Me: Sincerest apologies for not keeping my schedule. I place the entire blame on a fan fiction error! Is it just me, or are they having a lot of those nowadays? Anyway, I will put up another chapter (on one of my stories) this weekend, as promised. ENJOY!

EVERYONE CAN SKIP THIS NEXT SECTION EXCEPT InAwe.

*ahem* READ THIS BEFORE CONTINUING! I feel so honored that you're reading my stories! Thank you! As for you're questions, Shadow was an experiment created 50 years ago aboard a space colony, ARK. He was created by Professor Gerald as an attempt to find a cure for a sickness his 10-year-old granddaughter, Maria, had.

Shadow is the Ultimate Life Form because he was created immortal in an attempt to cure Maria. He can neither age nor get sick (he looks about 18 years old). The attempts of curing her were unsuccessful, but Maria befriended Shadow. She was like a sister to him. They lived together on the space colony for several years. If you're still reading this, put 'Adia' somewhere in your review.

Unfortunately, a military force named 'GUN' wanted to use Shadow for their own purposes. They wanted to use him as a weapon. See, in an attempt to find a cure, Gerald had made Shadow one of the only creatures capable of controlling chaos energy. It was his very life force. His eyes are red because of the chaos energy and because it looks cool. XD

Anyway, they invaded the space colony, killing everyone on board, including Maria. They took Shadow to earth and, fearing his incredible power, froze him in suspended animation. Shadow couldn't move, but was conscious every second, the scene of his best friend's death playing over and over again in his mind

Present time: Eggman sets him free, hearing about his incredible power, and tries to use him to concur the world (as per usual). . If you're still reading this, put 'Babushka' somewhere in your review. Shadow, seeking revenge, tried to destroy the world, fighting against Sonic and friends. Right when the world was about to be destroyed, one of the characters did something that reminded Shadow of a promise he'd made to Maria while she was dying in his arms. He'd promised to protect and watch over the people of the earth (or Mobius, depending on how you look at it)

He managed to stop the world from getting destroyed, but the moon was blasted in half. If you're still reading this, put 'Foofy' somewhere in you're review. Shadow fell to the planet below and everyone thought he died, but he showed up later, alive and well, for the most part. He's still extremely anti-social and, because he's so powerful, thinks of himself as greater than everyone else. His pride is a bit exaggerated in this fic, but that makes it more fun!

As for Jasper, no, she's not a main character. I created her for the sole purpose of annoying Shadow! The love possibility? Good question…I guess you'll just have to keep reading! XD ENJOY!

"I'm baaaa-aaaaack!" Jasper sang as she swung open the cottage's wooden door, dragging a large cart behind her. The silver wolf was in an extremely good mood. She'd spent the entire day at town, collecting much-needed supplies, and a couple of things for Shadow. On her way back, she'd even caught a flock of wild hens! Hens meant eggs! She missed eggs.

Speaking of hens, one of them had gotten loose. It scrambled through the door after her, squawking and clucking angrily as it half-jumped, half-flew up on the back of the couch, then down onto a very startled hedgehog.

"Hey!" he yelled, swatting the hen off of him. Taking offence at this, the hen directed her anger at the helpless hedgehog and began to peck him on the head. The hedgehog yelled obscenities and continued to swat at it. Peck. Swat. Peck. Swat. Peck. Swat.

Finally, Jasper rounded the couch and scooped up the angry chicken. Shadow glared up at her, looking more ferocious then ever. The drops of blood and scratches covering his arms and face only added to this.

"Woops…," Jasper muttered, smiling apologetically. "Sorry about that." Shadow's eyes burned with anger. This time, though, his anger was justified. Feeling guilty, Jasper hurried out of the house to return the chicken to it's cage in the back. Then, she rushed back inside, heading strait for the bathroom. Seconds later, she was standing over Shadow, brandishing a wet cloth.

"Here, just let me…" She knelt beside him, his eyes boring holes in her, and brought the cloth to his head. He immediately flinched, jerking away. He continued attempting to avoid the cloth as she dabbed at his cuts.

"Quit it!" he ordered.

"Hold still!" she commanded, dabbing his head again.

"That hurts, dang it!" He caught her arm when she reached for his head again.

Jasper rolled her eyes. "Oh, come on, you big baby! It's just a little disinfectant. It's not going to kill you!" Shadow only tightened his grip on her wrist. "Let go!" she yelled, trying to wrench her hand away from him, but was unable to do so. Since when did he get so strong? Frowning, she tried again, still unsuccessful. Returning her gaze over to him, she found him to be smirking.

Yeah, well if that's how he wanted to play it, then fine! She gave one last tug, then abruptly turned, laying with her back on his side. Now that she had leverage, she fell into his arm, trying to use her own weight against him. However, instead of him releasing his grip like she expected, he managed to keep a hold on her wrist so that she ended up twisting into a full circle, backing up against the couch, and falling.

