there when they were little. He remembered how people would tease him for being 'gifted' with two tails. He also remembered how Sonic yelled at them, going on and on about how amazing he and his namesakes were. Sonic normally didn't talk that much back then, but he sure gave them what for that day. And, he realized, that Miles would never have that. He would never feel the joy or love of having a guardian to look up to and care for him. He sadly smiled to himself as he and Shadow traveled to an even more empty street.

This place was isolated from all the rest, only being connected by one street. And, Miles was right. The bed and breakfast place was abandoned as well, but it looked okay. It seemed to be some kind of safe haven among the other places here. It wasn't falling apart, not yet. Sonic and Shadow skidded to a stop in front of the homey looking building. The colors on it were bland, probably faded away, but it still looked good enough for them. Sonic shifted the Shadow double's weight on his back, huffing as he carried him inside.

The door was unlocked, and Sonic walked right in. Shadow did the same while carrying their bag, examining the house thoroughly. The kitchen was raided, the living room had no furniture. Faded marks in the carpet where chairs used to be, were permanent scars for these floors. They cleared this place out too. He walked next to Sonic through the house, and saw that he looked troubled. Lately, he's always looked like that. "Something on your mind?"

"It's nothing." Sonic responded.

"You didn't want to take him with us, did you?"

"Of course not. Just like Tails, Miles can handle himself." He saw the stairs to the second floor and began to climb up them with the body on his back. "Ngh. I just wish that he wasn't the dark side of him. Like how I wish Scourge wasn't the dark side of me." He said in a saddened tone. "Anyone who lives here is most likely the person their prime self doesn't want to be, or fears to become. I'm just thankful that no one in our world is like this. That our world isn't in shambles."

Shadow tried to shift his depressing way of thinking. It just wasn't like him at all. "But it could be if we don't act. Seriously faker, you need to stop speculating so much."

"Ha," Sonic bitterly chuckled. "You're right. It's not doin' this world any good anyway."

The dark one exhaled silently. He walked down the second floor hallway with him. This was where the bedrooms and bathrooms were, obviously. They just had to find one. "Precisely. Perhaps when you see your friend in this No Zone world, you'll stop that nonsense. After all, there's nothing you can do about a world that gives life to evil and cowards."

"But," Sonic stopped in his tracks and stared at Shadow with his green eyes. "No one is born evil, Shadow."

"..." Shadow didn't say anything directly to that. He just wanted to change the subject at this point. "I'm sure your stomach's growling. Let's just find a room already."

After a while of walking around, they realized that all the beds were either stolen, or way too repulsive to lay on. There was only one room, one single room that had a perfectly stable bed that didn't reek of piss or blood stains. Not only that, but this room wasn't empty. It had furniture and stuff in it. It had a small sofa, along with a fair-sized bed. Probably a queen size. There was a dresser and even a small old TV. It didn't seem like it worked, though. There were pictures on the dresser, neatly leaning against the wall with torn notebook paper and pens on top. There was a closet as well, that was cracked open. The walls were void of any paint color, but they could still make out that this room used to be a nice white. The floors were hardwood, but not glossy like they used to be. There were no lights, it was dark here. And there were some used melted candles on the floor, too. There was one window, with the glass in it broken to shards.

Sonic lifted the body up from his back and carefully placed it down on the sofa. He breathed a sigh of relief and stretched his muscles. That guy wasn't light at all. Shadow placed the sack of food next to the bed and walked over to the closet. When he slid open the doors, he saw nothing but old black clothing here. "What the...?"

Sonic looked over Shadow's shoulder to see, and made a small gasp. There was a black jacket with little red flames on the sleeves. This was Scourge's. And there were other black pieces of clothing as well, among very few formal clothes. Did Scourge make this place his little hide out? Then, Sonic walked over to the dresser that held notes. He picked them up and looked over them, and saw that whoever wrote this, wrote in perfect cursive. Tails said that when Scourge was disguised as Sonic, he wrote to Tails in cursive just like this. Shadow went next to him and pulled out some drawers. There were thick books in these drawers too, complicated ones. But one stood out.

"Isn't this Tails' book?" The ebony hedgehog asked. Sonic peeked inside, and saw the cover. Theoretical Physics. Holy Chaos, this was Tails' book. Scourge stole it. He was reading it. But why? And how was he of all people able to read crap like this? Why would he even want to?

