Okay, lets try this again, shall we?

And we're back! This chapter is a bit longer than normal, (and the next one will be too), but once you read it, I think you'll understand why. And as always, my thanks to you faithful readers out there. Let the night continue!

Part Twelve: Lifted Restraint

The dinner itself was definitely not what she had expected. Granted, Amy had not doubted Shadow's confidence in his abilities for a second. But still, this was Shadow the Hedgehog they were talking about here. His only home before this had been an orbiting laboratory. Bereft of any other real-life experiences like growing up with parents, coming of age in an actual, social context or anything of the like. She just wasn't sure what to expect, really. The past week had shown its own quality for surprises.

The meal was no exception. Like the master who prepared it, the food had emanated its own perfection, gratefully filling her body with sweet substance. If this is how Knuckles prepares it, I should invite them for dinner more often! Amy Rose thought, licking the last bits of sauce from her lips as she helped her midnight beau clean away the last of the dishes. As the water flushed over the various surfaces of cutlery and plates and four busy hands worked their magic to sanitize them while occasionally grasping hold of each other, Amy couldn't help but wonder how long this dream would really last. She had been wounded once by her heart, and was not eager for a repeat. And the darkened soul next to her may still hold a devastating secret. To dig deeper so soon risked so much, but hadn't too much been squandered already?

The song. It appeared out of nowhere and caused all thought in her mind to screech to a halt. To be sure, it was a song that had graced her ears time and time before, but it was the source itself that really grabbed her intrigue.

It was right next to her, absently finishing the last of the silverware. The melody spoke in sad notes of restrained emotion, almost like a dirge for the innocent. One by one, the notes played off his breath, drawing her gaze closer still "Shadow, are you humming to yourself?"

The darker form suddenly seemed to snap back into reality. Realizing he had been caught in a rather personal moment, he smiled in the thought "It was a song I heard often aboard the ARK. Maria had a small music box that played this. And when it was playing, there was no movement beyond her skills."

Amy could see the images flashing through his eyes, like watching a silent movie. Incredible as it was, however, it was still just a memory. Intangible in the present. But then, the idea detonated in her mind. She left her beau at the sink, dried her hands, and darted to the stereo set, searching for the piece that danced in Shadow's mind.

Her sudden departure did not startle his thoughts, but the sudden sounds of shuffling and scraping did "Whatever are you doing out there Rose?"

She met his inquiry with a smile as the lilium erupted from well-placed speakers to answer him, the notes resonating with the emotions Shadow personified until recently; solitude and cold.

Os iusti meditabitur sapientiam,

Et lingua eius loquetur indicium.

He stopped suddenly in his tracks, for his mind had just collided with a freight train. In a single moment of sound connecting with neurons and nerve endings, she stood before him once more, blonde hair flowing in an undirected breeze and eyes sparkling with energy. As the melody played through its movements, her hands outstretched for his. And this time, Shadow took them tightly, breaking through the memory to hold the youthful pink hedgehog that had beckoned him. One step at a time, they moved in subtle unison to the voice and rhythm.

Beatus vir qui suffert tentationem,

Quonium cum probates

fuerit accipient coronam vitae.

"Rose…how did you know …" was the longest sentence his brain could string together.

Her answer was to rise up to her tiptoes and plant a quick kiss upon his lips "I've always loved this song, ever since I was little. I always thought it was so sad and so dark. But deep down, it's just… beautiful."

Quickly, it occurred to him that she wasn't just referring to the song. The way her body had pressed against his to form a complete shape coupled with the tremors in her voice triggered a whole new reaction within him. Logic drew but one conclusion before it was tossed out the window. It was time to take that risk and find out what she felt. Or at least, what he hoped she felt.

Kyrie, fons bonitatis

Kyrie, ignis divine, eleison

He scooped her chin higher to lock his shaking ruby eyes with her shining emerald ones "Amy…does this mean what I think it means?"

The way her smile made his walls collapse was a force that no one else could harness "Yes. Yes it does. I love you, Shadow. That is, if you will let…"

Shadow let his own embrace answer for him, allowing his taste to envelop her.

