Sonic X Fan Fiction ❯ Matter of Trust ❯ Angel Island ( Chapter 7 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

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Chapter 7— Angel Island

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Sonic stumbled for the fifth time, still picking the odd, prickly seed-things from his fur as he walked. He liked the Floating Isle for its view, and for all the open space to run in, but the forests were the major down point in his book. He couldn't just speed through them, since he'd more than once been close lined by low-hanging vines and branches, which meant he had to traipse his way through the whole thing.

Also, he was looking for someone.

"Shadow?!" His voice only carried so far before bouncing back to him and reverberating throughout the tree line. "Shadow, where are you?!"

They'd gotten to the Island safely after the Chaos Control, though Shadow had almost missed or so, and would've landed them into a large sea if they had gone two feet over to their right. And that was at least a day or so ago. Knuckles had disappeared after the first night, telling Sonic he still had duties to attend to; and that had been the last he'd seen Shadow as well.

"Shadow!!!"

The aforementioned streaked creature was sitting just on the edge of the broken bridge in front of the Master Emerald's altar. He liked the place; the big emerald gave him a sensation of calmness that could even counter his madness to some extents. He had liked it for its soothing energies as soon as he had felt them wash over him.

Right now, he was... relaxing on the spot looking at the landscape and the setting sun, remembering how much he had wanted to see them back when he was on ARK, and he whished deeply that Maria could be there with him to see such beauty.

He wondered why GUN wanted to use him and his abilities, more his abilities than him since they didn't cared about him as a person, but as a weapon, against such wonders.

"There you are!" Sonic growled, coming to the end of the temple stairs, and using his speed to zip up them. For a normal hedgehog, the climb would've taken a good fifteen minutes at least, but for Sonic, a mere ten seconds was forever. As soon as he reached Shadow's side, he sat down. "What'd you come all the way out here for?"

Sonic had never been too partial to the altar, to the Master Emerald itself. Sure, it was pretty to look at, but that only lasted a moment or two at most. Then it began a rather dull, glowing rock in Sonic's eyes. He also disliked the steady pulse it gave out, because once around it, he felt like he never wanted to leave; the energy it gave him was addictive.

"I like it here. Keeps my mind at ease..." Shadow whispered back never looking away from the sunset, "And I like the view."

Sonic shivered, as the Emerald's aura of almost intelligent power brushed his senses, but forced himself to focus more on the fading sunlight, as it shone in a splendid array of color for the day's finale, giving the dark blue water a shimmering effect. "I'm not much for the place...but the view's alright, I guess. Knuckles gets quite a show up here."

Shadow nodded and remained in silence, staring at the beautiful display that nature was giving.

"Why so quiet? You've barely said a word since we got here..." He leaned over and gently prodded the hedgehog, curiosity getting the better of him. "I mean, you're all spacey and stuff, like your body's here but your brain's off on permanent vacation."

"She... wished so much... to see the beauty of the Earth... but she never had a chance...all because of the greed of her own kind..." He muttered more to himself than to Sonic.

"She.....?" Sonic was lost for but a moment. "Oh...Maria?" He changed his seated position so he could hug his knees.

"She was so kind.... and they killed her like she was the worst evil around. They killed a girl of 17 years without even flinching."

Sonic bowed his head, silent. He hated thinking of how torn Shadow must feel with his best friend gone. Imagining the pain Shadow was probably going through made him hate himself for reasons unknown to him. "I'm sorry, Shadow....really, I am..."

"Don't worry about it, Sonic. It's not your fault. It's GUN's fault..." He took a deep breath and let it out slowly, "And mine." He added.

Sonic's ears flicked. "I've told you before Shadow, it's not your fault." leaned on him slightly, "It would be your fault maybe if you were standing right beside her and simply refused to help her. But you wanted to save her. You're not to blame for GUN's crime."

"Yet, I could have used Chaos Control to aid her..."

"Everyone thinks back to what they could've done, should've done." Sonic sighed to himself. "We all regret things we didn't do when we had the chance, and while not everyone you meet has lost someone dear to them to murder, there are other ways to regret."

Shadow finally looked at him in the eyes, "You mean?"

"Even I do, yes." Sonic said, eyes downcast. "Of course, I didn't know him like you did Maria.....well....I guess you could say I did, if I know myself as well as I think I do."

The black hedgehog cast his gaze away, "Sorry, I would have never imagined... I mean... you're so carefree..."

Sonic snorted, somewhat amused. "You make me sound like a child, Shadow." His smile turned almost solemn. "But isn't looking down at the world with a smile a little better than with tears..?"

The black hedgehog sighed a little discouraged, "I don't know, Sonic... Even if I look like an adult and act like one, I lack true experience of life... You don't know it, but leaving out the fifty years of my confinement, well... I'm four, maybe five years old at most..."

"Tall for five, aren't you?" Sonic grinned, playing with one of his own quills. "Don't sweat it, Shadow. We'll help you along the way. You can learn right alongside Knuckles; he needs a study buddy. Badly."

"Why?"

"Well, Knuckles grew up here, on this Island." Sonic pulled at the quill, wincing as he did so, but strangely bored, so he didn't stop. "Practically in front of this altar. I didn't meet the guy, no one did in fact, until Robotnik crash landed here after one of our spats, and tricked Knuckles into fighting me for the rock behind us." Sonic thumbed over his shoulder with his free hand, now twisting the quill around and around.

"It took forever to stop Knuckles, then Robotnik made off with the Emerald and I had to help him get it back, because the Master Emerald more powerful than even the Chaos ones. Then there was all this havoc wreaked, and all that stuff. Finally we got it back, and Knux was a little more civil."

"But he doesn't really know much about what goes on in the world, or how to treat people because he's still barely comfortable being around me and Tails." A shrug, and the quill was pulled again. "I mean, the first other person he met made him think he was his friend then backstabbed him. He's really bad about meeting new people now."

Shadow nodded, "I see." He said laying down on the marble ground with his arms folded under his head and looking up at the stars, "Beautiful, isn't it?"

Sonic looked up, then smiled. "I guess so, if you're a hopeless romantic, like certain people..." He rocked on his haunches slowly, finally releasing the quill he'd been messing with. "I mean, stars and full moons are more of a couple thing..."

The black hedgehog smiled, "Maria and I always watched the planet and the stars on the background, always wondering how they looked from here."

"Probably the same, wouldn't they?" Sonic asked turning enough so that he was somewhat facing Shadow. "I mean, they always look the same to me, no matter where I am. Little white dots and a lot of black."

Shadow shook his head, "No. They may be the same stars, but from space you can see them better. They are... more brilliant and you may feel different to see just stars every where and not just over your head."

"Well, I'm not in much of a hurry to go to space, you know. It's cold and everything, and it doesn't really look like a good place for just running for the heck of it." Sonic frowned. "I mean, looking at it is fine, but being out there....it makes you feel so small..."

The dark one smiled a little, "Then I should take you there at least once, you know, to let you understand and feel what truly it is the place you live in."

"Wouldn't that cost a lot Shadow? I mean, the rocket, the fuel, and all that stuff?" He tried to count it on his fingers. "I mean, that alone would take a fortune to pay for."

Shadow stood up and managed to pin Sonic to the ground, "You're forgetting my Chaos Control, Sonic." He said smiling as his facial features were illuminated by the gentle green light of the Master Emerald, "I can Chaos Control there pretty easily."

Sonic went slightly flustered, being pinned beneath Shadow, though any real redness was hidden by the lighting, a small blessing to the hero. "Yeah, but....it's space! We'd explode....!!"

Shadow chuckled heartedly, "Sonic! I told you that I was created in a space colony! It's still up there. Ark’s size reach half of the moon's. The thing is too big to be brought back to the planet. It would cause a catastrophe." He commented lowering his head a little.

