The amphitheater was on the outskirts of the property, a good distance from the castle and fairly out of the way: the perfect spot for Shadow to retreat to. Time slipped by him, as it tended to do sometimes, the day and night coming and going as he sat on one of the steps, hands clasped between his knees. Of course, the fact that Shadow had picked a spot away from prying eyes did not stop the arrival of a visitor to his spot of solitude, regardless of his wishes.
"There you are." A voice piped up from behind him. "I was beginning to think you had left us."
Shadow made no reaction to the presence of the newcomer, save for a twitch of his ear. Amy huffed as she approached from behind, dropping onto the step next to him. She rested her chin in her hands, elbows propped onto her knees and a pensive look on her face. Behind her, a bundle of what appeared to be some kind of fabric brushed the grass.
"Did you spend all night out here?" She asked.
Shadow didn't acknowledge her, gaze held towards the grove of trees beyond the iron gate. He unclasped his hands and brought them to either side of him, fingers digging into the grass.
"Well? No one's seen you since yesterday." Amy prodded impatiently.
Shadow let out a small sigh. "I doubt any of your companions would want to see me right now, considering the way I acted yesterday."
Amy cocked her head to one side, leaning over her legs to get a better look at Shadow.
"What do you mean?"
"Surely you've heard all about it by now. You lot are like a hive mind, I swear." Shadow grumbled.
"I'll choose to take that as a compliment, for your sake." Amy retorted playfully, a sly smile twitching onto her face.
"Why are you here?" he snapped. Shadow was not in the mood to do this again. In fact, he had half the mind to stand up and walk away, if not for the fact that would be tantamount to admitting defeat in the mental battle of stubbornness.
"Truthfully? To spy on you," she responded nonchalantly. "Can't have you running around causing any more trouble. I'm worried you'll set the whole yard on fire one of these days."
Shadow scowled at the thought of the destroyed cabinet and the scorch marks along the perimeter. "Worry not," he feigned, voice laced with a phony remorse, "for I have no desire to further wreck your pristine gardens of weeds and dead grass."
"Good!" She replied brightly, ignoring the sarcasm. "I heard you gave Knuckles a run for his money yesterday. I wish I could have seen it myself—I've never seen him go all out in a fight before."
"No, you don't." Shadow responded gruffly. "Unless you really wanted to see a shameful display."
"Shameful, huh?" Amy echoed, and Shadow shut his mouth with a click of his teeth. The scowl tightened across his face and he pointedly turned his head away from her. But Amy only scooted closer to him pointing a finger at his face.
"What you said to him was pretty cruel, you know. But he probably agrees with you about it."
Shadow spared her a glance. Amy's gaze had fallen. She kicked at the grass with her boot absentmindedly, hands falling onto her lap.
"I didn't know Knuckles for very long before we became trapped here, but even back then I knew how protective he could be, especially around Sonic." Amy mused. She closed her eyes and let out an exasperated sigh. "Those two always seemed to compete over just about everything. And now, they compete about whose fault all of this is, like that's helpful at all! Sonic may see himself as responsible being the prince and all, but Knuckles was his guardian. I'm sure he probably feels like he couldn't do anything when it really counted."
Shadow clicked his tongue, trying to hide a wince. So, his provocation had hit the nail on the head, after all. But to his greater chagrin, it also meant that he had more in common with the warrior than he cared to admit.
"He is correct, though." Shadow mumbled. "He couldn't do anything when it counted."
Amy hopped onto her feet, hands clenched into fists at her sides. The appendages that had trailed behind her shot out, and Shadow realized they were in fact some kind of wings. Somehow, he had not noticed them before, but now, they were practically vibrating as she stood before him, an angry scowl on her face.
"How can you say that!?" She cried out. "Knuckles has always had the strongest will of any of us! When Tails and I first woke up like this, we didn't have any sense of who we were, or what had happened! Just like you when you came here, we couldn't control ourselves! But Knuckles could, and he helped us regain ourselves when even Sonic couldn't! So none of this is his fault! If there was anything he could have done to stop this in the first place, he—he would have—!"
The words caught in her throat, choked up, and Shadow observed her passively as she wiped the tears forming in her eyes with the palms of her hands.
