Chapter 8 – Peaceful Beside You

To Espio's dismay, when he asked Jewel for more work the next day, she only had one position available. He outright refused it and suggested any other tasks, nearly pleading for something less humiliating. "What about security again?"

"We've got that covered," she said. "Tails helped install some cameras and a barrier around the stage that we can engage if it comes to that. So we're all good there."

"Sorting items?"

"Took care of that already."

"Delivery?"

"We have enough people for that."

"Bookkeeping."

"That's part of my job and I can handle it. The only position we still need is our special guest. Prospects have been a little dry as of late and I haven't found any other willing volunteers. Would you like do it?"

Espio massaged his temples, willing his brain to produce any better ideas. Nothing appeared, except the nagging reminder that the bills were due very soon and their finances were as slim as his choices. There wasn't anything else for it. They couldn't hope to catch a case to bring in the rings in such a short amount of time.

He briefly considered roping in Vector and Charmy. Especially the former, as he had squandered the last of their money. Make it a group bid for their services. But if flyers, word of mouth, and chasing leads hadn't netted them any clients, then an auction certainly wasn't going to do it.

It was unfair to expect him to shoulder the burden, but he couldn't trust either of his partners. Charmy was too hyper and wild, and he doubted anyone would bid on him only to have to babysit him all day. Maybe some parent would want him for a playdate, but there was little chance of that.

As for Vector, any money he earned, he might waste it on Vanilla again. Besides, despite Jewel's claims otherwise, the auction frequently turned from a day spent with the special guest to a date with that guest. He couldn't bring himself to do that to Vector. Not after he finally started things with Vanilla.

The pair had been so happy last night when he and Charmy dropped Cream off at home, unable to take their eyes one another. Even leaving proved a monumental task, as they couldn't stop saying goodbyes over and over and shyly holding hands until Charmy clonked Vector in the back of the head and complained that he was tired.

"Well?" Jewel asked, bringing Espio back to the present.

He sighed, cursing himself, Vector, and the whole auction under his breath. "Fine, fine. But I won't do it for free. We can't keep the lights on with gratitude."

"I wouldn't ask you to. Come into my office and we'll discuss price. Maybe next month, I can hire your agency to track down some people who've skipped out on their payment too."

With trepidation, he crossed the threshold into Jewel's office, with a small desk and boxes crammed floor to ceiling behind it. What am I getting myself into?

By the end of the week, Espio had the rings in advance. He managed to pay off the bills the day of the auction and dodged Vector's and Charmy's questions about it. "Picked up a few odd jobs here and there. I have another one to work now and a lead to follow up on. Should be back later tonight."

Vector accepted that, too busy daydreaming about Vanilla and their next date. Charmy looked up from his comics. "Need any help?"

"No!" he said, a little too forcefully. The last thing he needed was the two of them in the audience wolf whistling and cracking jokes at his expense. "No, it's nothing big. I'll call if I need any help."

Charmy squinted at him for a moment, the gears of deduction and intuition turning behind his young eyes. However, they didn't turn quite as efficient as Vector's and lost steam quickly. "Okay, see you later," he said with a shrug and buried his nose back in his comic.

Espio hurried to the auction, keeping his head ducked low and blending into the crowd. Once he reached the event, he slipped in the backdoor and right into Jewel, who paced in front of the auction items with a clipboard.

"And there's our special guest. Check," she said, marking the sheet on her clipboard and hugging it to her chest. "Ready to go?" He gave her a sour look. "Don't worry. It'll be over before you know it. Remember, spend the day with them and try to make it a pleasant time."

"I know."

"Great. Wait here until I call your name."

With that, she headed to the stage and Espio selected a far corner behind a cart dolly to sit and quietly meditate. He bowed his head and closed his eyes, calming himself, blocking out all noise and distractions, imagining he was anywhere else. Somewhere peaceful, somewhere alone. A quiet meadow, the sun shining warmly on his scalp, the branches swaying gently in a twisting breeze.

Absolute solitude.

It wasn't to last. All too soon, he heard Jewel calling his name. He looked up at her poking her head through the backstage curtains and motioning furiously at him. "Like I said, folks, here is our special guest!"

With a weary sigh, he followed her out on stage and squinted under the harsh spotlight. He couldn't see the crowd, but he sensed them well enough, staring at him, puzzled and at a complete loss of who he was.

