Chapter 8 - Sunset on Brighten Street
After what seemed like an eternity of walking too Rex and Shadow, more or less 45 minutes actually, they where starting to get bored of walking in almost silence as the two females ahead of them led the way.
"Are we there yet?" Rex whined impatiently as he dragged his trainers roughly across the pavement of the almost empty street like a spoilt child. Shadow lifted his gaze from the concrete path he was walking, out of frustration towards the irritating wolf, to face the brown canine beside him.
"Stop your persistent moaning every five minutes, your giving me a headache." He growled, silencing Rex as he looked over at the darker hedgehog.
"I hope you mean an ordinary headache." He replied with a slight hint of worry as he slowed himself down to a stop. Shadow groaned a sigh towards the question but didn't say anything in return. Rex awaited an answer as he stood and watched the trio in front of him continuing their walking, and not wanting to be left behind, he shook it off and continued walking too.
"Quit complaining you two and hurry up, its just around the corner. We're on Brighten street." Cass pointed out as she lifted a gloved finger and pointed straight ahead of the group at an old looking sign. Rouge nodded and turned herself so that she was walking backwards to face the two figures following slowly behind her.
"We can stop in the café or something near here, if it makes you two feel any better." The ivory bat suggested. "Besides, you two need your energy."
Rex quickly smiled and sped up a little as a large grin came to his face. "Awesome, I'm starving." He spoke cheerfully before looking back at Shadow, still walking at his usual slow-to-stop pace. "What about you Shad?"
The hedgehog shook his head in refusal towards any idea of food. "I'm not hungry." He simply said. Rex frowned at his answer as he folded his arms.
"Come on. Your never 'not hungry'. We can go visit Mrs Lipan in the Brighten café, and I'm shore you would like to see her again." He indicated. Cass felt worried for Shadow as she thought back to what Drake had said. Not only had it been playing on her mind but she felt it must have been on his too.
"It's alright if you don't want anything, but get some rest while you can." The vixen commanded calmly as Shadow nodded faintly, unshore of any reason why he should care at the moment. Still, Cass smiled, her tails swishing from side to side calmly as the four continued walking on towards a familiar building across the street.
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The calm tingling of a small bell above the entrance livened the small Brighten café as the door gently brushed it while it opened. Rex hastily sat himself down at one of the many small oak tables near the bar as Rouge and Cass Sat down opposite him. Shadow made himself comfortable on one of the bar stools next to their table and allowed himself to relax against the well polished oak counter. All being peaceful and quiet apart from the foggy sound emitting from an old radio that appeared to be music, until a certain wolf made his presence known.
"Alright, I'm starving! What dose ever one want?" Rex spoke executively as he glanced at the large menu.
"Rex?" An older voice spoke, grabbing a hold of the four's attention. A pale pink rabbit in a long dark purple skirt with a white apron on entered the room. Her high heels clicking on the dusty old pine floorboards as she entered threw an almost hidden door behind the bar.
"Hello Mrs Lipan." Rex and Cass Waved as she returned a smile.
"I would recognise that voice anywhere on Mobius. Wonderful to see you Rex and Cassandra." She commented as she leaned herself against the bar next to Shadow. "Nice seeing you too, Shadow."
The hedgehog turned his head to face a different direction. "Hello." He groaned quietly so it was barely understandable, except to the large ears of the old rabbit.
"At least he said hi this time." She spoke kindly as she reached down behind the counter and pulled up a few small glasses and a dark blue bottle with no label. Setting each glass down in a row with a small high pitched 'clink' as it connected with the table surface. "So what adventures are you all on now?" She asked pouring out the contents of the bottle into each glass.
"Well you know. The usual." Cass smiled as the small glasses where passed over to each member on the table. "This is Rouge." She smiled, introducing her friend to the old rabbit.
"It's a pleasure." Rouge notified as she lifted the small glass from the table, along with Rex and Cass doing the same. The strong taste invigorated her as she sat herself back.