"It's still up ther---eep!" Sonic's face flushed almost completely as Shadow's face loomed closer. He felt his heart speed up furiously, and he grasped for a voice to try to tell Shadow he needed a little more space to breathe than this.

Shadow tilted his head a little to the side and smiled gently, in confusion, "What's up, Sonic?"

'My heart-rate for starters....' Sonic shook his head slowly, trying to clear his mind so that he wouldn't freak out and push Shadow off of him. Around the dark creature he was always careful now, so that the other wouldn't ever take any of his actions the wrong way.

"I'm...fine..." He murmured, holding back his shock and slight fear from his voice.

The black hedgehog raised an eyebrow, "You sure Sonic? The tone of your voice is.... kinda different than your usual."

"Cross my heart..." He stammered. 'Which I think might rupture or something in a second...' His ears were twitching slightly, lost between folding and pricking up to hear Shadow's voice. "You just...kinda surprised me when you pounce me...like that...."

"Surprise you? I thought that action like these would never surprise you like this..."

"Well....see, it usually depends on who I'm with. I never know what to expect from you." Sonic felt a slight wind and shivered, but only barely. "I mean Knuckles and I mostly fight, though it's not really fighting...me and Tails, we just...hang out. I've known them so long, or something like it, that I can guess what they're going to do next. You're still able to scare the living daylights out of me because you can always catch me off guard."

Shadow's smile widened and he chuckled happily; this caused him to drop another inch towards Sonic's face. When he finally calmed down, he looked directly in the blue hedgehog's emerald eyes, "Strange, I thought that you would already know me to some extents to expect what I do."

"Like the fact that you're loving every second of this?" Sonic mumbled under his breath, becoming trapped in the shining, blood-red gems above him. His face could've been a light bulb by that time, and he was trying to find a way to sink down into the marble beneath them.

The dark hedgehog tilted his head to the side once again, "What?" He asked as curiously as a children eager of knowledge would do.

"What 'what'?" The hedgehog asked, brought back by the question.

Shadow leaned a little closer, "What did you mumble under your breath?"

Sonic gave a small yip and tried to press backwards, unhappy with the unyielding stone under him. "I said you seem to enjoy jumping me....." He managed, withholding his discomfort so he wouldn't stammer his words.

The black creature smiled happily, and his eyes showed that, "Yes, indeed. I like it. I don't know why and why only with you, but I like it very much. It... makes me... warm inside."

"So you playing pranks on me you happy?" Sonic groaned. "I knew I shouldn't have left you alone with Red, now I've got two of you running around."

"It's not the pranks that makes me warm inside, but the fact that I'm so close to you." He said, leaning in a little more so their noses touched once again, "Whenever I'm this close to you... I'm more than happy. I feel.... somewhat complete. Whole. I'd hate to lose you... I feel that... without your presence, I would go insane... and utterly... abandoned..."

Sonic felt like screaming, pushing Shadow away, sighing, and floating all at once. "You're talking crazy, you know that?"

Shadow smiled, closed his eyes, and shook his head, "Sonic, Sonic, Sonic.... I AM crazy, or you have forgotten what happened in that forest?"

Sonic rolled his eyes, unable to help himself. "Not that kind of crazy, Shadow. That's scary crazy. This...well this is scary too, but not I'm-gonna-die scary; more like....I don't know...couple crazy."

Shadow opened his eyes, confusion showing in them, "Couple... crazy?"

"Yeah. You know, couples? Two people, holding hands, hugging, and all that? Couple. Well, this is like that. You're talking like we're a couple, which means it's couple crazy, see?"

"Well, you hugged me more than once, so you really can't say that I'm the 'couple crazy' one..." He said remembering the various occasions, "You even rubbed my ears, which I found out that I like very much."

"Yeah, well...that's a different kind of thing." Sonic shifted a little, finding the conversation seemed to be turning against him.

"And what that would mean?"

"Well, that would mean more that I care about you. Couples hug and things, but they hug with...a different meaning. And they kiss and all the things that come after kissing...." Sonic sighed. "Man, I thought explaining this to Tails was hard...."

"Kissing as a mother would kiss her children?"

"Um.... no. Kissing as in how the mom kisses the dad when the kids aren't looking." Sonic raised an eyebrow.

Shadow raised an eyebrow in total confusion, "How?" That, for him, was just a simple and innocent question.

Sonic stuttered for a moment, startled, trying to find the right words. "Well...it's complicated, really....it's easier to show people then really, you know, tell them....because it's not really just an action. There's a lot of meaning behind it, so...that makes it hard to explain...."

"And what meaning would be behind that type of kiss?"

"Well, it's a way of people showing they love each other. Not like kids and parents, or friends and things. But the kind of love that the parents have, or some friends develop. It's usually as complicated as the kiss is, so you don't really understand until you feel it." Sonic shrugged. "Probably why it's so hard for me."

"Why is that hard for you to feel this 'love'?"

"Well..." Sonic shifted again, his arms having gone numb and tingly. "I guess I haven't found the right person yet. Though I'm not really looking, cause if they're all like Amy, I'm not sure I want to fall in love just yet. Plus you're supposed to feel something special around that person, which is where the kissing and such come in. It's all interconnected."

Shadow sat up, but never let his hands move from their current position, "Sonic... what do you feel when around me?"

"Is this a trick question..?" Sonic asked, trying to change the subject before he had to do anymore describing.

Shadow shook his head, "No. I just... want to know."

Sonic sighed. "I don't...know exactly." He started, or tried to. "It's more of an odd fuzzy feeling. Like you're made of glass and if I'm not careful around you, I'll end up knocking you over; then it's more as if you're fire, and as wonderful as it is to be around you light and warm and such, you can get too close or you'll get burned." He was trying to avoid Shadow's gaze as he continued.

"It's such a weird problem though, because it only happens when I see you upset, sad or angry..." His voice was dropping in volume. "The rest of the time...it's like you should be here. Like if you leave things just go.... wrong.."

"Like I said, couple crazy."

Shadow moved his head so he was able to look into Sonic's eyes, "So... this makes us a couple?"

Sonic blinked rapidly, all brainwork losing its focus with that single question. "What…?"

"I asked you if this makes us a couple." He said gently.

"I know what you asked me, that's why I'm asking." Sonic murmured, still trying to understand the question. "It's somewhat......more complex than that, Shadow. You don't just become a couple....well...you do kind of...but..."

"But?" He asked, tilting his head again in slight confusion.

"There's usually a lot more involved than just us liking each other. I explained it all just a second ago...." Sonic was grasping for straws, but his mind kept asking itself if they really were a couple, since they fit the definition mostly. "And we don't do most of that. I mean, we've never kissed or anything."

"Oh... ok...." He said releasing Sonic and sitting facing the horizon, "Sorry... it's just... that's hard to understand..." He said a little sadly for having troubled the blue hedgehog that much.

"That we've never kissed?" Sonic looked surprised, sitting up slowly after him, but still leaning back on his gloveless palms.

"That, and everything else that regards love and this couple thing..."

"I guess that's because it's so important to everyone. Everyone experiences love in really different ways, so it's hard to figure out." Sonic looked out over the water, knowing land wouldn't appear for another day, as the isle traveled. "It's usually the kissing part that makes you get the picture."

"And how the kiss will make you understand that?"

"Well...certain things are supposed to happen when you kiss the right person..." Sonic was watching the waves billow in the distance, like blue-black crystal, constantly in motion. "That's usually how people who're sure they love each other decide whether or not they're a couple. That and something horrible happening to one of them."

The black hedgehog looked at him, "Something... horrible?"