"What do you know anyways?" Amy grumbled. "I wish I hadn't come looking for you."
Shadow watched her for a moment, and then he spoke.
"He couldn't do anything when it really counted, but that doesn't mean it was his fault," Shadow clarified. Amy ceased rubbing her eyes, lowering her hands, peering through her fingers at him. The hedgehog had met her gaze for the first time, eyes resolute but noticeably clouded with darkness.
Then, he broke eye contact, gaze returning to no spot in particular on the forest ahead of him.
"Perhaps I do not understand your situation. How could I, really?" He went on with a scoff, though it almost sounded like a chuckle. "But I understand what it's like to fail to protect something important to you. When I learned what your friend had gone through, that's how I knew what to say to provoke him."
Amy stayed silent, and Shadow wouldn't dare look at her again. He remained focused on the shielded horizon beyond the gate, obstructed by the miles and miles of treeline. He furrowed his brows, face twisting into a grimace as he knew he could not deny the truth any longer.
"He may have not been able to protect you all then, but he can at least protect you now. He has a chance to make things right, no matter how long that may take. We are not the same—unlike me, he is not a complete failure. For that reason, I regret my words."
Shadow wasn't sure what had possessed him to lay it all out like that. Never in his life had he imagined he'd be sharing these thoughts with anyone, let alone a near stranger. Mere weeks ago, he definitely would not have. And yet, he found himself surprisingly calm as he spoke to life the thoughts that clouded his mind. Perhaps it was because none of it mattered in the end. This girl didn't matter, the guardian, the prince, and this place didn't matter. And Shadow's regrets certainly did not matter.
It was the plain truth.
A pair of hands dropped onto Shadow's shoulders, and he jolted to attention. A set of glowing yellow eyes stared back at him, once again welling with tears.
"Don't say that!" Amy cried. Her expression was fraught with such an intense emotion that Shadow found himself unable to react to the sudden physical contact. He blinked at her with wide eyes, but his expression quickly fell into one of stoicism.
"It is the truth." He stated calmly.
"I don't believe that," She shook her head fervently. "Even after all these years being here, being like this, I still don't believe that things are set in stone! So don't call yourself a failure–even if you failed once before, that doesn't make you a failure!
Shadow could only gape at her, but part of him wanted to laugh in her face. This girl didn't know a thing about him, and yet here she was practically pleading with him to take back what he had long accepted about himself. She didn't know what she was talking about, but at the same time, Shadow could tell that her words were genuine.
It didn't make sense. He had been nothing but cold the whole time he had been in her presence, yet she still so readily extended her compassion to him.
Shadow's expression wavered ever so slightly. "What is done is done. I cannot change the past."
"Maybe not, but you can still change the future, can't you? None of us ever lost faith in that, and neither should you!" Amy insisted. Furiously, she began to shake him by his shoulders. "Talk to Knuckles! Make things right with him! You said you regret what you said, right? So let him know that!"
With a swift motion, Shadow escaped her grasp and was on his feet. The sudden action caused Amy to stumble forward, but a hand caught onto her arm before she could fall. Shadow pulled her back to a steady stance, and when she regained her balance, she blinked up at him with stubborn eyes. A feeling of deja vu wafted over Shadow as her insistent yellow eyes bore into him.
He returned her look through narrowed eyes. Once again, with this girl, he knew he wouldn't be getting off so easily.
"Fine." He scoffed, breaking eye contact with Amy and rubbing his forehead. "No need to let old wounds fester."
The beaming smile returned to Amy's face. She gave him a short nod, wiping what remained of her tears away with the side of her wrist.
"Good! Now let's head back—I don't want to find you brooding out here again, okay?"
Shadow rolled his eyes, but inside, a familiar feeling had bloomed within him. He concealed a small smile as the two headed back towards the palace together.
—-
The creaking of Shadow's bedroom door shattered the dead silence of the halls. Skates clicked rhythmically against the flooring as the hedgehog marched purposely through the palace, down the stairs and into the grand foyer. A sharp wind funneled into the room from the main entrance, chilling Shadow to the bone as he arrived before the archway.
Winter had come early.