Then, Sonic looked at the notes he was holding up. He could read it, but barely. Scourge's cursive was almost cryptic, too perfect for his eyes. When he skimmed over one page at a time, he realized that Scourge was writing equations and drawing models of armor of some kind. These were so weird to read, it made Tails' notes look like child's play. Shadow asked to take a look, so Sonic handed them over. Shadow's ruby eyes looked all over the pages. "These are schematics of armor, and some sort of device. The anti-Tails did mention that Scourge was planning to make new equipment for his entourage. But these are very impressive. I can't even understand half of it."

"Yeah but, Scourge? I can't believe he wrote and drew stuff like this. That he reads this stuff."

"Perhaps that is just one more opposite trait." Shadow scowled. "And unfortunately, you may have just proved me wrong severely. It may be true that this bastard really is secretly a genius. And that's bad."

"Well that's just friggin' great..." Sonic groaned in exasperation and just fell backwards on the bed. It was still soft, but he could smell Scourge's cologne. It was faint, but that meant he was recently here before. Even better, they were sleeping in their enemy's bed. Just great. "I don't wanna think about that creep anymore. What are we gonna do about sleep? This is the only bed that's inhabitable."

Shadow almost laughed at his particular wording. But this was a bit of a dilemma. It's not like they could share it, even if they both could fit. He put down the notes back where they were and turned around to face the bed, where Sonic was scooting himself over. "What are you doing?"

"We're gonna have to share, I guess."

"..." Again, Shadow said nothing. The glare on his face did all the talking.

Sonic pouted. "Aw come on Shadow! Your look-alike already took the sofa, and we can't sleep on the floor."

"I'll sleep on the floor no problem-"

"No way! You wanna sleep on these crummy floors? It might fall under ya."

Sadly, he was right. Shadow sighed and closed his eyes. It would only be one night. Only one night would he do this. Shadow lightly bent forward and proceeded to reach down and take off his shoes. Sonic did the same, making a small smile. The two sat on the bed together, eating the food they brought with them. It wasn't bad, but it didn't beat Ms. Vanilla's cooking, or Rouge's. When they filled up, they just put their trash somewhere in the room. It wasn't like there was a trashcan here. It was getting late, so they soon went to bed.

The hero pulled off the covers and got underneath them. He made sure to relax his quills so he'd be able to lay on the pillows without shredding them to bits. Shadow refused to look at Sonic as he got into bed with him. He didn't dare move any closer to him either. He just stared at the wall while getting under the sheets, his back facing him. He dulled the edges of his quills as well, so he wouldn't wake up with a bloody Sonic next to him.

Sonic looked up at the ceiling, still smiling. This was nice, a little. The sky was getting even darker, and they were sure it was night time. It was strange how fast time passed. The hero could have sworn that they left for Moebius in the morning, and arrived at the castle at least by afternoon. Perhaps the time in this world was different too. He closed his eyes and folded his hands on top of his stomach. He hoped Tails and the others were doing okay. All that was left to do now was go to sleep and rest.

But not yet. Sonic opened one eye in the direction of his partner. "Hey, you awake?" He whispered.

"I am." Shadow muttered.

"Thought you didn't need sleep, or food?"

"I don't, but using chaos energy makes me tired after a while. Food helps replenish that, along with rest." The striped hedgehog made a grumpy expression. "Which I'd like to have, if someone wouldn't keep interrupting me."

"Well too bad, cause I got one more question for ya." Sonic scooted himself closer to Shadow's side, making the other open his eyes. The blue hedgehog looked over at Shadow's back. "You promised me that you'd tell me why you tried to kiss me the other day."

The ultimate life form sat up and turned to Sonic with lowered eyes. "I said when this was all over I'd tell you."

"Yeah, and it is. We're done with the castle." Sonic smirked at his loop hole. "You weren't very specific, so you better start talkin'."

Shadow growled, stubbornly looking away and moving to lay back down. "Damn you to hell..." He grumbled. He did promise him, and he did it on Maria's name. He didn't have a choice. "I don't know why I did it." He admitted. "You were vulnerable. At first, I was only trying to help you the same way you helped me. But, looking at your face like that, told me to do more."

"..What do you mean?" Sonic asked quietly.

Shadow fidgeted a bit, his gloved fingers lightly gripping the sheet below them. "I...Let's just say, I see why people are attracted to you, now."

"H-Huh?" Sonic's cheeks grew red.

