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expresso-bean · 6 months ago

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(EXTRA) The Man Out of Time [A ShadAmy and Silver Story]: Answers

Pairing: Shadow the Hedgehog x Amy Rose

Description: It has been seven years of peace following the grueling war with Eggman and his army. Though it took time to rebuild what they have lost, life for the Freedom Fighters could not be better. Whether it's finding love or trying to run from their past, celebrating post-war times has been different for each of them.

All is well until a silver hedgehog comes knocking on Amy Rose's door to deliver the tragic news about an incredible force that seems to be the cause of the future's destruction.

Will anyone believe the mysterious hedgehog's cry for help? Or will he be left to fight for his future alone? Read to find out!

Warnings: None

Word Count: 13.3k

POV: Third Person

Context: Future!Silver's Timeline

!! I do not own any of the art/gifs/borders used in my chapters. All credits to the rightful owners !!

Masterlist ✦ Memories

'Mental M.S. Log Entry 4703: It's been SEVERAL days since the failure of Trail #13, and I'm starting to lose a bit of hope. Although I don't want to give up, I'm beginning to wonder...'

Silver set his empty glass of chocolate milk aside. The glass was still sticky with syrup since he didn't mix it all correctly. He stared it for a moment before continuing with his log entry.

'Aside from that, the side-effects from this trail are somehow worse than the other previous jumps. Could this be because of what happened?'

Silver held his stomach uncomfortably. He felt as if something inside of him would burst. It was normal after a time jump. Despite all the trials he has endured, he never gets used to the after-effects.

Brain fog, jitteriness, nausea, static-like body, fatigue.

The symptoms mostly meant he couldn't eat anything for the next 12 hours unless he wanted to get extremely ill. Liquids, mostly chocolate milk, would sustain him until tomorrow morning. He would be in the bathroom until the next day if he ate any solids.

'This isn't working. What if it never works? What if something worse happens? If I try again, and I can't find a way out, what will happen to me? More importantly, what will happen to this timeline?'

To say he was feeling defeated was an understatement. Silver was a complete mess. Trial #13 was supposed to be the breakthrough trial. However, a last-minute malfunction almost cost Silver his life.

What he saw left him slightly shaken, but he couldn't admit that. Not even to himself.

'What even was that place?'

'KNOCK. KNOCK'

"Son!? Have you returned already?"

'Oh! End Log Entry!'

Silver rushed to open the door, not even realizing he had locked it upon his return. Standing behind the door, ready to embrace Silver, was his father, Shadow.

"Father! I'm sorry, I didn't realize I had closed the doo-," Before Silver could finish his sentence, his father hugged him tightly. Silver melted slightly into his father's arms and whisper a quiet "hey."

"You're home," His father sighed with relief. He shakily pet Silver's quills and sighed before tugging him closer to him. It was difficult to rest his head anywhere since Silver was an inch or so taller than him. "I'm glad you made it back safe, my son."

He could hear the relief in his voice and the nervous shake in his touch. It was familiar to him. He did this each time Silver returned home safely from a trial.

"Wait," Silver pushed his father away to look at him for a second. His father smiled as big as he could and nodded for Silver to continue speaking. "how did you know I was here?"

"You left the chocolate syrup out."

"Oh."

Silver let go of his father to scratch the back of his neck. Then, he was able to get a good look at him.

His father hasn't changed much since he was little. The most was a couple of new scars on his body now and again. But he's always had the same two thick scars on his left shoulder and a thin, almost faded scar on his right eye that nearly left him blind if it weren't for Tail's astounding technology.

There were no new marks on his father. The only thing that stood out was his empty, tired eyes that forever had sadness embedded within them.

'Another hard battle no doubt,' Silver contemplated for a second, unsure of what to say next. 'If I don't say it now, I won't ever.'

"Father," Silver bit his lip, and Shadow looked at him, waiting for him to continue speaking. Silver was nervous, but if he didn't ask now, he would never get another chance to. "Do you still think this could work?"

"It has to. There's no other way."

Silver was taken aback by his father's bluntness. His words were so fast and cold, almost like they were rehearsed. Silver felt that his father was preparing for this question, and the fact he already had an answer ready to tell him bothered him slightly.

'Is this going to be like all those other questions? Where he gives me vague answers and refuses to tell me the whole truth? He expects me to risk my life for this cause, and still, he wants to keep secrets.'

"But-," Silver stopped himself. He knew what he wanted to say, but fear prevented him from uttering another word. Frustrated, he sighed and muttered a quiet "never mind" under his breath.

"No, don't say never mind," His father interjected. "What's troubling you? You can speak to me about anything, you know this."

"I know," Silver tried not to groan or seem ticked as he knew his father would see that as a sign of disrespect. He knew his father would pay extreme mind to him if he acted rudely. His father was always respectful to him, and even when he wasn't, he apologized and communicated what was bothering him. It was something that Silver had a hard time replicating. "but I'll be alright. I don't need to talk about it."