Shadow extended out a gloved hand. Dainty snowflakes fluttered from the sky onto the fabric, disintegrating upon contact. If not for these sparse flakes and the breeze that penetrated his body in the way an autumn wind couldn't quite, he probably wouldn't have realized the changing seasons. He had not noticed it before, but the leaves of the trees engulfing the property had not fallen to the ground yet, nor had they even shifted into the signature fall colors. They, like everything else in this place, seemed to be suspended in time, unaffected by the world beyond them that had continued to change over and over again.
Shadow gripped the coat around him closer as he stepped into the outside air, suddenly grateful that he had it on him when he left Villenulle. Though, he doubted it would be sufficient as the temperature continued to drop. As Shadow walked along the path towards the front gate, he pondered the idea of requesting warmer garments from Rouge. After all, today was the day he would be meeting his teammate beyond the vine perimeter, as they had agreed. However, the mental image of what her idea of a winter wardrobe looked like was enough to make Shadow shudder, the cold aside. He decided that he would rather freeze to death.
It was still early in the morning when Shadow stepped out into the courtyard. It had been his goal to depart quietly and return before anyone realized he had left. He had not expected to see another soul out and about at this hour. However, as Shadow arrived upon the main gate, he could see that he was not alone. Someone was already at the gate, seemingly waiting for him. Shadow tensed at the sight of the figure leaned up against the iron bars of the gate, his red fur and scowl unmistakable. His arms were crossed casually, and though his eyes were shut, it was no question as to whether he had sensed Shadow's presence. Shadow came to a halt meters away from the gate, staring at the one before him.
Knuckles cracked an eye open, taking a good look at Shadow. He looked unimpressed, if not outright annoyed, at Shadow's presence before him. Still, when Shadow made no attempt to move forward, he let out a bark.
"Don't look so surprised. I told you I'd be keeping an eye on you, didn't I?"
Shadow eyed Knuckles with inquisitive eyes, not entirely sure what to make of the situation. "How did you know I'd be here?" He asked, careful to keep his voice as unassuming as possible.
Knuckles gave him a sneer. "A little birdie mentioned you'd be meeting that bat friend of yours today, so I figured I'd escort you. So don't even think about trying anything funny. Although I'm frankly more concerned about her than you."
Shadow frowned. He must have been referring to Amy. He should have known she was behind this—Knuckles of all people showing up here was far too convenient to simply be a coincidence. He mentally cursed the girl, suddenly wishing he had instead told her to butt out of his business back in the amphitheater.
Knuckles pushed off the bars of the gate with a clawed foot and snagged the handle, yanking the door open with little effort and little regard to the cold. The rusted metal screeched as the gate swung open, scraping up dustings of snow and dirt in its wake. Knuckles stuck out an arm, presenting the forest before them in an invitation for Shadow to pass. However, the hedgehog only remained planted in place, still not having moved an inch.
"Well? Go on." Knuckles urged, a hint of frustration creeping into his voice.
"Since you bothered to show up, I'll let you lead the way." Shadow responded dryly.
"Huh? What are you talking about? You're the one with the rendezvous!" Knuckles practically shouted, though the confusion was now evident in his tone. But Shadow held his ground, now crossing his arms stubbornly.
"I was to meet her beyond the wall. It makes the most sense for the one who knows these woods the best to lead me there."
Knuckles scoffed at him with a look of disbelief. "Oh, is that it? Or are you just scared to turn your back on me?"
Shadow could hear the provocation in the guardian's voice, but made no reaction to it.
"I could ask the same of you." He said plainly in response.
Knuckles shut his mouth with a click of his teeth, expression unreadable as he considered Shadow. A tense silence lingered between the two as they stood before the gate, neither willing to make the first move. However, eventually Knuckles was the one to break the standoff. He let out a frustrated noise and smacked his forehead roughly, before turning away from Shadow and stomping out of the gate and into the trees ahead. Shadow watched Knuckles' back as he led into the woods, and followed after him moments later, maintaining an ample distance behind.
The canopy of thick foliage above their heads blocked out any semblance of the daylight, cascading dark shadows over the forest floor and the two of them as they made their way towards the edge of the territory. No snow had reached the forest floor and the fungi glowed dimly across the tree trunks and roots, leaving the path before them well-lit despite the darkness of the canopy. A silence had settled between them, one that Shadow couldn't necessarily call comfortable, but also not one he would be breaking himself anytime soon. He pulled out the transmitter from his coat pocket, peering at his current location on the screen. The signal was weak. Shadow frowned.