"Careful it's strong stuff you know." Mrs. Lipan warned with a slight laugh. Rex swallowed and smiled. Gazing over at Rex's bandaged shoulder, Mrs. Lipan couldn't help but be worried for them. "Watch that shoulder of yours Rex, ok?" Rex nodded "You kids and your dangerous little missions and adventures."
"Thanks a bunch, that really helped." Cassandra commented as she placed the small glass back down on the oak table surface and rose from the table. "What do you think, Shad?"
She carefully sat herself down next to Shadow and made herself comfortable as the seat she resided was quit old. The darker hedgehog took the glass in his hand and stared at it without interest. Cass could tell he was thinking about something else.
"Come on Shadow. You shouldn't listen to anything Drake says. He's just trying to play with your head." She said strictly to try and straighten the situation out between them.
"He's right though. I cant keep this charade up forever, Cass." Shadow quietly spoke as he quickly swallowed the almost clear liquid and placing the glass back down on the counter. "I can't just pretend that everything is fine when I know that there's a huge possibility that something could go wrong."
"What could go wrong, dear?" Mrs. Lipan interrupted as she took the glass and wiped it with an old looking piece of cloth. Shadow shook his head.
"It's nothing you should be concerned in." He explained as he stood up and headed for the door. "I think I need some fresh air is all."
"Fresh air? We've been walking in it for like an hour, why do you need more of it?" Rex complained as he puzzled himself over the weird reason that Shadow gave. Rouge was going to say something to stop him but she felt he need time alone. Instead the ivory bat stood from her table and sat next to Cass.
"Is he still uptight about Drake?" She questioned as she watched him leave.
"Yeah, sort of. But its best to give him his space." Cass nodded. "I just don't like seeing him in a bad mood."
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Once outside, Shadow rested himself against an old looking lamppost that was stationed next to the quiet road. The sun wasn't far off from setting as it had faded a dark golden colour, barely lighting the small market street over the taller buildings. The hedgehog watched as the remaining people in the street passed by and shop keepers began locking up for the night yet to come.
"Peaceful, isn't it?" A voice beside him spoke. Shadow turned his head slightly to the one side and noticed a scruffy looking woman sitting on the bus stop bench beside him, few small paper bags full with old things you would probably find on the streets. He almost smiled but stopped himself as he turned his head back towards the street.
"Yeah…" He whispered, the woman smiling as she over herd him. She sighed to herself and leaned back.
"Your not from around here, are you?" She pointed out. Shadow took a brief moment to think over the question before answering.
"No." He said simply as he turned once more to face the lonely woman. "What about you? You don't look like you've had the best of days." The woman laughed at the comment and gazed over at the ebony hedgehog.
"I've had better days." She said. Shadow nodded slightly, he was thinking the same thing about himself at that time. He shifted his position from the lamppost as he folded his arms.
"Well, here you are. Why don't you have this." Reaching inside one of her bags and shuffling her hand around, but she quickly pulled her hand out with a small cry that she seethed threw her teeth as she inspected her finger. Shadow didn't need to look at her to tell what she had done. He could smell the warmth of blood that dripped from a freshly made cut across her finger, which she had cut on a sharp piece of glass from a broken bottle.
"Your hurt?" He said, trying to sound as if he didn't know and to keep his mind from the subject of blood. She wiped most of it away on her sleeve as she continued searching as if it never happened.
"Oh, it's nothing. Just a small cut." She assured taking out a small silver pen, a well polished red and black marble design on it. She held it out towards the hedgehog, who stared at it blankly.
"What's this for?" He spoke in a puzzled tone.
"For being so kind to a poor old woman such as me." She answered as he unfolded his arms and slowly took the small pen, unshore of what it contained. A small amount of blood from her finger had gone onto it but he restrained himself from doing anything drastic for now and settled for wiping it off.
"Kind?" He repeated as to keep himself occupied on the situation instead of how hungry he suddenly felt. The woman nodded.
"You talked to me, something most people would never think of doing, and for that I am grateful." Shadow had thought for a moment as he stared at the small trinket. "You feel different, and I don't know why, but I feel you'll need this more than I will."
