Chapter 9: Age Appropriate Guns

Shadow's eyes bored into Jewel with all the warmth and compassion of a bloody serrated knife. He didn't want to be here. And with Jewel holding her clipboard up as a pathetic shield in front of her, she didn't want him there either. He assumed she was fast regretting her decision to have Amy bring him to the auction.

Speaking of, the pink hedgehog nudged him in the ribs. He turned his sour expression to her and she batted pitiful eyes at him, silently begging him to try. Her words from this morning echoed in his mind.

"You could use a fun day. Spend it with someone to lighten your mood," she had suggested.

"Who says I don't?" he'd replied while she followed him out to the city outskirts. He thought of Espio and how they'd planned to meet up later that afternoon for some sparring.

But she persisted and kept at it, begging, guilting, and finally bribing him with a list of items she'd noticed among Jewel's auction items until he perked up at one in particular. Reluctantly, after examining the item in question, he'd agreed on the condition that he receive it as payment for his time. He took a deep breath and shook his head. This whole ordeal had better be worth it or he would be livid.

"So we're all good then?" Amy asked. "Sonic's off the hook for the auction for a while and you get Shadow today." The real reason for her dragging Shadow here. To act as a substitute so she didn't have to give up her new boyfriend for now. He suspected as much.

"Y-Yes," Jewel said and shrank further away as Shadow stepped forward. Her clipboard inched above her nose and she bent over backwards away from him.

"Don't forget my payment as well," he said.

She nodded quickly, her antennae flopping against the clipboard. "Right. I promise."

Amy tapped his shoulder and poked the corner of her own mouth, pushing it up. "Remember to smile while you're out there."

He tried it, relaxing his perpetual frown as much as possible. His lips curled a fraction of an inch, struggling to copy Amy. It felt awful.

"I'll leave you to it," she said, waving to Jewel and bounding out of the backroom, rushing off to her date with the blue idiot. Shadow rolled his eyes at the thought and almost wanted to decline to participate. The idea of Sonic being forced to be up on stage acting like a clown was a good trade-off.

"I'll call you when we're, um," Jewel trailed off into a whisper and hurried to the stage, leaving Shadow alone there among the items for auction.

He'd much rather be back out in the forest training with Espio or tracking down Eggman. Something constructive instead of this nonsense. He couldn't believe Amy had talked him into this. But as long as he was well compensated, he'd play along. For now.

After what seemed like hours, Jewel finally called his name and he ascended the steps to the stage. He threw back the curtain, stepped into the spotlight beside Jewel, and glared at the indistinct members of the audience. He folded his arms and again attempted a smile.

If anything, his difficult attempt made Jewel recoil for a moment. "Please give a warm hand for Shadow, who has volunteered to spend a day with a lucky member of the audience." As people around them applauded, she covered the podium's microphone and leaned over. "Are you okay? You look like you're going to be sick."

His sneer returned in full force and sat deeply along his mouth. "Just get on with this."

"Right. Now then," she turned to the audience and raised her gavel. "Let's start the bidding at ten rings. Do we have ten rings?"

A tremulous hand raised in the front row and Jewel pointed to them. Followed by Shadow's annoyed eyes. "Yes, ten rings?" she asked.

The person shirked under Shadow's gaze and stiffly shook their head.

"Um, how about the other side of the room?" Jewel asked, sweeping her gavel across dozens of heads. "A real steal at ten rings."

Everyone seemed to avoid her eyes and sat on their hands. Shadow pinched the bridge of his nose. This was absolutely ridiculous. Was everyone at these auctions so spineless that if anyone dared look at them with the slightest bit of annoyance, they would collapse? Did he have to do a song and dance to ease them before they would actually bid on him?

As he was about to leave the auction with a few choice words for the audience on his way out, someone stood on their chair in the middle of the room and jumped up with both hands in the air. "Ten rings!" the little figured shouted.

A wave of relief washed over Jewel and she hammered her gavel on the podium. "Very good! Ten rings to the," she squinted, "child in the center."

A child? Shadow thought and whipped around to Jewel, prepared to protest. He wasn't a babysitter after all. But she was already hopping down from the podium and thanking the guests for attending. The crowd quickly exited as the winner skipped to the stage.