"You're, a lot more than what I thought. I thought you were just some arrogant idiot who had access to power you didn't even understand. I thought you were just some kid way in over your head playing hero. But you've proven to me time and time again, that I'm very wrong." Shadow rose up from his position and laid against the headboard, sitting up once again. He still wouldn't look at Sonic. "You're strong, you're more gifted than I gave you credit for. You aren't the naive child I thought you were, and you grew up in a lot of ways, even if you don't realize it."

As he listened to Shadow's words, he felt so flattered. This, was what he really thought of him?

"I see why Rose is so obsessed with you. I see why Tails worships you on a pedestal. I see why the echidna values you as a great ally and companion, and I see why everyone else in our world look at you like the answer to their prayers." He sighed. "I see now. You were the only one who greeted me, and welcomed me. You were the only one who tried to reform me for the better. Who fought alongside me and showed me who I am, and my true purpose. Everyone else wanted nothing to do with me, but you and Rouge didn't turn your backs on me. You were the only one who listened to me, who knows more about me than she ever could." Shadow said with great admiration, in a gentle tone. "In these last few years, I can honestly say that I'm glad you pestered me, because you made me into someone I can actually stand to look at."

A wave of happiness and compassion took over Sonic's body, making him slightly shudder from how chilling it felt. His lime green eyes twinkled with something he couldn't describe, it was that feeling again. That feeling that seemed familiar, but way too deadly. The feeling that led him to sadness and rejection, that tricked him into feeling so great when things quickly turned bad. That feeling that betrayed him, and made him experience the worst pain imaginable. Sonic wasn't a stranger to heartbreak, and it wasn't just some expression. Heartbreak was an actual physical and psychological trauma, that you can actually feel. Being rejected, being betrayed and being hurt, it felt so excruciating. Maybe that's why in the end, he didn't find Amy completely annoying. He knew how it felt to be head over heels for someone, only to be crushed by their denial of your love.

But if what Shadow was saying was true, did that mean he...? "You've continued saying nice things to me, ever since I got back." Sonic sat up as well to meet Shadow's hesitant gaze. "Why?" He asked.

"You do the same for me, constantly." Shadow still didn't look at him, because he knew that if he saw his face, he wouldn't be able to hold himself back. He knew he was looking at him with those eyes, those beautiful eyes.

"No, besides that. There's more to it than that, and I want you to say it." Sonic softly demanded. "If you know what I'm talking about, then say it."

He was right. If he's said this much, and they both knew what Shadow was trying to say, he might as well come out with it already. He just, didn't know how to put it into words. Well, he had to try. Couldn't have the hedgehog waiting here all night. And, maybe it was best to just say it and wrap up this conversation. They had to rest anyway. "You've actually made me happy, hedgehog. Something that I never thought I could feel." He wouldn't run away from this, so Shadow looked up and faced Sonic directly. And he was right, those eyes were staring right at his own. "You've made me feel content with not just myself, but the world. Not to say that Rouge wasn't a help, but you definitely did more than she could. You taught me other emotions that I never knew I could experience. As years went by, one by one, I felt something deeper for you with every month that passed. I started to visit you more, I started hanging around your friends more. I talked with you more, and got to know the real you. Like you did with me." Shadow moved himself a few inches closer to Sonic. "The only people who made me feel joy, were Maria and Rouge. But you make me feel more. At first, I didn't know why."

The hero's eyes shook, he almost wanted Shadow to say it. However, at the same time, he hoped he didn't. Because if he did...

"When Rouge explained to me in detail what having a 'crush' was, I thought it was a mere immature phase. When she told me how a small crush could turn into something bigger and more complicated, I then realized how much I fell for you." Shadow licked his lips with a little anxiety. He couldn't believe he was saying this. "I want you, Sonic. That's why recently, I tried my best not to get too close to you. I didn't want to force myself onto you like that again." He turned away almost bashfully. "It's why I didn't want to share a bed with you, why I try not to look at you in the eyes. It would all seem too obvious."

Sonic was speechless, to say the least. On top of all that, what could he even say?

Shadow sighed heavily. "When you kissed me, it felt amazing. I wanted more, and I mean a lot more." He cleared his throat and scratched behind his quills. "My apologies for the long exposition, but that is what you wanted." He saw Sonic's face fall into remorse, and questionable doubt. "Are you not satisfied?"

"...It's not that," The blue one said reluctantly. "Not to sound too girly but, I can't tell you how beautiful that was. All you do is flatter me and say how great I am when most of it isn't even true.."

The dark one raised a brow. "What..? Am I still talking to the same arrogant hedgehog from before?"