Immediately, she froze. She'd accidentally fallen on top of him, laying face-down on his fluffy white chest. He still had a secure hold on her wrist, so his arm was now wrapped around her, preventing her from moving. She jerked her head upwards, her eyes only inches from his ruby irises. He smirked at her befuddled expression, which was…very…interesting up close…

"Not as weak as I look, huh?" he murmured, and she could feel his breath on her face. It played at her senses, stealing her own breath away and pretty much shutting down all logical parts of her brain. For a few seconds she was unable to move, held captive by his gaze.

Then, reality tapped her on the shoulder and coughed.

"H-Hey!" she yelled, jerking back as much as she could. "Let me go!"

Shadow's smirk grew as she struggled. "I don't think so."

After flopping uselessly for a few seconds, she groaned, burying her face in his chest. This was pathetic. She couldn't even escape a cripple! It was quiet for a moment, the only sound being the hedgehog's rhythmical breathing.

Let's see…Maybe if she got on her hands and knees, she could push herself off of him. Grunting into his fur, she inched herself up on her knees. Now to get on her hands…She struggled again. No good. He still had one arm wrapped around her tightly, trapping arms. Great.

Now, she had her rear sticking up in the air. Frowning, she straitened her legs, but instead of lowering them back to her original position, she accidentally scooted her self forward a couple of inches. She let out an uncharacteristic squeak as she and Shadow bumped noses. Now, she was even closer. Jasper swallowed nervously, unable to look away from his amused ruby eyes.

Amused. He was still smirking.

Peeved, she head-butted him. "Lemme go!"

Thunk!

"…Ow." She could feel the vibrations of his deep, breathy chuckle in his chest as she lowered her face to his shoulder. "You have a very hard head," she informed him. Then, she lifted her face to scowl at him. "How fitting."

"Having fun?" he joked, teasing her.

"Wee…," she responded dryly. Jasper sighed. "Come on, Stripes! Quit being a child and let me go!"

"Not happening."

"What, you not being a child?"

"Very funny."

"I wasn't kidding. Let me go!" Jasper struggled again, tugging on her wrist. He only tightened his hold. Again, she stopped struggling, glaring up at him. "Just what are you getting from this, anyway?"

"Amusement." Shadow smirked again. "I'm not letting you go, Jasper."

Once again, the wolf was rendered more or less brain-dead. She just stared at him, transfixed.

After a few minutes, Shadow shifted uncomfortably. What was with her? Why was she staring at him…like that? Annoyed, and for some reason, nervous, he glared at her.

"What?" he growled.

Jasper blinked at the sound of his voice, snapping out of her trance. "N-Nothing…," she muttered, dropping her head to his shoulder again as she sighed in irritation. This was all his fault!

Well, she supposed she wasn't going anywhere anytime soon. For a cripple, his grip was surprisingly strong. Not that she'd ever tell him that... Hopefully, Shadow would eventually get bored with his immature little game and release her. Besides, she needed to cook dinner.

Shadow felt Jasper relax against him, her face pressed up against his neck with her eyes closed. What was she doing now? Shadow humphed. She was probably trying to get him to let his guard down so that she could escape. Tricky, but it wouldn't work.

Silence descended as seconds bled into minutes. The only sounds were their breathing, and the chickens clucking in the distance.

After a few minutes, the house was filled with color as the sunset shown through the window, highlighting everything with an unearthly orange glow. Eventually, the sun disappeared altogether. Darkness descended, and Shadow wished he was closer to the light switch.

Jasper was very good at staying still, Shadow realized as minutes bled into hours. He was getting bored again. This was pointless. She wasn't even struggling!

Fine, he'd let her go…Besides, he was getting hungry. Sighing, Shadow released his grip on her wrist and waited for her to jump off of him.

She didn't move.

Confused, Shadow poked her in the side. "Jasper?" The wolf groaned and mumbled something, shifting slightly. She snuggled closer to the startled hedgehog, moving her now-free arms to wrap them around him. Shadow instantly tensed. She'd fallen asleep. She was sleeping. On him.

Now anything but comfortable, the hedgehog struggled to push her off of him, but she only snuggled closer, tightening her hold, mumbling something that sounded suspiciously like "…Mine…". His hands may be strong, but his arms weren't.

Shadow was suddenly feeling very cluster-phobic. Was it just him, or had the room gotten warmer? He could feel his heart hammering in his chest as his breathing quickened. Again, he tried to pry her off, and again, she tightened her hold, burying her face into his neck, nuzzling up to the crook of his jaw and sighing contentedly.

Shadow swallowed heavily. "J-Jasper! Get off of me!"

Dang, she was heavy! Did she eat bricks for breakfast or something?

Finally, after several unsuccessful attempts, he managed to pry her arms off of his neck. Immediately, they latched around his chest and she buried her face in his white fur. Shadow groaned. "Jasper!"

"…Fluffy…," she muttered, her breath tickling his chest fur.

"Off!" Shadow paused, sighed, gathered up his strength, and boxed her in the ear.

"Yeow!" the wolf cried, her eyes snapping open as her hand flew to the sore. The instant she released him, Shadow gave a mighty shove, sending her tumbling off of him and on to the carpet below.