A pair of long ears flapped alongside the girl and lifted her up into the air. She landed gracefully beside Shadow and bowed her head. "It's so nice to see you again, Mr. Shadow."

It took him a few moments to remember her name. "Cream, isn't it?"

"That's right!" She clapped her hands, never losing that smile despite the irritation evident in his face. "I've never won an auction before. I'm so excited!" Beside her, a little chao flitted up, cooing as happily as its owner. "Oh, this is Cheese. He's my friend. Say 'Hi,' Cheese."

The chao had a little more sense and when he saw Shadow, he immediately yelped and dove for the safety of Cream's long ears. "I guess he's a little shy," she said, trying to coax him out of hiding.

This was beyond the pale. How could they expect him to care for and entertain a child? Did no one verify the attendees here? He was lucky a baby hadn't raised its hand and forced him to be ankle deep in bottles and diapers all day.

"Listen, Cream," Shadow said, forcing another weak smile, then quickly dropping it, "I don't know if this is going to work. I'm not very equipped to handle—that is to say, I was supposed to accompany an adult today."

Thankfully, she seemed to understand him better than he expected. "Oh. That's okay. It's just, I saw you up there and I was sorry that no one bid on you." She hung her head and cradled Cheese in her arms, stroking his head. "I thought it might be fun to spend the day with you."

Perfect. Just perfect. I'm getting pity from a little girl and now she's going to cry. Great fat tears welled in the corners of her eyes and she rubbed them furtively, sniffling in her arm. He could hear that blue pain in the neck now, his grating tone echoing in his head. Ultimate lifeform, huh? Ultimate jerk more like, making kids cry.

Across the auction hall, he spied Jewel ushering out the last few guests. He also had a bargain to hold up. Like it or not, he was in the thick of it.

Bending on one knee, he crossed his arms over his leg and met Cream on her level. "Hey." She kept wiping her eyes, hiding her face behind Cheese. The chao patted her cheek, murmuring noises of comfort to her.

"Hey," he tried again. Still nothing, but silent sobs. Finally, he leaned forward and growled. "Hey!"

Both of them jumped and she blinked rapidly, her cheeks stained with tears. Shadow cursed mentally, reminding himself he needed to treat her gently. "Look, you did win the auction so I'll try spending the day with you."

"Y-You will?"

"Yes. Now, no more crying, okay?"

She nodded and quickly rubbed away any trace of tears from her face. Immediately, her mood rebounded back to bright and sunny, as though she hadn't been sad only moments ago. "Thank you, Mr. Shadow! Shall we go?"

"Yeah." The sooner we get through this, the better. To his surprise, she took his hand and dragged him out of the auction hall, past Jewel. Shadow threw a look at the auctioneer as they passed, reminding her quite clearly to be ready with his payment. She nodded in return and hurried off behind the stage.

"Where to first?" Cream asked once they were outside.

Shadow raised an eyebrow. "I thought you knew where you wanted to go."

"Not really," she said. "I've never done this before. If there's someplace you have in mind, I wouldn't mind going."

He wanted to go to the forest and train. He wasn't about to bring Cream with him there though. Perhaps if he scared her away, he could end this little venture early.

"Sure, I have a place in mind," he said with a smirk. "Follow me."

The city's firing range was mostly frequented by the volunteer militia and the Restoration, making use of the guns they scavenged and repurposed from Eggman's robots. It wasn't often busy, as many of the members of each were lax in their practice. Too lax, in Shadow's opinion, and that was usually why they needed to rely on Sonic to save them.

The squirrel behind the counter in the reception area nodded to Shadow and gave Cream a strange look. Still, he buzzed them in through a pair of metal doors to the firing range proper. A couple of militia members stood at booths, squeezing off a few shots at paper targets and missing most. Shadow clucked his tongue and strode past them. Pathetic.

Cream and Cheese covered their ears, wincing with each loud noise. That perked Shadow up. Maybe this would work quicker than he thought.

He browsed the wall, grabbing a pistol, a shotgun, ammo boxes for each, and a beam rifle for good measure. He carried them to one of the stalls near the end and spread them out on the little table before them next to a stack of robot-shaped paper targets. "Ever used one of these before?" he asked.