Suddenly, Knuckles piped up from ahead of him, pulling Shadow's attention away from the device.
"So you said you're meeting her beyond the barriers, but where exactly would that be?" Knuckles inquired.
Shadow hesitated before answering. Shadow and Rouge had decided on a location for their meeting, but they only knew it via coordinates. Worst case scenario, they could always contact each other via their devices, but Shadow did not want to try to explain all of that to Knuckles in great detail. Explaining technology to Tails had been one thing, but something told him that Knuckles wouldn't be so starry-eyed.
"I have a map with me," he settled on. "We decided upon a coordinate location ahead of time."
Knuckles snorted. "Coordinates, huh? I guess that beats actually learning your way around."
"That's how I found the palace the first time, and I don't see how wandering around aimlessly until we find each other is a better alternative."
Knuckles huffed. "Every foot of that perimeter is different. Each vine and every tree around it is unique. If you were more observant, you'd have realized that."
Shadow held back a snide remark. He elected to not inform Knuckles that the two times he had been through the area, it had either been in the dead of night while under significant stress or while knocked-out cold. Of course, that didn't change the fact that perhaps Knuckles had a point. Learning his way around the larger parts of the forest surrounding the castle was certainly not a bad idea.
But Shadow wasn't about to admit that to him.
"Let's see," Knuckles started again, taking a quick survey of the area with scanning eyes, "from the northeastern point of the woods, we are approximately 45 degrees south and 52 degrees west."
Shadow nearly stopped in his tracks. "You know the spatiality of this forest?" He questioned disbelievingly.
"Well, yeah. When you've been here this long, you eventually work this stuff out." Knuckles shrugged. "So then, just let me know the coordinates and I can get us there. No map required." He cracked a smirk and pointed a thumb to his chest. Shadow rolled his eyes at the haughty move, but nonetheless snapped the transmitter shut and dropped it into his pocket.
—
Shadow's eyes perused along the length of the treeline hugging the vined wall. Once they had made it beyond the barrier, the trees on the outside had begun to accurately reflect the changing of the weather. Bundles of reds, browns, and yellows decorated the spindly branches above and the earthen soil below. Nearly every square inch of the forest floor below was covered in fallen leaves, a noticeable difference from the last time Shadow had been there.
He turned his gaze to the treetops above. Rouge would be here any minute now, though he was unsure which direction she would be arriving from. Knuckles was standing back against the wall, leaned up against the vines in the same manner he had done with the iron gate, clearly beginning to get impatient. Then, there was a snap of a branch, followed by the rustling of leaves. Shadow involuntarily tensed up, eyes darting to the where he had heard the noise. Knuckles pushed off the wall, now on high alert as his head too snapped up to the sky.
In a flash, a figure descended from the canopy, landing gracefully on the ground beside Shadow. A burst of leaves whipped into the sky upon her landing, and Shadow was met with a familiar face in tall black boots and a warm winter coat (both surely designer) standing before him. Rouge examined him with a scrutinizing purse to her lips, and before Shadow could even get a word out, she had grabbed onto his shoulder and leaned in close to his face.
Shadow shoved her away with one hand. "What do you think you're doing?!" He hissed. Shadow may have grown used to plenty of Rouge's tendencies over the years, but her insistence on getting in his personal space was one that would never cease to drive him insane. Of course, it didn't help that he was already quite fed up with people putting their hands on him over the past few days.
Rouge threw her hands up in defense, wings lifting her into the air just out of reach of the bristling hedgehog. "Relax, Shadow! I was just making sure you hadn't been replaced by some dark magic puppet." She snickered. A fanged smile curled across her muzzle, but it vanished just as quickly as Rouge's eyes landed on Shadow's companion, who now stood several paces behind him with an unimpressed look on his face. Her hackles shot up, ears pinning back against her head.
"What are you doing here?!" She gasped in utter horror.
"Supervising the hedgehog." Knuckles responded bluntly, lip twitching at her dramatic reaction to his presence. "And to make sure you don't try anything funny."