"What's your name?" He questioned as he took his eyes away to face the woman.
"It doesn't matter about names." She said as she waved it away with her hand as if the question was hanging in front of her. He smiled and nodded as he put the pen away into the safe confinement of his back pocket.
"Thank you." He said as if unshore of what to say. Slowly he straightened himself up and began making his way along the pavement faster than he would usually walk, not wanting to turn around or slow down. His main priority was to get as far away from any source of blood he could for now as an attempt to calm himself. Turning down into the near by alley, he could hear the bell to the café door ring far behind him.
"Shadow!" a familiar voice called stopping him in his tracks, turning to face the ivory bat that made a short glide around the corner of the building to his side. "Where are you heading off too?" She asked as she confronted him.
"No where." He said clearly, his voice darkened as he turned and began walking but was stopped once again by Rouge, shifting herself to the front of Shadow.
"You bet your going no where." She spoke strictly, placing her hands firmly on her hips to show that she wasn't going to let him walk off with telling anyone. "Until you tell me, you aren't going any where but back to the café to Rex and Cass."
Shadow didn't like the fact that he had to have permission from this mortal bat girl just to take a walk to clear his head, especially when he really wasn't in the mood for playing around. He could of easily have killed her while she slept back at her house, he could have taken her by the neck and quickly snap it like a twig any time he chose with out a second thought, and he had done so many times in the past. But something was different this time that was stopping him.
"Well?" She questioned again as she leaned forward whilst tapping the metal base of her boot against the cobbled alley stones with impatience. The hedgehog sighed in defeat and turned around, something he didn't do often, and began walking back the way he came.
Rouge smiled as she watched him turn the corner and disappear around it. At ease with his own safety (and other people who may be unlucky enough to run into him in a bad mood), she was about to follow the ebony hedgehog when a gloved hand was quickly placed over her mouth and another on her shoulder pulling her back into the shadows behind a large greyish-blue dumpster.
Before Rouge could comprehend what was going on, the shady figure responsible for her sudden shock released their grip on her mouth and stood back from her allowing the bat to stand, still having a firm hold of her wrist
"What the bloody hell!" She growled attempting to free herself by jumping up and backing up against the dumpster, soon realising the red fur on the arm of her 'attacker' that had such a tight hold of her wrist, and soon realised the figure standing in front of her was in fact her close friend. "Knuckles?!"
"You didn't think I would leave you with them did you?" He almost chuckled pulling her away from the dumpster and into the path of soft light that shone from a lamppost out in the street.
"Let me go Knux!" She demanded as she roughly attempted to snatch her arm back. But the echidna didn't loosen his grip as he tried his best to calm her down.
"Rouge stop! I don't want you around those criminals and that monster, that murderer!" He spoke sharply pinning her against the wall as a last resort to restrain her and talk some sense into the ivory bat.
"Shadow is not a monster." Rouge cried as she turned her head away. "You don't know anything about him."
"So, it's name is Shadow, huh?" Knuckles slowly softened his grip on her wrist allowing her to sink down to the floor as she held her wrists in tears. As much as he wanted her away from the dangerous trio, he didn't want to force her so much that he could hurt her.
"Damn I forgot all about him." A different male voice spoke from behind them. Both the echidna and the bat turned to see two canines and a darker hedgehog stood a few feet away at the entrance of the alley.
"Rouge are you alright? This creep better not of harmed you." Cass growled running to her side, Knuckles backed off slightly, the fox casting a glare strictly at the echidna. Rex gritted his teeth as he pulled his large wooden bat from his belt and pointed it directly at the red echidna.
"Lets teach you some manners about hurting women." He smirked readying himself to throw a couple of shots at the echidna.
Knuckles smirked slightly as he quickly took a hold of the grey vixen and pulling her into his arms, reaching a small magnum from his belt and pointing the barrel directly at Cassandra's head.
"Cass!" Shadow and Rex called together as they attempted to rush to her aid, halting abruptly as the echidna took a step back. Not hesitating to draw back the hammer of the gun with a sharp 'click' that silenced every other sound around it.