"Please welcome one of the investigators of our local Chaotix Detective Agency, Espio!" Jewel beamed wide at the smattering of applause and raised her gavel. "Bidding starts at ten rings. Do I hear any takers?"

Nobody moved or said anything. He wasn't sure if that made him feel better or not. It only cemented his belief this was ridiculous and Jewel cleared her throat. "Did I also mention he's a highly trained ninja? Surely someone here would want to spend the day with a person like that?"

She glanced at Espio and he saw the request in her eyes. She wanted him to pull off some trick like this was a show. Unbelievable.

Thankfully, an audience member spared him that humiliation and raised their hand. Now they could hopefully be done with this ridiculous routine. "Ten rings! Thank you. Anyone else?" She pointed at him, playing to the crowd. "C'mon, everyone. Remember, it's for charity."

Espio grumbled to himself and folded his arms deep into his chest. She meant to drag this out as long as possible to ensure the Restoration got the maximum amount. He grabbed his upper arms, retreating into himself and wishing he was anywhere else except here. Just breathe, he told himself as another slow hand raised and Jewel called out the new amount.

It felt like each bid took forever and he wanted it all to be over and done with. His foot trembled, tapping impatiently with the tip of his toes, and his jaw clicked as he ground his teeth. He needed to keep control and distance himself from thisclown show.

"Thirty rings! Do I hear forty? Oh, yes?" Jewel swept the gavel to the side. "Forty there. Do I hear fifty? Oh, you again?"

Espio noticed her point back to the same spot. "Well then, is anyone willing to do sixty-Oh?" A third time, the same side.

Maybe someone wanted this over as much as he did? Or did they recognize the agency and want to hire him? Whatever the case, he'd take it.

"Then I guess going once, twice," Jewel looked out over the crowd, "sold for sixty rings!"

Before she could speak to Espio, he was off the stage in a flash and headed for the side she pointed to. Time to hold up his end of the bargain and play his part. He tried to erase his deep-set frown for a respectable smile and followed the fingers of the few people who directed him to a far dark corner of the room.

As he approached the spot, which was shrouded in gloom like no light dared touch it, a familiar black hedgehog detached from the wall, as if he had materialized from the darkness itself. Espio stumbled in his steps and raised an eyebrow as he neared him. "You bid on me?"

Shadow sneered at him. "You were fidgeting so much up there, you looked like a malfunctioning robot. I had to save myself from secondhand embarrassment."

So he had noticed him struggling to maintain his composure after all. Desperate to put his display behind him and steer the topic elsewhere, he asked, "What are you even doing here?"

"Wasting my time, apparently," Shadow said, snorting as the auction hall emptied. "Rouge suggested I drop by, said there could be something interesting on sale." He glanced at the people leaving, frowned at their lethargic waddling and shuffling, then looked Espio up and down. "Didn't peg you for something like this."

"I didn't have much of a choice."

Once a gap in the crowd opened up, Shadow made a beeline for it. Espio lingered for half a second before following him, easily keeping up with the moody hedgehog. When they exited the building, Shadow frowned at him. "What?"

"You won the auction. I'm obligated to spend the day with you."

"No, you're not. Go back to your firm or wherever and leave me alone."

Espio caught up to him and matched his stride. "I'd like that, but unfortunately, I made a deal with Jewel to go through this whole charade. So I'm staying with you."

"That a fact? Fine. But don't expect me to wait for you." With that, he took off for the city limits, kicking up a trail of dust behind him.

Espio blinked through the dirt cloud and coughed. The smart thing to do would be to head home, try to get some work done. Just because this month's bills were taken care of, it would be the end of next month before he knew it and they still had no prospective cases. Besides, Shadow was notoriously moody and far from the best of company.

I made a promise, he reminded himself and that nagging thought refused to let go of him. Shifting his feet, he raced after Shadow, already knowing he'd regret this tomorrow.

He tracked Shadow to the edge of the city and beyond to a nearby forest. Once he crossed the forest line, he slowed down, listening intently to the sounds of the forest. Birds twittered amongst the branches and nearby squirrels raced across some lumpy roots. It was peaceful and serene and he could actually breathe out here. A welcome relief compared to the auction.

The trail he'd followed disappeared into overgrown grass and he knelt down. Espio traced his fingers through the blades, studying them for a moment, and picked up Shadow's path. He quickly continued after him, slowing every so often to double check that he was still on the right trail.

