I had to dig deep into childhood memory for this one
its been forever since i've had this happen
It had taken many bruises and several days off to get used to such aggressive movements. As it turned out, Shadow's training had been preparing his muscles to be easily maneuvered through each new step - with wide sweeping movements and graceful arcs being extremely important to his form. Each step and swipe had been repurposed into parry after parry, surprising the young hoglet with how effective the simple motions were. Even as he laid in bed after weeks of continued practice, rubbing his sour muscles, he still found himself imagining situations where he could use such a skill.
With the light contact sparring, Shadow had thrown light jabs at the hoglet in an attempt to simulate an easy fight environment. It was far too tempting for Silver to dream he was in a real fight, deflecting the attacks of some robber with his slow paced sweeps. Turning over in his bed, he rubbed his sore arm, smiling to himself how a bad guy might react to his newfound fighting skills.
Yes, he could see it now. A big bad man sauntering up to him and putting up his fists, asking for all his rings. Silver would merely laugh, waving his arm and telling him "not today" when the guy would throw a punch. A step and a swipe would send the fist sideways, with the man running away with his tail between his legs. Silver giggled to himself, imagining how much closer he was to being as awesome as Tone.
Sticking his tongue in his cheek, he wiggled at his loose tooth. It had been loose for some time, and he wondered what it meant. Were teeth supposed to do that? It had been getting wigglier as the months ticked by, and some of his other teeth were starting to get wobbly too. Were teeth supposed to be moveable? Was he going to be able to wiggle his teeth like he did his fingers? That would be creepy. Silver shuddered at the thought.
With a strike of curiosity, he slipped his ivory fingers into his mouth - seizing the bone and carefully wiggling it back and forth. It felt very weird…and a little painful too. Perhaps he should ask Shadow about it? Shadow knew a lot about how the body worked, if anyone could explain it, it was him. Speaking of the devil, Silver's sharp ear caught the sound of rustling on the main floor below. It seemed the ranger was quite active tonight.
Standing up, Silver stretched his limbs - feeling his joints pop in satisfying clicks. The night air was chilly compared to under the blanket, but it didn't bother the ivory hedgehog too much. All he had to do was puff his coat slightly and he would be fully ready to take the chilly air. The only thing to do now was slip on his boots. If he was going to be up for a while, it wouldn't hurt to wear his precious shoes for a bit. Tying the laces, the boy gave himself a wide smile. Feeling quite energetic despite the extremely late hour, he skipped his way to the ladder and began to clamber down the wooden rungs.
"No." Shadow barked, immediately reacting to the movement of the wooden steps. "Go back to bed, Silver, we're not doing this again."
"Huh?" Silver questioned, tilting his head and peering through the rungs at the exasperated adult.
"Go back to bed." Shadow snapped.
As the ranger turned around, Silver felt his eyes go wide with excitement. Shadow had donned his shirt and belt, rope slung over his shoulder and empty sheaths clipped to his side. Was he packing to leave again? Where were they going to go this time? The only thing that stopped the hoglet from bolting down the steps and onto the hedgehog's back was the stern glare of red eyes.
"But I had a question…" Silver whined, gripping the rung in front of him tighter.
"What could you possibly want to know at this hour..." Shadow sighed, slapping his hands over his eyes.
"My tooth is getting wigglier." Silver stated, creeping himself down the ladder. "Is it supposed to do that?"
"At your age, yes." Shadow responded. "It's going to fall out."
"What!" Silver gasped, paws shooting to his lips at the thought of losing one of his teeth.
"Let me take a look." Shadow frowned, removing his hands from his head to gesture at the small child.
Awkwardly, Silver finished his climb down the ladder, boots tapping on the stone ground at the last step. With much skepticism, he approached the adult. Was looking really that necessary?
"Open up." Shadow commanded, crouching down to the hoglet's height.
Reluctantly, Silver creaked open his jaw.
"Go 'Ah'." The elder spoke.
"Aah."
With a nod, Shadow reached into the hoglet's mouth, hands sparkling aglow with Chaos energy upon approach. Immediately, Silver leapt backwards, bristling his fur as he let out an uncontrolled hiss. Heavy breathing and pounding heartbeats echoed in his ears as Shadow rolled his eyes in annoyance.
"Silver, it's a small amount of energy, I need to see in there." He groaned, gesturing for the hoglet to come closer once again.