There was a moment of silence before Jasper heaved herself up to glare at him, rubbing her ear. "What. Was. That?" she demanded.

Shadow glared at her. "You fell asleep!" he informed her furiously.

"So?" Jasper cried. "You kinda made it hard to move, so what did you expect?" Then, she grinned at him. "Besides…You're comfy."

Shadow pinned his ears back. "I am not!" he insisted, but his words fell on deaf ears.

"Yes you are! You're so fluffy!" Jasper patted his chest for infuses.

Shadow swatted her hand away, folded his arms, and glared at the couch. Jasper smiled and stood up. "Jeeze, it's dark in here!" She flicked a light on, heading for the kitchen. "I'm starved!" she announced, sticking her head in the fridge. "Lemme just throw something together for us real quick…"

XXxxXXxxXXxxXX

About an hour later, Jasper had fixed up a big, juicy slab of deer meat. Half of it was currently sitting on the edge of the couch, just out of an aggravated hedgehog's reach. Shadow frowned at the food before him, looking from it to an expectant Jasper and back. She was waiting for him to make a fool out of himself, wasn't she? Well, he'd show her!

Taking a deep breath, Shadow gathered his strength up and lunged forward, bringing the food to his plate before laying back down.

Jasper's jaw nearly hit the floor. "Wha…How….How did you?"

Shadow smirked back at her smugly. "I'm a fast healer," was all he said, before eating the meat. Well, it was mostly true. Still, he definitely wouldn't have been able to reach the food that easily without the seven hours of sit-ups he'd done while Jasper was out. However, that particular secret he planned on taking to the grave.

After staring stupidly for a couple more seconds, Jasper regained her composer and served herself a large portion. Then she rounded the couch and plopped herself down, right on Shadow's outstretched legs.

"Hey!" Shadow growled, annoyed. "Get off!"

"It's my couch," Jasper stated smugly, returning to her food.

Shadow glared at her. "So is that stool way over there."

Jasper swallowed her food. "Couch is comfier," she retaliated.

"Well, you're not sitting on the couch! You're sitting on me!"

"You're comfier than the couch."

Shadow flushed angrily. "I am not!"

"You wish."

"You're cutting off the circulation in my legs."

"So? You'll never use them."

Shadow opened his mouth to yell at her, then hesitated, raising an eyebrow. "…Yes, I will."

"No, you won't."

Shadow frowned, studying her. What was she getting at? "Why won't I?" he questioned.

"Because you never practice," Jasper explained. "You're legs aren't going to regain their strength on their own."

Shadow glared at her. "Jasper, I can barely sit up! How the heck am I supposed to walk?"

Jasper smirked. "Who said anything about walking?"

The ebony hedgehog just stared at her, confused.

Jasper giggled, getting back to her feet and walking toward the door. "You'll figure it out. In the meantime, Happy Birthday!" she cried, dragging a cart into the room.

Shadow gave her a strange look. "…What?"

Jasper hauled the cart into his view, then leaned on it. "When is your birthday, anyway?"

Shadow ignored her, changing the subject. "What is that?"

Jasper looked down at the cart. "What, these?"

"No, the smudge on your face," Shadow retorted sarcastically.

Of course, Jasper was what some people call naive. The rest of us just call it gullible. "A smudge? Where?" Jasper cried, frantically spinning around in circles as though that would help her to see it. Then she scrambled toward the bathroom mirror.

Shadow stared after her for a moment before rolling his eyes. She was so weird. With nothing better to do, he casually studied the cart before him and was surprised to find it stock full of books. She'd gotten these for him?

"Hey!" came the aforementioned wolf's voice from the bathroom. She stormed back toward Shadow. "There isn't a smudge on my face, you-" Jasper paused and followed Shadow's gaze to the books. "Oh, yeah. I got those for you. I figured you had to be bored out of your skull just lying around all day, so I thought these could occupy your time."

Shadow blinked in surprise. She actually cared? Huh. Who knew? In truth, the hedgehog was grateful. These would make things a lot easier. Of course, he'd never tell her that.

So, he put on his most bored expression and turned away, feigning disinterest. "No thanks."

Jasper's expression fell slightly. "What? Why not? You can read, can't you?"

"Of course I can read!" Shadow said indignantly. "I just don't read those kind of books!"

Slowly, Jasper's face transformed from shock to anger. "Well, fine then! I was just trying to help!"

"Well, stop trying!" Shadow replied. "I don't need your help."

At this, Jasper smirked, suddenly understanding. "Okay, now you're just being prideful. I see what's going on here. Well, in that case, you're welcome!" she said cheerfully, patting his head.

Shadow growled, flinching under her touch as he glared at her. "I assure you, I am anything but grateful."

"So, you're thankful then!"

"I am not thankful!"

"Suuuure, you're not."

"I'm not!"

"Riiiiiiiiight…."

Me: Yeeeeeaaaahhh….So, that chapter was just a liiiiiiiiitle bit different. *cough* Anyway, how did I do? Please let me know! Oh, and vote on my new poll! XD