O quam sancta, quam serena, quam benigna

Quam amoena esse virgo creditur

O quam sancta, quam serena, quam benigna

Quam amoena O castitatis lilium

Though the song drifted into silence, the couple in the middle did not. The sounds of lips colliding, throats purring and hands caressing filled the air. For her, it was a moment only dreams had captured. If bliss itself were harnessed and personified, then Amy was wrapped in its crimson-striped arms. The energies between them increased beyond measure, and as the demand for oxygen finally forced a break, her eyes opened to reveal a whole new form in front of her. His crimson orbs had taken on their own, more jade like shine and his quills stood on end. Even his normal midnight coat had taken on a golden hue, contrasting his stripes even further. Needless to say, Rose was quite surprised.

"Shadow! Whats going on?!"

Snapping back into reality, Shadow seemed equally taken aback by this. He had never felt anything like this before. Such passion, such an overload of energy and feeling. In all the battles he had fought and experiments he had been unwillingly manipulated in, never had he felt any moment to compare. The powers within him were equally berserk as well, swirling about in ways he could not comprehend. It wasn't until his flower took a step back in shock that he realized something was amiss. Without warning, he felt his restraint inside snap apart as the chaos inside him ebbed to the surface. Stepping back from her, Shadow tensed every muscle he could and focused, pushing and forcing the powers back inside himself. It took a few very agonizing moments, but finally the energy subsided, letting his fur retake its color and quills rest with gravity. And as his body reset itself to normal, all the strength he had before the moment was suddenly absent as well. It took most all his conscious and unconscious thought and stamina to remain level, if for no other reason not to worry his newfound love.

"My apologies" Shadow commented "I never thought your touch would pack that much punch."

Amy smiled, despite hearing his first ever cheesy line and took her place at his side "What was that Shadow? I've never seen you glow like that."

"It's a side effect of being who I am" he explained, taking her hands and guiding them to his wrists, where the bracelets were once secured, "Professor Robotnik created me to be perfection, but perfection that could be controlled."

She caught on almost instantly "Your bracelets…"

"Were actually a control device built to restrain my abilities. Without them, I just have to focus a little harder so I do not overstep certain limitations. That's all."

"Okay, but what happened to them?"

I tore them off to save you he wanted to say. But he hesitated at the thought. To answer with that would probably make her feel guilty, even in debt to him. And Shadow didn't want her to stay with him out of simple guilt or payback. Shadow wanted Amy to want to be with him. By showing her how special she really was, and how much he loved her.

"I… I lost them in an encounter with Eggman a few weeks ago."

"Damm that fat bastard" she replied, actually surprising him to hear her use such harsh words.

"Agreed. Still, without them, I can finally feel what it's like to be like you" he said, brushing back her quills.

She took his hand and nuzzled it against her cheek, absorbing the warmth he seemed to radiate "And how is that?"

"Free. Able to explore all I can do and everything I can be."

Her cheerful expression lit up even further as she moved in to kiss him again. Right as the phone leapt in excitement with it's over energized announcement that someone was trying to reach her.

"Sadly, I have yet to be able to freeze time" Shadow said, his own smirk surfacing.

Laughter emerged from both of them as they went to silence the annoying instrument, but before Amy unhooked the line, the name on the caller id struck them both as odd.

"Rouge? Calling to check up on us?" she asked with a tic of playfulness evident in her tone.

Shadow simply gave a 'humph' as Rose answered. "Hello? Oh, hey Rouge! Yea… it feels good to be home. Thanks for tasking care of things for us. No, no, Charmy didn't swipe anything this time. Shadow? He's doing just fine, he even made me dinner. I know, right? Tomorrow night? Ciel Violette! Are you sure? Okay, then. Seven o'clock? Sounds perfect. No, don't worry about me, I'll be all right, I have my Shads here with me. Ok then, see you tomorrow night! Bye-bye."

"Sounds like you two conspired something interesting" Shadow replied as she hung up.