"Y-you won't burn me?" Silver asked, running his hands over his fur in an attempt to tame it.
"No." Shadow frowned. "I assumed you'd prefer I use my own hand than the candle."
Awkwardly, Silver turned his eyes to the wax-burning flame.
"I can use the candle if that would be more comfortable." Shadow pressed, reaching towards the fiery light source with a knowing look in his eyes.
"N-no!" Silver hastily sputtered out, stepping back to his place in front of the ranger in one wide jump.
"That's what I'd assumed." Shadow spoke, voice somehow smug despite its monotonous nature.
As the glowing glove re-entered Silver's mouth, the hoglet felt a faint tingling buzzing around his gums. Was that what Shadow felt when he used the energy? Before he could think much, the slight pain of the loose tooth wiggling brought a wince to his face.
"It seems your tooth is about ready to cut out." Shadow mumbled. "Would you like to remove it now or wait for it to leave on its own?"
"Wemowf?" Silver asked, trying to move his lips around the adult's thick gloves.
"Don't speak with your mouth full - yes." Shadow answered. "We can assist the process by pulling it out at this stage."
Silver looked into the red eyes with confusion. Why would he want to pull it out?
"Wou eh hur?" He asked, tilting his ears to the side.
"Yes, but compared to the pain of clearing your lungs or being caught under that house, the pain is almost benign." Shadow answered. "Don't talk with your mouth full."
"I don't want to." Silver decided, pulling his mouth away from Shadow's hands in a backwards lean.
With a flick of his hand, dismissing the sparkling glow, the ranger nodded. Silver found himself rubbing his jaw as he stepped back slightly, conforming back to his personal bubble in a small shuffle. Shadow did so as well. As the adult stood back upon his feet, Silver found himself scanning the gear that the ranger had placed onto his body - noting the empty pouches and unused sheathes.
"If that is all, then head back to bed," Shadow ordered, turning back around to grab materials out of a box under the workbench.
"Where are you going?" Silver asked, not following the adult's directions.
"To Savannah City." Shadow answered.
"Ca-"
"No." Shadow harshly interrupted.
Crossing his arms, Silver frowned and looked away.
"It is not a place for children." Shadow growled. "Not only is the environment extremely harsh, but the area also trades with Central City."
"Is that bad?" Silver asked, seating himself where he stood.
"Central city has the highest crime rate in the entire world." Shadow sighed. "It is a hotspot for illicit activity, and is run by the second largest Syndicate posting."
Silver stared blankly at the ranger. What did the Syndicate have to do with anything? Noticing the confused look, Shadow shook his head.
"Savannah City has a lot of bad people that come from a bad place." He clarified. "It is full of bad people who would do bad things to a child."
"But that's why you've been teaching me!" Silver protested, clasping his hands together. "Shadow please let me-"
"No." Shadow hissed. "I have made up my mind."
"But I don't want to be alone…" Silver sniffled, welling up the biggest eyes he could muster with dots of salty tears. "It's so lonely out here already…"
"Silver." Shadow sternly spoke, crossing his arms. "You already did this once."
"Please don't leave me alone." Silver begged, dilating his eyes even further. "It's so lonely and you'll be gone for months!"
"Days." Shadow corrected. "Without you, I can travel at top speed."
"But I'll be sad and lonely…" Silver sniffled.
"Silver…"
"I don't want to be lonely…"
"We all do things we don't want to do." Shadow sighed, shaking his head. "Don't try me Silver."
"But i'm scared!"
"Of what?"
"Being alone…"
"Aren't we all."
"Noo." Silver sulked, turning away. "Not like me."
Shadow rolled his eyes.
"Besides - you'll be there to protect me." Silver mumbled, lowering his head and looking up with the cutest face he could muster.
"Really?" Shadow huffed. "You're giving me that face?"
"I really don't want to be left behind…" Silver sighed, face falling in defeat. "It would be very lonely by myself… for all that time…"
Shadow grumbled, dragging his hands down his face with indistinguishable mumbles and huffs.
"All by myself…no one to talk to…or cook for me…just staring up at the sky…forever…thinking of how much I miss my friends…" Silver continued. "I think I'd go crazy..."
"You're playing the guilt trip now." Shadow growled, ears lowered and eyes glaring. "And the trauma card."
"Is it working?" Silver asked, putting on his cutest face possible.
"..."
"Yes."