Soon, the trees spread out a little further as the ground dipped low and deeper. At the bottom of a drop-off, Espio spotted a splash of black and red perched on a rock. He leapt down silently and entered the small clearing.

Shadow's ear twitched. "Didn't think you'd keep up." He looked at him differently. Was that respect in his eyes?

"I'm a detective after all," he said. "I'm used to tracking down things that don't want to be found. Lost jewelry, pickpockets, and stubborn hedgehogs. Thought you weren't going to wait for me?"

He hopped off the rock. "I came here to train. As long as you don't interrupt that, you can stay."

"Fine by me."

Shadow took off, racing through the trees, slipping in and out between them with ease. He was a blur and Espio could barely follow him except for when he slowed down to curl in a ball and dash into fallen logs or boulders lying around, breaking them apart with ease. Whenever the pieces scattered in different directions, he chased after them, kicking or punching them in mid-air.

It was hypnotic to watch in a way. The dedication, the form, the efficiency was remarkable. He'd seen Shadow in battle before, but real fights were messy and chaotic, even for the best fighters. This was perfect, as he didn't miss a strike, always staying aware of his surroundings and in complete control of his body.

A few bits of wood rolled to Espio's feet and he fingered the kunai tucked into his gloves. Since he was out here, it wouldn't hurt to get in some training too. He scooped up a handful of the wood chips and closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. He blocked out all sound, letting it fade into the background. The soft wind cradled his chin and dirt shifted underneath his feet as he readied his stance.

Espio flipped one of the wood pieces into the air. He bent his wrist, flicking a kunai into his hand, and flung it at the falling piece. The blade caught it dead center and pinned into to a tree trunk.

He tried two targets next and watched them, the weapons held between his fingers. Again, he threw the kunai out and again, he hit the mark. He retrieved his weapons from the tree trunks and gathered some fresh pieces courtesy of Shadow's training.

He practiced for a couple of hours, sometimes throwing several wood chips at once and jumping or flipping backwards to strike all of them before they hit the ground. One especially large bit of wood took a blade at all four corners to stick it to a tree.

Still, he couldn't help watching Shadow now and then as he gathered new targets. The hedgehog didn't slow down at all, constantly zipping through the forest. He seemed more machine than anything else and Espio wondered if he did this every day.

He was so caught up in watching Shadow at one point that when he hurled a few kunai, one sailed far past the mark and into some bushes. He grumbled to himself, a rising tide of shame washing over him. Strangely enough, he wasn't so much mad at himself as he was that Shadow may have seen his mistake.

Hoping to clear his head and stop fixating on Shadow's training, Espio switched up his routine, climbing the trees and leaping from branch to branch, careful to steer clear of Shadow's explosive area. He also tried his hand at kicking and punching the small rocks leftover from Shadow's attacks, targeting them at branches and leaves and hitting nearly all dead center.

As the sun started to dip below the trees, Espio gathered together his kunai and scouring the bushes and tree roots where it had fallen, wondering where it could have gone. Then he noticed that the sounds of breaking rocks and logs no longer filled the air.

He looked up and Shadow leaned against a rock, holding the last kunai up to the light and examining it. "You train a lot," he said.

Espio examined the mess of rubble and wood behind him. "So do you."

Shadow tossed him the blade and Espio caught it, tucking it back into his glove with the rest. "Not bad."

He blinked at the black hedgehog. Was that a compliment? "You too."

"You could stand to do more. Can't afford to miss in a fight."

There it was. Should've figured he had seen the bad throw. Again, that stood out the most and Espio hated it. Yet why did he care if anyone saw him? Vector and Chamy were privy to his mistakes all the time. Why was this any different? "Not all of us can be the 'Ultimate Lifeform,' " he shot back.

Shadow's eyes flashed and…was that a smile? A hint of one came and went briefly. A rare sight indeed and a chink in the armor that seemed to ruffle Shadow as much as the throw did him.

Espio tucked that little image away for later and stretched his arms. He supposed this day hadn't been all bad. And pretty soon, he'd be out of Shadow's quills.

"So, are you still supposed to follow me?" Shadow asked, seemingly having the same thought.

Looking at the sky, he figured he could consider his obligation fulfilled. After all, the day was pretty much spent and by the time he returned home, it'd be night. But something pulled him to nod. "Yes, why?"

Shadow jerked his chin back the way they'd come. "Then follow me and try to keep up."