"Yea, Rouge wants us to join her and Knuckles for dinner tomorrow night at Ciel Violette. It's one of the most up-scale, fanciest restaurants on the planet! Can you believe it?! The candlelit tables, the plush seats, our arms linked as we share our wine…"

The way her eyes had lit up with heavenly light was enough to make his icy heart steam. Not even the fact she seemed so excited over a meal price bordering on extortion or the overly stick-up-the-ass atmosphere. She was happy about going on his arm, not just as company, but as a companion and a lover. Is this what the faker kept turning down?! Guess he really is a fool after all…

"Shadow, are you in there? Hey, Shadow!"

Reality reached out its warm ungloved cherry hands to shake him back into the present "I'm sorry Rose, what was that?"

She shook her head, her bangs swaying gracefully with the movement. "You're hopeless sometimes. I'm gonna go grab a shower, okay? Make yourself at home."

Shadow nodded and leaned in to steal another kiss before she departed to freshen up. As the sounds of rushing water echoed through the hallway, he embarked on his own reconnaissance mission.

Pictures were scattered across the room like shrapnel from an explosion. Some simply adhered to the wall, mostly pictures of far away landscapes or of their friends in relaxed and carefree poses. One that really caught his eye was a scene of Knuckles buried upside down to his knees, feet moving fast enough to blur, with a triumphant Tails and Rouge posing with two shovels.

Others were more delicately framed and preserved. Pictures of her family, the group in much more formal attire, and of course, him. Sonic the Hedgehog. But there was one in particular that ate at him. It appeared to be taken at a ball or other important function, for Amy was in full-length black gown that flared to the floor and the faker was dressed complete in tuxedo and tie. She had latched onto his cobalt arm with a traditional death grip, and he was at least trying to smile for the camera. But even in still image, Shadow could read beyond the surface, into her ignorant hope and his awkward discomfort at the one-sided dream.

The mere thought of that brought a small chuckle from his chest. Shadow the Hedgehog, the ultimate life-form, perfection beyond time itself, was being taught about such a simple subject as love from a young woman a mere third his age. Succeeding where a certain, more privileged hedgehog chose to fail. Definitely not the expected course, but since when did life maintain a set route?

Inside the shower, Amy was absolutely overjoyed at the drawn out, cleansing feeling of the hot water working its way through her matted fur. She didn't quite realize how much she had needed it until stepping under the flow. Now, it was like the water was washing away everything she had been before. All the pain caused by her blindness and overzealous heart was gone now, replaced by the scars of growing up so quickly in only a few days. Yet, with Shadow, Amy felt she didn't need to be so rambunctious. Indeed, such behavior might drive him away, and that was the last thing she possibly wanted now. She had become much more mature, more aware of the way life conducted itself around her. And besides, for all the things her midnight savior was capable of, she found it near-impossible to believe that lying was at his disposal. Ignorance, maybe, but not dishonesty.

Once all that weight had worked its way down the drain, she dried and patted down her fur so it shone its natural brightness once again. Redressing in simple pajamas and the arm dressings, she made her way back to the main room. There, she found Shadow browsing about her extensive collection of pictures and mementos.

"Your turn, Shadow."

He spun around to acknowledge her, and his mind lost all but one train of thought. Like a bumblebee confronted by a field of fresh carnations, his eyes went wide at the sight of such a beauty concealed by a simple length of fabric. Try as he might, the slightest shade of ruby and heat had breached his expression "Of course. Thank you for…"

She silenced his somewhat lacking sentence, first with a finger to his lips, then with her own "You know, you really are cute when you blush."

"Humph" came the reply, though his grin betrayed his true attitude toward the complement. Another quick peck for his flower, then Shadow was off to also wash away the anxiousness and anxiety of the past and settle into this newfound territory he was coming to know as love.

There you have it, ladies and gents! It's finally been said. And now, Shadow must master one last challenge: socializing.

Shadow: Dont remind me. Can I least carry one of my guns?

Shade: We'll see... no

Shadow: DAMMIT!

Reviews are always welcome!! And I promise to keep chapters in order from now on!