She shook her head and rummaged in the basket at her feet for a pair of protection earmuffs. She found a size for her and Cheese, and they fitted them snugly over their ears.

Shadow grabbed the metal clip on a wire above him, fitted one of the paper targets to it, and pressed the button on the side of the stall to send it back to the middle of the range. Then he loaded the pistol, flicked off the safety, took aim, and fired. The gun jumped three times and three bullets struck the head easily. Cheese hid behind his owner, who jumped with each shot.

He looked over at Cream, but she wasn't running out in fear like he expected. Instead, she held her earmuffs tight and watched, albeit trembling a little from the explosive noise. So she didn't scare as easily. He could remedy that.

Setting down the pistol, Shadow picked up the shotgun and loaded the chamber with a shell. He moved the target a little closer, lifted the shotgun up, turned off the safety, and squeezed the trigger. It bucked in his arms and a powerful blast resounded through the spacious room. Cream nearly toppled over backwards and he waited for her to rip off her earmuffs and beat a hasty exit.

She didn't.

What was wrong with this kid? He'd seen normal civilians run in terror at the sight of a gun, so what made her so different?

He cocked the shotgun, discharging the spent shell, and flicked on the safety. "Here," he yelled over the inept militia guards wildly firing, handing her the shotgun and one of the shells. "Load it like I did."

She nodded and fumbled with the gun for a few moments while he picked up the beam rifle. Last chance. He cranked the energy output to high, the rifle core's normal hum switching to a shrill whine that made the militia stop and look around for the source. He raised the rifle and fired at the target.

A column of blazing red light burst out of the rifle's tip, kicking the gun up high. It swirled towards the target, crackling strips of light spiraling around it like a helix. The energy vaporized the target, swallowing it whole and leaving only a pile of ash in its wake. Then it crashed into the wall, scorching it black, adding another scar to the many pock marks and burns along the surface.

Cream nearly dropped the shell and shotgun in the commotion. But once the column smacked the wall and disappeared, she took a deep breath and continued fumbling with the gun.

Shadow slammed the rifle on the table, ripped the earmuffs off her head, and towered over her. "What is wrong with you?" he said, enunciating each word dangerously low.

She squeaked, dropping the gun and shell, and finally fell back on her rear, staring up at him. "I-I'm sorry, Mr. Shadow!" She sat up, rubbing her backside. "I was trying to do it like you showed me."

"Not that! I mean you. Aren't you afraid of all this?" Honestly, who was raising this child?

"Yes," she said, standing and dusting off her dress. "Not as much as I was at first, but I still am mostly."

"At first?"

"Yes. I've been around plenty of robots with guns," she said. "Dr. Eggman kidnapped me a long time ago and that was really scary. Especially with all his robots. But then Mr. Sonic saved me and since then, I've helped him when I can. I need to be brave like he is, even around those." She clenched her fists in determination and nodded to the shotgun.

Of course it was that idiot that inspired her. He should've known. "Hopefully you don't copy his brainless behavior," he muttered to himself.

"What?"

"Nothing." He picked up the shotgun and knelt beside her, showing her exactly how to load it. "We'll start with the one shell for now. Here. May as well show you how to shoot if you're going to be in those situations." He handed the shotgun to her and she held it against her chest, eyeing it nervously. "There's nothing to be afraid of."

"Really?"

"Yes, as long as you do what I say and try not to blow your fingers off." Shadow positioned her in front of the table, but she was too short to see over it properly. He grabbed a nearby crate, turned it upside down, and set her on top of it. "Okay, raise the shotgun up, keep the recoil pad against her shoulder like that," he fussed about and adjusted the gun for her, "and aim down the sights."

"Okay," she said, peering down the line of the barrel.

He set-up another target and placed it several feet away. "Now, make sure you're pointing right at the target." She moved the barrel a little and he guided her right hand to the trigger. "When you're ready, turn off the safety." She did so and kept still, waiting for the next instruction. "Then breathe, exhale, and pull the trigger." He placed the earmuffs back on her head. Cheese hovered nearby, biting on his stubby little arms fearfully.