"Yeah, but that's not the most comfortable way for you to find out really. Like where the one person almost dies and the other one's all crying because they didn't realize before that they loved them, and didn't want to lose them. Then the hurt one always wakes up and there's all this kissing and such. Things like that."

"I.... don't understand..."

"Well, that doesn't really happen very often. Usually, it's just kissing that brings people together." Sonic shrugged and began messing with a pebble nearby, flicking it forward then reaching out to scoot it back. "It's the key part of the whole shebang."

"I understand, so... to understand if we're a couple we just need to kiss?" He asked locking ruby with emerald.

"I suppose...why do you ask?" Sonic wasn't really paying attention now, confident he'd explained the whole thing well enough for Shadow to understand it. He flicked the pebble again, this time having to stoop to get it back.

Shadow turned around to face him, a questioning look in his eyes, "Then... will you kiss me?"

"What?!" Sonic whipped around to look back at Shadow so quickly that something in the back of his head and neck snapped, and a shock of pain travel up and down his spine.

"I asked if you will kiss me, Sonic. You said that to understand if we're a couple we needed to kiss." He said, confirming that he had understood well.

"Well...yeah, I guess...." Sonic stammered. "Never thought you'd ASK me though.... usually it just sort of.. happens..."

"Should I have never asked, then?"

"I don't really...know..." Sonic thought. "I mean, I'm going off what I see and read, not personal experience..."

"So this is a first even for you?"

"Well, yeah, but I actually know about how you do it." Sonic felt a little superior with that knowledge on his side.

"And... how do you do it?"

Sonic flushed and resisted the urge to bury his face in his hands to hide it from Shadow, mostly because he know the other hedgehog would try to see if he thought he was hiding something. Instead he focused on his little stone, hoping he could answer a little easier that way. "You kinda...press your lips together....and well....it's easier to show than talk about...."

The black hedgehog tilted his head to the side, "Pressing lips together? You mean that I just have to kiss on the mouth?"

"Yeah, that's it, more or less...." He was burning a hole into the little rock as he batted it around. 'Focus on the rock, focus on the rock, the rock's not looking at you, everything's fine, and I think I've gone into cardiac arrest...' "It's simple, but it's not..."

Shadow was getting confused once more, "Then, will you show me how to do it?"

A slightly distressed noise escaped Sonic's mouth and he sunk back against Shadow, eyes somewhat wide and a little fearful looking.

Shadow stood still, waiting patiently for the blue hedgehog to show him this wonder called kiss.

Sonic remained still and silent for a while before sighing, "I...guess, I should, shouldn't I....?" He looked so lost, and sounded it too. "It's seems so silly until you're asked to do it..." He turned around slowly and looked Shadow in the eyes. "Sure you want me to..?"

Shadow nodded, in his eyes only firm resolution, "Yes."

Sonic downcast his eyes again, but decided to go ahead and get this over with, before he backed off and Shadow made Knuckles hold him down or something. He wouldn't have been surprised, really.

Eyes still down, he reached up slowly, and wrapped his arms around Shadow's neck pulling him close. Then, quickly, before he lost his nerve, he tilted his face upward and pressed his lips to Shadow's, with every intention of pulling away as soon as he got there.

Shadow froze for a moment before melting into Sonic's arms and kiss; his heart decided to take a skip and start running madly while his body felt weak, but not that same weakness that someone got when he fought too much, and he enjoyed it.

And he felt his face and stomach flare up with a welcomed hotness.

At the same time, Sonic's mind was reeling because...well, the kiss felt good. Not good...better than good, but he couldn't think of a better way to describe it yet, he was too busy trying to make it last longer. He felt dizzy, but like he was being lifted up, like he was weightless. His arms tightened subconsciously as he tried to get closer, to taste more. Because Shadow tasted...good.

Shadow found himself unprepared at Sonic's pressing towards him, and he ended up falling backward, taking with him the other hedgehog. Damn, he liked it. It was the best thing he had ever experienced, and he somewhat found himself wanting more.

Sonic was so startled when they landed that he jerked backwards, falling away from Shadow until he landed back on his chest, blinking in shock. His entire torso was filled with a strange tingle, and he felt like he couldn't breathe, even though he wasn't the one being pinned down this time.

Shadow looked at the blue hedgehog in the eyes and smiled widely in happiness, yet he was a little disappointed that the kiss had broke, even if accidentally.

"That was..." He trailed off.

Sonic was smiling softly, and leaned forward, his eyes having taken on a slightly glazed look. He still too amazed, still trying sort out the coursing feelings, to try and talk. Plus he was watching Shadow's mouth, tempted to continue the kiss.

The black hedgehog watched as his blue counterpart lower his head towards him and remained immobile, excitedly waiting for another kiss.

His arms gripped Shadow's shoulders carefully, and Sonic reconnected their lips, eager to feel more of the confused, yet wonderful sensations. His eyes had already drifted shut as he worked over the other's mouth, smiling into the kiss as it went on.

Shadow smiled back as his eyes closed automatically and found himself slightly pressing forwards, slightly opening his mouth to try and gently bite the soft lips that were pressing on his.

Sonic let out a small cry of surprise, but allowed Shadow to make the move, yielding willingly. He felt the light-headiness starting up again, and his gripped Shadow's shoulders a little tighter, hoping to hold himself there, if only for a little longer.

The black hedgehog processed on biting, more like taunting, Sonic's lips. He loved this. Every moment of this kiss, was a bliss to him. He felt like in heaven.

Sonic was shivering, as though he was cold. He felt quite the opposite however, flushed and strangely warm, on the verge of breaking out into laughter, because this was the best feeling he'd ever had, and he was trying his hardest to hold onto it. He shifted a little, pushing closer to Shadow in an attempt to cease the play and go back to the actual kissing.

The black hedgehog found his head pinned to the ground and he let a small squeak of surprise leave his open mouth.

Sonic took complete advantage, readily deepening the kiss, and shuddering, gripping the dark creature's shoulders as he tasted as lightly and gently as he could, barely touching each new surface as waves of pleasure traveled about his body.

Then there was fact that Shadow was completely at his mercy right now. Oh yes, that was fun indeed. His revenge for all that teasing was sweeter then he could've thought.

The black hedgehog let out another muffled squeak and widened his eyes in slight shock as Sonic worked his magic on him; a second later, however, he just leaned back, relaxing, and enjoyed being at the mercy of the other hedgehog.

Sonic finally broke away, breathing heavily and rested his chin on Shadow's chest, shivering. It had been amazing, beyond that, and so quickly. He was trying hard to focus his eyes, they were cloudy and distorted, and his mind wasn't much better off. He sighed and tried to let himself calm down.

"Wow...." He mused, once he found his voice again.

"That was... that was... was..." Shadow babbled trying to find the words that could explain what he just felt.

"Told you so..." Sonic murmured blearily. He was still smiling, his voice breathless and half-tired, but content. "Admit it. I told you it was hard to understand until you did it, didn't I?"

The black hedgehog nodded, "And that you were reluctant on doing it..."

"Yeah....can't remember why now...I know I had a good reason..." He tried to think about it, but his mind was still bubbling over the make-out fest. Giving up he released Shadow's shoulder's and folded his arms onto the white fluff of Shadow's chest, laying his head on them in a mockery of the other's earlier pose.

The black hedgehog smirked devilish, "Don't mock me, Sonic." He said disappearing in his Chaos Control and reappearing over the blue hedgehog's back, thus pinning him down once again.

"You know that I have plenty of tricks that you don't." He whispered into his hear in his usual tone of taunting Sonic.

"Oh, you're just mad cause I'm the better kisser." Sonic countered, turning his head to look up over his shoulder. "You're obviously jealous!" He was attempting to roll over, and dislodge Shadow.