Rouge's jaw dropped, and she whipped her head towards Shadow. "So, you are their prisoner then!" She cried incredulously.
Shadow smacked a palm against the side of his forehead. "No, I'm not. I'm here of my own accord, and so is he."
Rouge squinted at him, placing a thoughtful hand to her chin. She didn't look quite convinced at first, but her posture nonetheless relaxed. Then, she shot Knuckles a look through lidded eyes. "Ahh, so you just wanted to see me again, is that it? I suppose I do make quite the impression." She taunted with a wry smile.
In a scene Shadow couldn't quite fathom, Knuckles actually seemed almost flustered by her words. He sputtered at her for a moment, his eyes wide and lips pulled up into a snarl but unable to say anything. He began to shake his head furiously.
"Oh you certainly made an impression, bat girl!" He retorted, having managed to regain his composure. "I'm just here to make sure you get nowhere past this point!"
Rouge only rolled her eyes. "Please, I already got what I wanted from your dusty old castle. There's nothing else you have that could possibly interest me." She floated to the forest floor, wings tucking behind her as she swung a brown, leather satchel off her shoulder.
"I, on the other hand, do have something for you." She continued, handing the bag over to Shadow. He accepted the satchel with two hands and wasted no time undoing the latch and opening the front flap. He peered inside—it was heavier than he had expected,the culprit of which certainly being the stack of books at the bottom of the bag. Resting on top of the books laid a pack of cigarettes and a lighter.
"Most of what you wanted, plus some extras. Don't worry about paying me back, I know you're good for it." Rouge noted with a wink.
"I owe you one," responded Shadow. He closed the pocket back up and swung the bag over his shoulder.
"Consider us even. Oh, and no passport yet, I'm afraid. You'll have to hold out here a little while longer."
"It's no matter. I won't be leaving until I can assure no one's on my trail anymore, anyways. Papers or not." Shadow assured, though he couldn't say he was thrilled with the prospect.
Rouge considered him, placing a gloved hand to her cheek. "Good to know. Hope you can find something to keep you warm in the meantime. This weather is simply not for me."
As if on cue, a particularly cold breeze rattled through the falling leaves around them. Rouge let out a rough cough into the sleeve of her coat. She cleared her throat harshly, an uncomfortable expression on her face as the fit passed. Shadow shot her a look, but Rouge just brushed him off. "No offense, but I can't wait 'till I get the hell out of this country." She grumbled.
"You'll be heading back soon, won't you?"
Rouge's face fell. "Yeah, I will be." She confirmed. Shadow gave a curt nod, and a beat of silence lingered between them.
"Are you gonna be alright, here by yourself?" She tried, eyebrows knitted together. Shadow caught the concern in her eye. He studied her pensively, and then shut his eyes with a scoff.
"Who do you think you're talking to? I'm the ultimate lifeform."
Rouge let out a laugh. "Of course, how could I forget?" With that, she turned away from Shadow on a heel and raised a hand in farewell. Shadow watched as her wings shot out from behind her back to her sides, preparing to take to the sky. But before she could take flight, Shadow cleared his throat, catching her attention and stopping her in place.
"Rouge." He addressed her. She craned her head back at him, a slight surprise in her eyes as she looked at her former teammate.
"Thank you. For everything." Shadow murmured softly, averting his eyes from hers as he finished. The subsequent shock on Rouge's face was evident, an unsurprising result given that he could probably count on one hand the number of times he had actually verbally expressed his gratitude to her. Then, a huge grin spread across her face, a playful glint in her eye replacing the one of concern from moments prior.
"Woah there, don't make it sound like goodbye. I'll be back when I can, so don't disappear on me, okay?" With that, she took to the air, hovering before them gracefully. She pointed a finger-gun straight at Knuckles. "I'm sure you can help with that, won't you, big guy?"
The guardian only growled at her, lifting his fist up in a warning that only caused Rouge's cheeky grin to grow.
Moments later, she was taking off. Shadow watched her as she left, dark wings darting between the trees and up the slope, disappearing into the hazy world beyond.