She followed his directions, taking a deep breath until her chest puffed out, then exhaled. The barrel drooped down a little and she pulled the trigger. Immediately, the force sent her flying backwards off the crate and smack onto the floor. Cheese flew to her side and babbled incessantly over her.

"How did I do?" she asked, her voice shaking and the gun rattling in her death grip.

Shadow examined the target. "Too low and to the left."

"Oh." She sounded disappointed.

Shadow sighed. "But you managed to hit part of the target. Not bad, I guess." He walked over to her and stared down. She finally blinked and focused on him. "Now, what do you do afterwards?"

She tilted her head up in thought for a moment, then down to the shotgun. She cocked it, ejecting the spent shell and he grinned. "Good. Now, for your size, I think a pistol might be better." He picked up the pistol off the table and popped out the magazine. "I'll show you how to load a magazine first. If you manage the hit the target with this, I'll show you something extra outside after we're done in here."

A few hours later, Cream bid farewell to Shadow in front of the auction hall after he received his payment from Jewel. Minutes after he left, Amy met her to walk her home. She wore a red sundress with flower patterns along the hem and had applied a touch of make-up to her cheeks that brought out the color in her eyes.

Cream waited impatiently until they were on the outskirts of the city, heading for the bus station. Then she asked, "Did you enjoy your day with Mr. Sonic?"

Amy smiled at her. "Yes, it was wonderful."

"What did you do?"

"Oh, we went for lunch, visited a couple of places, and—uh, er, other things." A rosy heat dusted her cheeks and she covered the side of her face with her hand, hiding herself from Cream. However, the little girl suspected they must've kissed or Sonic had done something very romantic. Amy never grew as flustered as she did now except when Sonic was involved.

"H-How was the auction?" Amy asked, changing the subject quickly.

"It was good. I actually won!" Cream hopped excitedly in front of her.

"Oh? What did you win?"

"A day with Mr. Shadow!"

Amy stopped in her tracks and all color drained from her face. "O-Oh really?" Her pupils shrank and she knelt down in front of Cream. "What did he, um, what did you two do together?"

"He took me to the firing range," Cream said. "He taught me how to load and fire a gun." She held up her hands, imitating shooting and reloading a pistol and shotgun. "And that's not all."

"It isn't?" Amy said, her words strangled. She shook violently, as though excited to hear about what else Shadow taught her.

"Nope. He showed me how to throw grenades too and we threw a few behind the range. I got three chairs with one!"

"You're late," Espio said without turning around. He threw a kunai into one of the branches, striking it near the base.

Shadow approached their training area in the forest and nodded. "I know. I was roped into that ridiculous auction."

Espio hesitated with his next throw and raised an eyebrow. "You? How did that happen?

"They had something I wanted. Or rather, something I thought you might find useful." He thrust the wooden box from behind his back into Espio's hands and crossed his arms.

The chameleon unlatched the box and flipped it open. Inside, tucked into a velvet lining, sat a couple rows of expertly carved shuriken stars. Espio fingered through them and took one out of the case, holding it up. "Exquisite," he murmured and Shadow's chest rose at that.

Espio tried throwing the shuriken at the same branch from before, slicing it clean off. He smiled and turned back to Shadow.

"You like them then?" Shadow asked, concentrating on a nearby tree and tapping his toes restlessly.

"Yes, these are wonderful. Thank you."

He nodded, taking a few seconds to compose himself. Then he swept a hand toward the clearing. "Shall we?"

Espio set aside the gift and headed for the other side of the clearing, adopting a fighting stance. "If I'd known you were up for auction, I would've repaid the favor."

"It's fine." Shadow stretched his arm across his chest. "It wasn't all bad. But I think I'll be staying in the forest for the next week."

"Why's that?"

As though to answer Espio's question, a loud, angry, and all too familiar voice boomed through the air all around them. "HE DID WHAT? SHADOW!"

Espio blinked and gave him a confused look. "Was that Amy?"

"And that's why I'll be staying here for a while," he said, already regretting the next time he had to face either the pink hedgehog. Or Cream's mother. "I'll tell you about it later. For now, let's go."