The black hedgehog wasn't going to lose his balance that soon, "Just give me a little time of practice, Sonic, and I'll become better than you." He said leaning in and kissing his 'captured' on the left cheek.

Sonic paused as the kiss landed on his cheek, but regained his senses in a moment. "I will not be surpassed so easily!" He growled out, and made another attempt at throwing Shadow off.

The black hedgehog let himself be dislodged from top of the blue furry and landed on his back, looking at the starred sky, "Sure, sure. Sonic." He said not convinced at all.

The minute he was free, Sonic rolled over and wrapped his arms around the dark hedgehog, curling up sideways against him and laying his head on Shadow's chest. "So I guess that's it then...."

Shadow slightly raised his head to look at the blue hedgehog's face, "Hmm?"

"You know.....the whole couple thing?" Sonic's eyes were half-lidded now. "That's what this whole thing was about."

The black hedgehog looked at him smiling, "You know what? I really don't care if we call ourselves a couple or not."

"Just being with you.... makes me extremely happy."

"So you were just trying to get me to kiss you then, eh?" Sonic made a pretense of being angry with the other furry.

"I didn't said that. I WANTED to know, but now it really doesn't matter the name 'couple'"

"Ah, so I'm an experiment now? That's the sweetest thing you've ever said to me." Sonic rolled his eyes pointedly. "I just feel warm and fuzzy all over."

The black hedgehog smiled and rested his head on the marble surface, "Well, you enjoyed the experiment, haven't you?"

"Thank you for the observation, Sherlock." Sonic mumbled, snuggled into the warm chest fur, shivering as a chilled wind crossed over the temple and made his quills move faintly. He suddenly felt....giddy.

Shadow looked at him, "Want to go somewhere more repaired?"

"Probably should, before Knuckles sees us. He'd kill me if he saw us doing all this at the temple." He snuggled closer, reveling in Shadow's body warmth. "And it's going to be freezing up here any minute. Cold sucks almost as bad as water."

Sonic let out a strange giggle, unable to stop himself. "Yet, I really don't want to get up. I feel so nice and lazy right now! Perfect for a nap, even though I know I'll wake up to Knuckles ripping off my head and putting it on a pike."

The black hedgehog sat up, bringing the other on his lap, "Want me... to carry you?" He asked in his hushed tone in Sonic’s ear, cradling him.

Sonic rolled his eyes. "And take the easy way out? Pssh! Don't you know me better than that?" He snuggled into the dark other's chest. "I think I'll just fall asleep right here. Screw walking, it's too cold."

Shadow chuckled again, "Who said I was gonna walk? Tell me where you want to go."

Sonic thought about it. "Well....there's a really nice little clearing not too far from here...I saw it when I was looking for you earlier. There's a little waterfall and a shallow pond and stuff. And a cave, with a bunch of plant like things hanging in front of it. Mushy romantic, yeah, but I don't feel like going all the way back to Knuckles’ hut yet."

The black hedgehog nodded and stood up, and a few seconds later, the altar melted away to let the small clearing described by the blue hedgehog take place.

Shadow placed Sonic on the ground and held him upright with his arms around the blue one's waist.

"Is this it?" He asked looking at him in the eyes.

The hero gaped for a moment, then turned a look of approval. "Yeah...it is..." He suddenly frowned and raised an eyebrow. "You know, you're not going to be allowed to teleport when we race tomorrow. It's cheating" He nodding again.

Shadow tightened his grip on the other hedgehog, bringing him close to him, "Are you... scared to lose?" He taunted in a whisper.

"No..." Sonic pecked him on the nose. "But it's not really a race if you just beam yourself over to the finish line. I refuse to give you anymore edge over me than you already have, thank you."

"Fine, fine." He chuckled, "But I'll win the same."

"Without your little cheat sheet travel tricks, I sincerely doubt that." Sonic was messing with the little flare of white fur on his companion's chest. "After all, I've been running twice as long as you; you've be sleeping this whole time. Statistics are on my side!" He grinned.

Shadow moved his head closer, "We'll see tomorrow if I'm still in shape or not." He said in his hushed tone that he used only with Sonic, "We'll see."

"Oh, like you being in shape will make a difference when you eat my dust?" The sapphire hedgehog was still playing with Shadow chest tuff, rather pleased that the other furry, for being to demonic looking, had such an adorable characteristic.

The dark hedgehog chuckled lightly and pressed his body to the other's, "Beware, Sonic. I'm not going to hold back just because I love you."

"I'm so afraid, Mr. Ultimate Lifeform." Sonic replied, finally pausing to look up, grinning.

Shadow smirked back, "You should be, Mr. Hero."

Never one to let the chance to challenge someone else's skills slip by un-tackled, Sonic stuck his tongue out. "Make me."

The dark hedgehog’s smirk became devilish and he pinned again the other hedgehog on the ground, straddling him and sitting on his belly, "I repeat. You should." He whispered making his breath brush on the other's lips.

Sonic shivered and struggled to move his arms, frustrated when he found he couldn't, nor could he get enough momentum going to throw Shadow off of him. "Darn it, how come I always end up under you?! I'm the older one." He growled, pouting.

Shadow smirked again, "Because, Sonic, I surprise you. You said it yourself, didn't you?"

Sonic mocked his comrade's mouth movements, still somewhat pouting. If he could've moved them, he'd had crossed his arms over his chest. As it was, he couldn't, so he settled for mimicking the dark hedgehog.

The dark creature smiled and shook his head, "Do you always pout like this when you're trapped or don't know how to counter?"

"I'm not pouting!" Sonic rounded on the hedgehog, giving him an incredulous look. "I never pout! You're seeing things."

Shadow neared his lips to the other's, taunting him with his breath, "Right now, Sonic, you're pouting like hell." He whispered.

"Am not." Sonic mumbled, looking away to try and hide the tingling running up his spine. "And if you keep teasing me, I won't let you kiss me anymore."

The black furry folded his ears and put up the saddest face he could get, "You won't, right?" He asked with shaking voice and moistness in his eyes.

"Agh! Stop that!" Sonic growled, looking back. "Don't you dare start crying!"

In his act, Shadow managed to let some tears fall from his eyes as he sat up and looked down.

"Darn it, Shadow, cut it out!" Sonic sat up as soon as he could, and wrapping the other in his arms and pulling him close. "I hate it when you're acting all depressed!"

"Then kiss me." He muttered.

Sonic raised an eyebrow, a little surprised. Then he rolled his eyes and pressed his lips to Shadow's for a quick few seconds, then pulled away. "You act like you thought I meant it."

The black hedgehog snickered, "And you acted like I was really sad." He said getting up and walking towards the small cavern.

Sonic gawked after him for a moment, then shoved himself to his feet, walking after Shadow in a huff for having been tricked so easily. "You faker." He grumbled catching up and lightly thumping the other on the side of his head.

The dark one's ear twitched at that nickname, "Faker? You're the Faker around here. You’re comparing yourself to me? Ah! You're not even good enough to be my fake." He countered mockingly.

"Not good enough?" Sonic looked outraged, but it was an obvious act. "This relationship just got started, and already you're giving me really good excuses to leave you!"

Shadow looked back at him with his sad act, "You wouldn't..." He said getting ready to release the tears.

"No. And you stop that, or I'm pushing you into the pond."

The ebony hedgehog returned smirking, "If you push me into the pond, then you'll have to hug me for I'll be all wet and cold." He said, looking at the pond. Then, as the idea of being held by the other hedgehog was very tempting, he started walking towards it, with the clear intention of jumping in the cold water.

"I'm not hugging you if you're soaked. First, that would make it insanely hard to sleep tonight. Second, I just don't like being wet." Sonic grumbled, crossing his arms, but not moving to stop the other.