Shadow ran slower than before. In fact, between Espio leaping through the trees and jumping over small hills, he kept up with Shadow pretty easily. Even when they reached the edge of the forest and ran through flat open fields, a clear advantage to the speedy hedgehog, Espio kept him in sight as they ran around the city limits.

They headed for a lonely grassy cliff that jutted out like a finger, pointing to the city far below it. As they slowed, the sun splashed reds and purples across the skyline and the city woke up for the evening, greeting it with its sodium and neon lights.

Shadow crossed his arms and stood at the edge of the cliff, surveying the city like a silent protector. The evening breeze picked up and whipped his quills around. Espio stood beside him, looking around and letting the silence fill him. Despite the city's activity clearly visible from where they were, they couldn't hear a soul. There weren't any noisy bugs or animals around. It was absolute solitude.

Perfect for meditation, Espio realized. Often he had to contend with distractions outside the office or those of nature. But here, only the breeze whispered around him, lulling him into its gentle melody. He closed his eyes and enjoyed it for a long while.

He understood completely why Shadow came here. It was so peaceful, he acknowledged with a soft grunt. Shadow harrumphed in return that yes, it was.

"You come here often," Espio surmised. "By yourself."

"Yes. No people, no Eggman, no blue nuisances. It's calming."

He didn't expect that. "Calming? More than the forest?"

The hedgehog took a deep breath. "Yes. Because it also reminds me of a promise to someone."

"A friend of yours?"

He gripped his arms and nodded. "Yes."

He sidestepped the sore subject and asked, "Do you come every day?" Shadow shook his head. "Then why bring me?"

"You seemed like the type to appreciate a quiet place like this." He glanced at him, hinting that he should be enjoying it.

Espio turned back to the city and the wind, again allowing himself to meditate in the calm. He and Shadow stood beside one another for what felt like a couple of hours, neither speaking, only enjoying this little spot of their own. It was nice and Espio felt like he could've stayed there all through the night.

However, duty called and he couldn't afford to stay out late. He needed to get up early if he hoped to earn some rings. So when the moon was well into the sky and the city in the swing of its night life, Espio opened his eyes and found Shadow facing him. "You have to go back," the hedgehog said.

"Yeah." This was a day for firsts, as he didn't want to go. He'd actually had a good time with Shadow and felt like he couldn't end it right there.

Thankfully, Shadow added, "If you want to train again or spar next time, you know where to find me."

"Up here," Espio smirked and took off the way they'd come. When he reached the bottom of the cliff, he glanced up, searching for something. Like he expected to still see Shadow up there, watching him. But there was only the looming shape of the cliff and stars twinkling in the sky above

He sighed to himself and raced to the city, taking every shortcut he could back home. When he arrived on his street and approached the agency door, he noticed the lights on in the window. Vector would still be up, but he hoped that at least Charmy was asleep. He doubted he would be so lucky.

As he turned the doorknob, he sensed a presence. A person behind him. He whipped his head around and up, scanning the buildings on the opposite side of the street. At the corner of one rooftop, he spotted a silhouette. In a second, it disappeared, but he was sure it was someone. A person following him home. To make sure he arrived safely? And from the shape, it had to have been…

Espio entered the office and, to his dismay, Charmy was still up, watching television while Vector flipped through a takeout menu and called one of their normal go-to restaurants. "Hang on, hang on a minute." He covered the phone and nodded to Espio. "You want anything?"

Espio shook his head and plopped down on the sofa beside Charmy. The boy eyed him suspiciously, pouting his lips. "What?"

"You," the boy said. "What are you grinning so much for? It's weird."

Espio quickly turned from him and sucked on his lips, forcing the smile off his face. "Nothing," he said. "Just the lead may turn into something. That's all."

"Oh. So how'd the job go? Make a lot of rings?"

"Some," he said.

"What'd you even do?"

Espio tried to adopt a relaxed posture and leaned back, closing his eyes. "Nothing much. Just kept an eye on some things, helped out." Immediately, Shadow's face popped into his mind.

"Are you going to go back and help out again?"

He imagined himself in the forest with Shadow once more, taking him up on his offer to train and spar together. Or simply the two of them alone on the cliff, side by side, enjoying the absolute peace it provided. His heart thumped a little faster in excitement at the thought and another small smile slid along his mouth. "You know what? I just might do that."