—
Back over the barrier, Shadow and Knuckles walked side-by-side on their trek back to the castle. The path was just wide enough for both of them to traverse with about a meter of space between them. Shadow stole a glance at Knuckles. The annoyance from his interaction with Rouge was still plastered all over his face, a twitch to his lips as he walked along.
"The nerve of that one." He muttered, and Shadow wondered if it was something he had meant to say aloud. "She's really the most infuriating creature I've ever met—and I've met you!"
Knuckles flashed a brief look at him. "Well, you're working your way up there." He added.
Shadow clicked his tongue. "She has her quirks," he glowered, "but she's reliable. And I trust her."
"Yes, I could see that." Knuckles murmured. Shadow raised an eyebrow at him, but Knuckles was not focused on him in the slightest anymore. Instead, he appeared distracted, scanning the trees ahead of them. And then, his eyes lit up.
"Look over there." The guardian spoke, flicking his chin towards something on Shadow's far left. Shadow took a step forward, peering around Knuckles until his gaze landed upon a twisting tree trunk poking out between the woods. It was much wider than the other trees around it, white bark covered in an iridescent moss and thin branches that spiraled out in spectral patterns. Leaves cascaded from its apex—ash and translucent-enough that hints of sunlight shone through them. It was utterly unlike any tree he had seen in the grove.
"This is the halfway point from the main gate to the wall. You should do your best to remember it, which shouldn't be hard since it's so unique-looking. But if you spend enough time here, you eventually learn to differentiate every tree, shrub, and rock here too." Knuckles explained.
Knuckles began marching forward again, and Shadow's eyes lingered on the tree for a moment, before he too continued down the path after Knuckles. Behind him now, Shadow studied the back of his head with a frown. He hadn't expected Knuckles to be so talkative during their trek, let alone for him to talk so casually without the usual disdain in his voice. And yet, the proverbial elephant between the two remained. Shadow tightened his expression. Truthfully, there was little part of him that wanted to address it, but the fact remained that it was very possible he would be remaining in Knuckles' presence for a while—did he really want to spend it walking on eggshells?
And then, there was something else. Two sets of eyes flashed in Shadow's mind: one glowing yellow and full of tears and the other a blazing and determined green. Shadow knew there's no way those two would be satisfied until he at least made an effort to talk to the guardian.
Thus, with a great mental effort, Shadow decided that he could swallow his pride just this once.
"About the other day," he started, breaking the silence that had settled between them. Knuckles stopped in his tracks as Shadow spoke. He peered over his shoulder at the hedgehog, eyes quizzical and mouth pulled into a tight line.
Shadow met his eyes, and then continued slowly, pronouncing each word with great strain. "Those words I spoke to you during our fight—they were wrong."
Knuckles' face remained blank as he continued watching Shadow, showing no reaction whatsoever at his words. Shadow tightened his mouth into a grimace, an involuntary twitch of his upper lip that made his stomach churn. It was an awful feeling, but he would power through it. This had to put this to rest, and it was now or never.
"It was a shameful tactic. One that I now regret." He murmured.
The guardian stared at Shadow for a moment longer, and then he returned his gaze to the path ahead of them. Shadow waited a moment for any response, but Knuckles only stayed silent. He let out a sigh, and began walking forward, part of him now wishing he had simply remained quiet. How humiliating this was turning out to be.
Shadow was about to speak up again, ready to tell Knuckles to forget it, but just as he reached his position on the path, the guardian finally spoke up in response.
"I could tell," said Knuckles, and Shadow stopped his forward march. Knuckles met his gaze with shrewd eyes, and Shadow stared back at him with eyes just as piercing. "When you spoke to me back there, you weren't looking at me. Not really. That's how I could tell."
Knuckles averted his gaze from Shadow, now staring down the dense, tree-filled path before them. "You seem different today. So I'll accept your words." He stated.
With that, Knuckles continued stomping down the path. In turn, Shadow stood planted in place for a moment, eyebrows furrowed as he contemplated Knuckles' response. The guardian had given him very little, and that frustrated Shadow to some degree. But still, the only thing Shadow could conclude for certain was that the encounter could have gone worse. He clenched and unclenched his fists as he watched Knuckles get farther and farther ahead of him. And then, because there was nothing else that he could do, he moved forward.