"Then I'm gonna make you." He countered stopping in his track, "Once I get a grip on you, you won't be able to escape me."

Sonic took a sprinting position. "You're welcome to, if you think you can catch me."

Shadow smirked and Chaos Controlled behind the blue hedgehog, capturing him in his strong arms, "Caught."

Sonic yelped, and automatically tried to kick. "You leggo, I refuse to get wet!"

Shadow's mind worked out another plan of his, "Ok, but only if you do one thing for me."

"Like what?" Sonic was still pushing at Shadow's hands, eyes fixed on the pond's edge, a few feet or so away. Of all the places on Angel Island, he chose the one that Shadow would toss him into. Wonderful. And ingenious.

"Kiss me again, but not just like the one of a few minutes ago. I want a kiss like the one you pulled the second time at the altar." He said sinking his face into Sonic's neck and shoulder.

The captured hero gave a small yelp of surprise and stilled, trying to turn his face to see what Shadow was trying to do, if he really meant the request. "That again?"

Shadow raised the blue hedgehog from the ground and started walking slowly towards the pond.

"Ah!!!" Sonic cried out and tried to find a handhold, but in vain. He was too far from the rock face the cave was built into, and anything he could reach wouldn't have held. "Don't, don't, DON'T!!! I'll do it, I'll do it!!! Just put me down!!!"

Shadow stopped walking and put the other hedgehog back on the ground never letting him go.

Sonic turned around in the other's arms, breathing hard, and hanging onto Shadow. He shouldn't have been that upset, true, the pond was shallow enough to reach his waist if he stood up, unless he went to the center, where it passed his shoulders, about. Still, he hated the thought of being dumped into it. You couldn't pull the plug on a pond and let it drain, it was always full.

The black hedgehog chuckled, "I see that I found a little flaw in you that I can use at my advantage."

"You're so evil...." Sonic grumbled, but had already reached up to wrap his arms around Shadow's neck again. "I should refuse to do this. You abuse me."

"Yet I know that you like it."

"Sadist." Sonic growled, breaking his backward gaze at the water, looking toward Shadow's scarlet eyes instead. "But yeah..." He leaned up, a hair breath away from the dark hedgehog's mouth. "I guess I do."

Shadow smiled, "I knew it." He whispered, pleased with the idea of the oncoming kiss, "It is...too wonderful an experience to let pass."

Sonic laughed softly, and brushed his lips against Shadow's. "I know.." Then he pulled the dark hedgehog to him, connecting them into another kiss.

The black creature smiled and closed his eyes, starting to taunt the other hedgehog's lips like he had done before.

Such a sweet flavor they held; he wondered if there was something that could compare to that, albeit deep down he knew that nothing could come close to Sonic's kisses. To him, they were unique.

Sonic wasn't about to let Shadow take control again though; he pulled the hedgehog closer and held him there, the elated giddy feeling seeping back into his conscious. His arms crept around the other's neck tightened and he pressed himself close, as close as he could.

Shadow found himself gripping Sonic for support as his legs wobbled dangerously under him; it intrigued him to no end that a 'common' hedgehog could reduce the mighty ultimate life form to a weak creature like this.

He opened his mouth to take a deep breath, and continued his taunting maneuvers.

The 'common' hedgehog was having trouble standing too. The kiss was becoming a little more heated than he remembered the other being, though that might've been because they were lying down the last time. He was teetering gently, becoming dizzy, though Shadow leaning on him was giving him something to use as a crutch as well.

He tilted his head back, trying to keep Shadow from teasing him. He started the kiss, he should be the one who got to decide what happened in it!

The dark hedgehog chuckled lightly as he felt the other tilt his head backwards to prevent him from taunting him; he wouldn't desist, however, and he followed the movement and kept on the taunting.

"Dammit Shadow, quit that..." The blue hedgehog pulled away long enough to whisper, his voice a little muffle sounding, and his eyes glazed.

Shadow kissed him again for a second before parting a little, "Why?" He asked in a hushed tone, "You know that I like taunting you." He said resuming his taunt.

Sonic moaned into the lip-lock and moved his arms up from Shadow's neck to tangle into the black and red quills, trying to tug Shadow down and retake the role of dominance in the kiss.

The dark creature tilted his head backwards a little, "Oww." He muttered, losing the concentration on his taunts.

"Sorry..." Sonic mumbled, loosening his grip. He sounded asleep almost, and looked it to, swaying, and being supported by Shadow heavily. The hero blinked slowly, trying to clear his sight.

The black hedgehog, as soon as he felt the grip loosen, pressed back on the other hedgehog's lips; after a few seconds he even resumed his taunts, his arms tightening a little around the other's waist.

He couldn't get enough of this; it was like he was insatiable.

Sonic gasped as the other dove onto him again, beyond surprised. He tried to pull back, tried to breath, just as Shadow's arms tightened around him and what was left of his air disappeared.

Then, Sonic decided to fight fire with fire.

Pushing back against Shadow's open, tantalizing mouth, he entered it again, grinning wickedly in his mind. This had gotten Shadow under his control the last time, maybe it would work again.

The black hedgehog found himself teetering back a little upon feeling a warm and wet living object enter his mouth; mumbling out a protest about loosing the predominance, he tried to counter it with his own tongue.

Which of course, surprised Sonic so much that his attack retreated, and he tried to escape, making an attempt to close his mouth before he realized how strangely enjoyable the kiss had just become. He paused in his struggling to see if it was just the surprise, or Shadow's actual movements making him shudder.

Shadow continued his taunting as he felt the other's tongue go almost still; that made him invade Sonic's mouth with his own and the blue hedgehog remained immobile under his grasp.

However, the sweet, hot moment was interrupted by a high pitched scream of disgust and outrage.

The black hedgehog parted slowly from Sonic's mouth, reluctant to the idea of stopping there; as soon as their lips barely parted, he lightly turned his head and his eyes hardened like a ruby stone that shined in the night. The death glare that he was directing on Amy made them look creepy.

Damn, wasn't she supposed to NOT know where they were?

Sonic's ears folded immediately when he recognized the scream, and his head turned so that he could find the already identified source. He locked on a furious pink hedgehog instantly, and frowned, because if she was here, this meant serious trouble.

'I swear...does she have a tracer or something on me?!'

"What the hell do you think you're DOING to him?!" She sounded pissed, and the hammer was in her hands already. "You...you horrible, evil...MONSTER!!! How DARE you take his first kiss away from me!!!"

'How the hell does she know.....never mind....'

"You BASTARD!! You sick, twisted----!!!"

Shadow gripped the blue hedgehog a little tighter and smiled wickedly, his madness slowly returning to him, "Actually, pink brat, this is the third. And Sonic doesn't love you. He loves me." He said hinting his crazy smirk.

".....Wha...." Amy's Piko-Piko lowered for a moment, then she growled. "You tricked him! I won't believe it! Sonic would never betray me, not on purpose!! He's faithful to me, I know that!!" She looked toward the blue male. "Tell him Sonic!!"

Sonic's grip tightened around the black hedgehog. "Thing is Amy.....it's kind of true..."

"........You......you don't mean that....."

The black hedgehog smiled wickedly at her, "You heard him, brat. Now, get the hell out of here. We were sharing a kiss. And you, little brat, ruined it." Then, he gave a slow peck on the blue hedgehog's lips to confirm that.

As Sonic smiled back at Shadow, the crestfallen Amy stared, crystal tears forming, blurring her sight. Her head bowed, the wet drops splattering the rocky soil. "Sonic....you didn't...this can't be happening....." Suddenly she straightened, tears still running down her cheeks, as she braced herself.

"I'd rather die..." Amy's hate already burned deep, and for such a young girl, she sounded very peeved. "...than let you do this to us, Shadow." Then she gave a feral yell and ran at the two, her speed not reaching what they were capable of...