"Haha, you'd be surprised. I'm probably the most self conscious sissy you'll ever meet. Tails hates when I say stuff like that." Sonic brought his knees up and crossed his arms on top of them with his chin resting on them. "I may be a hero with all these cool powers an' what not, but I ain't nothin' special. I'm not all that, not at all. I've learned to wear a mask ever since I was young, and that's how it's been for a long time. People can't see their hero look depressed or unsure of everything all the time. And it's annoying to have people constantly worry if you're okay, or judge you for being too sensitive or somethin'." Sonic glanced over at Shadow and made a small smile. "That's why I love talkin' to you. You won't constantly check up on me like I'm some baby, like Tails and Amy do. You don't judge me for acting insecure, like Knuckles would. You take me seriously, you understand me better than most people I know, who's known me longer than you have." His eyes lowered, and his smile grew a little bigger. "For that, I'm glad I met you, Shadow." He felt his face get warmer. "And, I think I like you too."

Sonic got from his position and let his knees rest on the bed normally. He moved his lower body even closer to Shadow, and held up his own hands. He started to take his gloves off. Shadow watched, not knowing what he was planning to do next.

"I've been in a relationship before. Plenty of 'em. And, they all sucked." He confessed as he put his hand in his mouth and used his teeth to pull off the garments. "Being a hero makes it super easy to find and date people. But it sure as hell ain't what it's cracked up to be." He tossed them somewhere across the room and leaned forward. "I've been cheated on, dumped...So it's been a while since I've been in one, but I don't think I'm ready yet. To be seriously honest with you, I'm kinda sorta scared, if you can believe it." He chuckled. "I know that I want you too, though. I know I do. That's what this nagging feeling is. That's why I wanna try again. I'm just a little cautious, if you get what I mean."

He didn't want to get hurt again, basically. Shadow was more than happy to know that Sonic felt the same way, but the hero was hesitant. He wasn't sure of himself at all because of what he had to deal with. So he had some walls to get through, but Sonic was still willing to help Shadow take them down. He was probably returning the favor, because that's what Shadow did for him when they became friends.

Since he was welcomed, he had no problem taking this slow-wait, what was he doing?

"But I trust you too." Sonic took off the covers from his side and sat on his knees. He put his hands in his lap and looked down at Shadow who was staring at him in astonishment. Why was he looking at him like that? His eyes were low, the green in them had a lustful cloudy tint to them. His thighs were a little too spread out, and he looked like he was smirking. He licked his lips slowly, moistening them right in front of Shadow. The cheeks on his muzzle were red but, he didn't mind if he noticed. He got on his bare hands and knees and crawled to Shadow. He was really close at this point. "So if you wanna do somethin'," He hotly whispered. "I suggest you do it, 'cause we got all night."

He was basically just throwing it at him. He was throwing himself at him. What happened to being 'cautious'?! Nope, that's it, he had enough. Shadow tried, he just tried so hard not to lose his cool, but this was it. He couldn't hold it any longer.

The next minute later of intense staring and silence, Shadow tossed Sonic against the bed right on his back.

END - 11

Cliff hangers, man.

They friggin' suck, don't they?

Anyway, bonus time!

1. Scourge was recently discovered to being a genius. He can write cursive, make schematics, and comprehend heavy science subjects. Sonic on the other hand, can't do any of that. As he stated himself before, he never even went to school. He's not an idiot, but he's certainly no scholar.

2. Scourge and Miles have strong resentment in their relationship. They'll happily find a way to one-up, or even kill each other if possible. Neither of them will ever know what it's like to have a sibling, or a loving friend. Sonic and Tails are basically brothers, and love each other dearly.

3. Scourge is very 'easy', and has no problem giving up his body for sex, even if it's for a stranger. Sonic (and even Shadow), can almost be seen as a demisexual, someone who doesn't show or reveal romantic or sexual feelings to someone unless they have a strong bond with them. I say almost, because Sonic isn't that great at concealing his true feelings. Shadow is a lot better at this, though.

4. Scourge flirts in a rude, forceful and aggressive way. He's also more blunt, uncaring and not as deep when it comes to romance. He's more physical. Sonic is an excellent charmer and knows how to attract people with less threatening methods. He's a more gentleman-like kind of flirt, and despite his personality, is more romantic. He deals more with emotions. However, Sonic also is no stranger to being direct and blunt when it comes to being intimate.

(That last one was a bit of foreshadowing. Have fun while you wait, heheheh.)