...but still pretty damn fast.

Shadow's crazy grin appeared to its fullest extent, then he shoot onwards, using his left Chaos Energy charged index finger to slightly cut Amy's left cheek. As soon as he was behind her he stopped and turned to stare at her, "Then I will grant you this wish."

No doubt, however, that he was playing with her before delivering the final, killing blow.

"Shadow!" Sonic gasped, falling backwards in surprise. Before he could get up however, blood had already been drawn.

Amy was shell-shocked when she felt the blood dribbling down her cheek. She halted her charge, stared at the red droplet hitting the stone beneath her, startled. Then she spun as quickly as she could, hammer colliding with her attacker's side.

The black hedgehog was taken by surprise, and he tumbled to the ground; so that was it? Then screw Mr. Nice Guy. He was supposed to be a weapon of mass destruction, and hell... he was going to be it.

He slowly stood up, his true self almost completely forgotten, and turned around; his eyes were almost a thin slit on his head as ruby red eyes craved for blood to be spilled and his mouth morphed into an extremely angry snarl.

Shadow threw his head backwards and released a scream of utter rage, charging his hands with Chaos Energy.

Amy stumbled backwards, frightened, realizing that what she had done hadn't exactly been the smartest move to make. She backed away the outrage creature, the color draining from her face. Then she turned tail, deciding that getting away alive was one of the better choices she could make right now.

The black hedgehog started pursuing her, with all the intention to kill her in the most gruesome way; letting loose a growled scream, he jumped towards her, drawing a hand backwards for a swing that would leave four nice deep marks on her back.

Amy screamed, and toppled down, letting Shadow overshot her. Her back was aflame with agony, and she pushed herself up, swinging her legs around under her so she could back peddle away.

Shadow landed and turned around, his eyes ablaze with pure madness; a mad grin spread across his face as he started slowly stalking the pink hedgehog.

Amy was dragging herself backwards, green eyes locked on the maniac hedgehog before her. She knew that coming here, saying anything at all when she saw them together, it was perhaps the worst idea. But then she thought back, her instinct reminding her: she was SURE Sonic loved her. He just had trouble admitting it! She was the only person he could love!

And he'd just met Shadow. She'd known him far longer than that! If it had to have been anyone else, she'd have expected Tails, more than this evil creature. He was the only one who'd known the hero longer.

Shadow charged his right hand with Chaos Energy, his intention to hit her directly in her heart, make her suffer and make her feel her own life slowly slip away while she looked in his eyes. His grin widened as he stopped in front of the pink hedgehog, which was now pressing herself to a tree.

Amy swallowed, her mouth and throat dry. She was fighting to stand now, using the tree as a crutch. She felt cornered, boxed in with the hedgehog who was surely going to be her death. Her eyes, wide and fearful, flickered back and fro between Shadow's narrowed eyes and the Energy forming in his hands. She was really going to die....

So imagine her surprise, and Shadow's, when Sonic's white glove appeared on the dark hedgehog's shoulder.

The black hedgehog turned his head and growled.

Who was the one that interrupted his work? An enemy perhaps?

Sonic stared him down, the frown on his face deep and considering. "Shadow?" He gripped the shoulder a little tighter, surprised at how angry the other had become, in so little time. "Shadow, please, calm down. I hate it when you're depressed, and I don't like it when you're like this much better...." He set his chin in the crook of the other's shoulder.

"I'll even let you throw me in the pond this time, alright?" The trademark grin.

The dark one growled in warning, his fur on his back and his quills raising; he didn't recognize the blue hedgehog as someone that he cared about very much, but just as another creature in the world.

Sonic ignored the growl, and wrapped his arms around the other's waist, bury his face further, ears folded. He was afraid, sure, but he wasn't one to let fear keep him from helping others, especially not Shadow, not now.

"Sonic...get away, he'll kill you!" Amy warned, looking like she was going to cry.

"He hasn't killed me yet......" Sonic whispered in reply.

In response to the blue hedgehog's move, Shadow growled more deeply, his chest vibrating from its power, yet, as much as the mind of the weapon of mass destruction was screaming to attack and kill him, he couldn't do that.

However, the madness made him increase the energy in his hand.

"Shh....." Sonic's arms tightened and he cringed slightly, imagining all the horrible deaths Shadow could deal him with the forming Chaos weapon. He put it out of his mind as much as he could instead.

"Sonikku...."

"Amy, would you shut up for a little while? You want to die?!"

The dark one returned his death glare on Amy; how he hated her. She had everything, while he had nothing.

He could feel them; the hate, the anger, the sorrow...

All swirling deep within himself, ready to explode any moment.

Amy squeaked when Shadow rounded on her, and pressed herself against the tree. But she didn't have to worry about the dark furry staring her down. Sonic took Shadow's chin and turned it back to him, then kissed him gently.

The black hedgehog was going to tear the creature who had dared this in half, but he was stopped by something; something that barely recognized the flavor of those lips. In his eyes a flicker of recognition passed and as he backed away from the blue one, he brought his right hand to his forehead while the energy in the other dissipated.

He knew him...

Sonic followed, as Amy stared on, horrified. He carefully stepped forward, and re-looped his arms around the other, hugging him. "I know you don't want to do this, Shadow. Just settle down, everything's all right...."

His mind started to hurt, badly too, and he gripped his head in both his hands; so much pain...

He closed his eyes shut and threw his head backwards, screaming out his pain. Then, he just went limp in the other's arms, his breathing barely hinted.

Sonic clutched the prone form, almost losing his balance when the other fell forward onto him. He managed to stay upright however, and cautiously knelt down, laying Shadow out so that he wouldn't fall from his arms and get hurt. Then he turned, hearing a sound behind him.

Amy was trying to crawl for her mallet. He stood and kicked it out of her reach. "That was probably the stupidest thing you ever did, Amy. You call the cops this time too?"

"He deserves to die, Sonic!!" Amy yelled back.

While Amy ranted to the blue hedgehog, Shadow’s mind was battling itself, a fever slowly coming into being as the dark hedgehog fought. His breathings became haggard and he began sweating profusely. If he was awake, he would've felt hot and cold at the same time, but luckily he was not.

"You keep shouting like that, and you'll wake him up. Then we'll be right back where we started, and it gets harder and harder to stop him from killing you." Sonic crouched. "And I'm not just saying that because he goes deeper into the whole murderer thing. I'll be REALLY tempted to let him run you full of holes next time, cause with the way you're treating him, you're starting to rack up points to deserve it."

"You don't mean that, Sonic! He's controlling you, don't you see?!" She was starting to cry again.

"Stop that." Sonic growled, his eyes narrowing. "Just because someone else actually won me over doesn't mean that I'm being forced into it. If you don't want to believe that, well don't. But you come near Shadow again, with any intention other than apologizing--"

"Apologize?! He tried to kill me!!"

He ignored her. "---then I'm not going to stop him when he tears your legs off. I won't let him kill you, but I'll make sure that you don't walk away from it."

Suddenly, the forest became quiet. Too quiet to be a natural thing. There was something, or better, someone, that was stalking towards them; you could clearly hear the rustle of them going through the plant life as quietly as possible.

Their mission: to get back Project Shadow.

Knuckles was surely going to throw a fit on seeing so many trespassers on his beloved island.

Sonic's ears twitched upwards when the isle went soundless, and the sound of the undergrowth suffering the footfalls of numerous people in succession reached them. He paled, and stepped back from Amy, eyes flicking about to try and locate the source direction, for it sounded like they were spread out...all around him.

Amy smiled. "Don't worry Sonic, they'll take Shadow away...." She sighed and let her eyes close, exhausted from her own blood loss. "...then you'll love me again..." Then she was quiet.

Sonic's first impulse was 'fight or flight,' as it usually was with him. Of course, for Sonic, flight WAS fighting, so he decided he'd stick with that idea. Turning back to Shadow, he frowned. The other was down for the count, so if he carried him, he would have to be far more careful....his mind sparked with an idea.

Leaving Amy where she lay, he hefted up Shadow as well as possible, and dragged him into the cave nearby, pleased that the marble-like stone didn't leave any clues as to what he'd done, he made sure the leafy vines in front of the cave his the other hedgehog from view.

NOW, he could run.

Knuckles, already running like mad towards the forest, was pretty mad for the invasion; there was no way that he would stand back JUST because the number was that of an army.

To hell with it. This was HIS island.

With his ability to literally melt into Angel Island environment, he entered the forest. He would probably break many bones before they retreated.

Sonic on the other hand, was going it the opposite direction, on his way out. He'd already been sighted by the GUN forces, and in the dark, because of how fast he was moving, he was automatically identified as the key target, or Shadow. Luckily, only the foremost of the group had spotted him, which meant there was only seven or so after him, though they were already calling for armed back-up.

While he couldn't reach full speed here, if he got into the plains, these guys had no chance of catching, or beating, him. If he could only get past the tree-line, then maybe.....

Of course, the plan had to be slightly altered when a heavy net dropped onto him.

"Got him!!" The human above smiled and started calling for back up; the General had promised that whoever managed to retrieve the Project was going to get a major boost in his career.

Too bad that Knuckles ruined that by jumping from a branch and hitting the man at the base of his neck.

"What the hell is happening here?!?" He asked, tone angrily, as he easily ripped through the net, "I thought that nobody knew where we were!"

The hero hopped out of the net as soon as it was open, a scowl on his face. This was not his night tonight, well as it had started out. He only needed one word to answer Knux’s question. Well more precisely, a name.

"Amy." He snarled. "Shadow's down for the count. No Chaos Controlling this time."

The Guardian nodded in understanding, "Where's Shadow?" He was more preoccupied about the dark hedgehog than the pink one. Figures...

"Hid him. Hopefully, well enough that GUN won't find him." Sonic growled. "And all because she caught us together, too; I swear, if I ever get my hands around her throat..."

Knuckles smiled, "Go get him, Sonic. I'll take care of the trespassers. I also found that I have an... unexpected helper."

To that, a familiar 'scream' resounded through all the forest. Chaos was another inhabitant of Angel Island that didn't like the current invasion by humans.

Sonic winced and took off back to the clearing. The water demon sounded like he was having a serious temper tantrum, and Chaos's anger was a thing to fear above all else. If Chaos was out and about, those humans were going to understand very soon why no one liked coming here without Knux's invite.

Especially without the invite.

--

Back into the cavern, Shadow was having a hard time breathing; he was feeling like he was burning, yet, at the same time, he was feeling like he was freezing. He needed fresh air, and something warm to cover himself with.

All this while his two consciences, the weapon of mass destruction and Shadow, where battling each other for predominance, making him dead to the world outside his mind.

--

Sonic paused, the sound of female laughter, accompanied by faint gunshots and skidded to a stop, looking around. A flash of light flew past, followed by two loud 'crunches' on the other side of a large tree.

"Oh Sonic, didn't see you there!" The light came back, hovering in the air for a moment before materializing into the form of a female Echidna.

"Oh...it's you, Tikal." Sonic sighed in relief. The princess smiled.

"Of course it's me." She laughed. "Why are you in such a hurry?" Sonic snapped back to his task.

"Shadow. I have to go and----wait, Amy's bad off too...." Sonic frowned. He'd like to leave her be, but the thought of the girl dying of blood loss made his stomach turn. "Tikal, you can still heal and all that, right?"

"Ye---Ah!!!" Sonic had hold of her wrist and was back to running in a second.

"Good."

Another of Chaos' screams resounded in the night wood, followed soon by rapid gunfire; the water creature was doing his job pretty well in driving the humans away. From time to time, you could hear humans screams and the rapid beating of their feet on the ground as they ran like hell to get off the island as soon as possible.

"Sounds like dear Chaos is busy," Tikal murmured, when they finally stopped at the clearing. Sonic gestured to the prone pink form, half disgusted that none of the soldiers had paused to help her.

"Do you think you can help Amy out? Don't wake her up though, if you don't mind..."

"Don't worry Sonic, Chaos and I already know about it. We live in the Master Emerald after all...although, next time, none of that right on the altar, please?" She raised an eyebrow at him and he grinned sheepishly.

"I'll....just get Shadow..."

Tikal walked to the pink hedgehog, then she turned her head, "By the way, Sonic, you're a really cute couple!" She said, before quickly returning to Amy's wounds and starting to heal the four nasty cuts on her back. Even with her healing powers, the scars would remain.

"Yeah, yeah, just wish Amy had accepted it a little...better..." He replied, shoving the vines aside and moving into the cave. Shadow's form was barely silhouetted in the natural dimness, so he almost tripped over the other furry before seeing him.

Kneeling down after he regained his dignity, Sonic moved to rouse the dark hedgehog, but balked, withdrawing his hand. Shadow was burning hot to the touch, obviously with fever.

"Crap."

Outside the cave, Tikal was still busying herself with the wounds; she had quite a problem healing them as they weren't just normal wounds, but wounds induced with a strong charge of Chaos Energy. This prevented her from healing them as quickly as she was used to do.

Also, a little deeper and the pink girl would find herself paralyzed without having the possibility of Tikal healing her. Flesh wounds were a thing, but wounds on the spinal cord was totally another thing; especially if they were delivered with Chaos Energy.

Amy shifted barely during the healing, but other than that, there wasn't much movement to prove she still lived. Then she cringed, sharp pains shooting along her back as the wounds closed.

Sonic meanwhile was lifting Shadow onto his back, finding that it was far easier to carry him this way. The heat radiated of the black fur wasn't the most enjoyable thing, but Sonic felt he'd survive if Shadow did.

Knuckles appeared in the clearing, looking at Tikal and Amy, then at Sonic carrying the black hedgehog out of the cavern, "Sonic, what should we do with her?" He asked motioning the pink creature lying on the ground with his head.

Sonic shook his head, trying to think. "Okay, last time we left her, right? And she brought these guys after us....maybe we should keep her with us. Gag her, tie her up...I don't know...something..." He shrugged, moving Shadow a little to do so, while Amy let out a small moan.

The echidna nodded and scooped Amy over his shoulder as soon as Tikal was done with the healing, "My hut is no longer a safe place to go, but I still have a few spots where we can hide. At the moment Chaos is driving away the last of the trespassers, so we'll surely have the night to our disposal till they come back with a plan counting Chaos' presence in."

"Hmmm...." Sonic thought about it. "Well, I guess we don't have much choice but to leave again, huh? Though I have no idea how we're all getting anywhere fast; Shadow's out cold here, and with a fever. And Tails said he wasn't going to be here ‘til morning, yesterday....plus, you said yourself that we won't be out from over this sea for two more days, and I doubt you can glide that long with all three of us..."

The Guardian grinned, "Who said we're leaving the Island? GUN will probably think that we will leave after their little incursion, this will give us extra time to reorganize ourselves."

"Come, there's an abandoned base that Eggman left on the west side of the island, It'll take us all night to reach it. We can't run much, or what is left of the trespassers will acknowledge our presence being still here..."

Sonic nodded slowly, and looked toward Amy, limp in the Guardian's grasp. "You sure you want to carry her? You could take Shadow..." He was reluctant to offer, Shadow was sick after all. But he didn't want Amy waking up and beating the hell out of Knuckles. Of course, if she started to wake up, Knuckles probably could easily hold her still and get her to sleep again...

The echidna slowly shook his head, "No, when he wakes up, IF he wakes up, you'll be the only person who can talk to him without having him attack straight away." He said walking away.

Tikal resumed to being her orb self, and floated right behind the Guardian.

Sonic looking over his shoulder at Shadow's sleeping face, sighed. It felt like his temperature was getting higher already. Whatever was plaguing the other hedgehog was probably serious. He was so focused on his charge that he didn't notice the water demon materialize in front of him until he started to move forward.

Chaos narrowed his great, luminous eyes at the hedgehog, then turned and splashed after Tikal and the Guardian, mumbled something in his watery tongue.

It took all Knuckles ability to move in his island and all night to reach the abandoned base; by that time, Shadow was like dead. His breathing was barely hinted and his temperature reached highs that if he was a normal being he would have died hours ago.

Amy was starting to wake up now.

And all through the night, Sonic had become increasingly worried over the other hedgehog. Tikal had severe trouble trying to help him, mostly because she was not used to the way he lived, being made from Chaos Energy. She could no more help him than heal Chaos.

And the water demon wasn't much help either, despite the fact that every once in a while, if Sonic asked nicely enough, the creature would place a liquid-like hand on Shadow's brow, holding it there long enough to lower the hedgehog's temperature by a small margin.

So Sonic simply walked and worried...

Knuckles stopped in his track, "We're here." He said gazing at the monstrosity that the doctor had left after his 'vacation' on the island.

It was well hidden in the mountain side and if you didn't looked well, you wouldn't notice it.

"The hidden entrance is this way." He said walking down the small hill and towards a rock formation, "I hope that it still works, I'm not in the mood to force it..." He muttered to himself, shifting Amy in his shoulder a little.

Amy stirred and her eyes fluttered open for a second, then closed. For a minute, there was no more movement from her, then she shot awake, and yelped out in surprise. Sonic almost dropped Shadow when he heard that.

Knuckles was not that mindful, and he ended up dropping Amy to the ground; damn her and her screaming. Now he was half deaf in his right ear...

Chaos dropped on a battle ready stance, preparing for whatever was coming, until his spirit friend assured him that everything was fine.

The black hedgehog was the only one that didn't react to the scream.

Amy landed hard, but didn't cry out again, opting instead to look around at the others, horrified, mouth working without sound.

"You better follow us, Amy. Chaos is not happy with you having transformed the island in a war zone. You leave, and he'll hunt you down until you're dead." Knuckles explained without showing emotions and resuming walking.

The water creature stood in front of the pink hedgehog and narrowed his eyes. Yup, he was pretty angry, and he seemed to want to tear her limb from limb.

Amy gulped hard, then nodded slowly, pushing herself to her feet, knowing already that Sonic couldn't help her since he carried Shadow, and Knuckles wouldn't; he was too angry. She held in her tears, actually showing a little maturity, even if it was sprouted from bitterness, and the walking continued, somewhat to Sonic's relief.

The echidna finally reached the rock wall and fumbled around in search of something; when he found it, his face became a little more relieved. Hoping that it would still work, he pulled the lever, and again, to his relief, a hidden door opened, letting the early morning light enter the place after the years of abandonment.

Amy cringed, exceedingly unhappy with her position, and lingered outside as long as she could, i.e. until Sonic and Tikal had both followed the Guardian inside. Chaos however, stayed, standing right behind her, not about to let her out of his sight. Reluctantly, she too passed through the entrance.

The corridors were pitch black; luckily, the orb form of Tikal gave them a little source of light to see where they were going. Sonic shuddered in the dark, scarcely able to make out much more than Shadow's scarlet streaks in the pitch blackness when he looked over his shoulder. He could still feel the other breathing though, however shallowly.

"How much farther should we go Knux? I mean, the traps and stuff are probably still active..."

Knuckles nodded, "Yes, but a little farther inside, there's the living quarters. It's not that big, three or four rooms if I'm not mistaken."

"That's convenient...you were going to let Robotnik live here?" Sonic raised an eyebrow and Amy blinked, looking interested.

"No. I never knew of this base till he showed me. And it was already completed." He stopped in front of a door, "Behind this door there's the living quarters. Sonic, you'll be interested in hearing that the water coming out of the faucets comes directly from a spring in the Ice Caps, so it's pretty cold and pure to drink."

Sonic looked relieved, but rolled his eyes anyway, since it was expected of him. "Knuckles, if I wasn't already involved with someone, I think I'd kiss you." Tikal giggled loudly and Chaos gave a loud groan of annoyance. Amy seemed to be the only awake one who looked incredibly displeased.

The echidna raised an eyebrow in confusion, but sighed quickly afterwards, "Listen, if it wasn't for Shadow being half dead on your shoulder, I'd pin you right here to explain a few things, so for the moment," He opened the metal door to reveal a short dead end corridor with two doors to the left and two on the right, "...I'll let you go."

"By the way, the first one on the right side has the comfier bed."

As Sonic, grinning somewhat wildly, stepped beyond the door, Tikal clapped her hands over her mouth and started shaking in silent laughter, feeling insanely sorry, but the way the last comment had sounded, seeming to imply....well she just couldn't help herself. Even Chaos looked slightly amused.

Amy did not. She looked peeved beyond all reason, and was clenching a fist, looking off to the side. Sonic was supposed to become involved with HER, not a random ball of black fuzz he'd found on the street. She loosened herself quickly, and tried to think on something else, hard as that was.

The Guardian looked Tikal, then Chaos, then Tikal once again, "Can you explain to me what's up with you two?"

Tikal had to recover before she could answer, which seemed like it wouldn't be for a while. If she had lungs she probably would've been breathless by now. And since Chaos couldn't really speak a language Knuckles understood without Tikal translating, it seemed up to Amy to reply.

"You mean you don't know?! They were practically all over each other, and you didn't SEE?!"

It took Knuckles a few seconds before processing the information, then he crossed his arms over his chest, "And how do you know about it?"

"I saw them," Amy almost spat, but remembered who she was speaking to. "They probably would've jumped each other's bones right there if I hadn't stopped them." She looked away, disgust on her face. She'd never had a problem with couples like this in general, but thinking that Sonic would choose that sadistic...horrible...creature, over her, got her blood boiling.

Knuckles' eyes narrowed at her, "I didn't ask you." Then he turned to face Tikal, his eyes back to normal, "So, how do you know that?"

Tikal giggled again. "Well....Chaos and I were somewhat bored while you were gone to Sonic's before...so we went back to the temple, thinking about napping for a day or two...." She was starting as far back as possible, trying to stall so Sonic could get Shadow off his back. She wanted to at least make sure he didn't have a handicap to get him caught.

The echidna raised a brow, "Aaand...?"

"Well...we woke up and heard...Sonic and Shadow talking." Tikal stifled another fit. "...about how people fall in love, and find out if two people are a couple and all...you should've seen that sunset, you know. Missed a wonderful view..." She smiled sweetly.

"Tikal...."

"Okay, but I'm trying to save you some popped blood vessels here." She swayed on the balls of her sandaled feet. "But they were talking, and the stars came out, and for a little while things got really odd and tense...and then we had front row seats to the show!" She giggled, holding her cheeks.

The Guardian stifled a growl of frustration, "Front row seats for what show?" He asked keeping his calm.

Tikal was giggling wildly now, her shoulders shaking. Amy growled, and decided to translate, since Knuckles obviously didn't get it.

"She means they were making out."

It took the echidna another several seconds to process the information, but then, his eyes widened in shock; he didn't cared who Sonic made out with, but when you make out right in front of the Master Emerald, well.... that was another story.

"HEDGEHOG!!!!!!" He screamed to the air.