"It pains me that you don't trust me enough to tell me what's wrong." Shadow tried to look into Silver's amber eyes, but his son refused to look at him. "I will always be here for you. As your father, you ne-"

"I'm scared, okay!? I'm scared! You want me to risk my life and the fact you're still hiding things bothers me! You tell me to trust you, but you why won't you trust me, your own son!" Silver paused to take a breath. He didn't bother to look at his father's face as he attempted to collect himself again. "I didn't get to meet them, and I know that isn't my fault, but you have no right to keep so much from me."

"So-, Silver. You should have told me."

Silver couldn't respond. He only stared at his father silently. There was a deep sense of shame in what Silver had to say. He wanted to take the words back, to frame them differently. But he was sick of keeping it all in. There was no other option but to allow the emotions to burst out.

'How could I? You go through enough already. I don't need you to have to take on my emotional burdens when you still hold your fair share.'

"I'm going to go clear my head for a bit," Silver looked away from his father and darted towards his bedroom door. "I'll be back as soon as I can."

His father stood before him for a second, eying him into submission as his arms crossed over his pumped-out chest. Silver quickly got the message, lowered his body, and stepped back as a sign of respect. He could tell his father wasn't angry with him, but he didn't like that Silver was being emotional and not communicating why.

"We don't part ways while angry, son."

"I'm not angry, I'm overwhelmed!" Silver gritted his teeth, not wanting to cry or embarrass himself further. "I promise I'll tell you later, but I need some time to think, please."

His father looked reluctant at first but gave in and let Silver pass. He was timid as he brushed passed his father and entered the kitchen.

'I'll apologize later, but I need to know how to make this time watch work. If he really wants me to go and fix everything, I need to know how. And even more about this whole time thing.'

His father uttered nothing as Silver rushed out of the room and darted towards the door. Before leaving, he took the pair of black and red keys off the table.

A part of Silver wanted to leave without saying anything to his father. But that would again come off as disrespectful to him. He wanted to avoid as much conflict with his father as he could.

'Hm. I don't want to tell him where I'm going.'

Silver jiggled the keys in his hands as a signal that he would be leaving. His father stared at him blankly, waiting for Silver to say something to him. He sighed, nodded, and waved him off, permitting him to go wherever pleased.

"You may go, just be careful, and come back when you can. And please-"

"I know, father. I just need some time to myself."

Silver quickly gathered himself and left. Silver could feel his father's eyes on him and even caught the quiet "goodbye," his father sent his way when he walked out the door and shut it quietly to mask his emotional state.

Silver eyed his father's signature red and black motorcycle. He has only used it a handful of times, mostly because his father constantly uses it to get around. Not that he can't run, but his Uncle Tails modified it to be a stealth tool. It's completely silent while riding it and has a feature that allows you to blend the rider and the bike into the surrounding area.

'I need to make this quick. Knowing my father, he is probably waiting for me to get home.'

Silver hopped on the bike, adjusting his body and hands to fit the bike. The ignition softly roared at him, and after shifting the hand bar twice, he took off towards his uncle's old lab.

'I need to look for notes, blueprints, or a manual maybe. There must be something I'm not getting right. Why else is this not working?'

Luckily, the roads were empty, which was expected since there weren't many people around this area. People avoid this place like the plague. It was where the first attack was, after all. Silver couldn't blame anyone. He would want to get out of this area too. But his father refuses to leave. Everyone has their reasons; he only wishes to know why his father continues to live in a place where most of his friends are buried.

'I wonder what they were like... If it all goes well, I get to meet them, right?' Silver eyes widened a bit at the thought. His father had told him the plan thousands of times, but he still gets anxious about meeting her. 'I wonder what Mom will say. When she sees me. If anything, I'm more worried about what I will say. I have so much to ask her... and so little time to do all of it.'

Silver let out a shaky breath. He only knew his mother through the questions he would ask his father. But now he will get the chance to meet her. Really MEET her. He gets a bit overwhelmed whenever he thinks about it.

'I'm going to crash if I don't start paying attention to the road...'

There wasn't a single thought in Silver's mind when he pulled up to the old laboratory. A broken, decaying red plane was still parked in the driveway. The lab itself was still in good enough condition other than the door being slashed open.

'It looks like someone broke in. But then why would the plane still be there? There are plenty of valuable parts still on it even if it is a bit run down.'

Silver carefully hopped off the bike. He looked around the landscape of where he was at. There wasn't a soul in sight. Just miles of dirt and the ever-so-often tree.

'I should get inside. I don't want to call attention to myself.'

Upon opening the heavy and slashed door, a flood of memories came rushing back to him.

'So much happened here. I spend some of my best days here with Uncle Tails and Aunt Cream,' Silver pushed the bike inside and took the keys out and shoved it into his pocket. Silver took a moment to look around for a second. 'I've only come back here a handful of times with my father, but I've never dared to come here alone. Not since that day. Still, it hasn't changed much.'

Silver didn't bother to look for a light switch. Tail's workshop had been abandoned for years. The natural light inside the lab was barely enough for Silver to see properly, but he was willing to work with what he was given.

'Where do I even begin?'

Silver squatted down near a metal desk and began rummaging through the drawers. There were folders upon folders of notes, but none related to the time device.

He continued to search on the desk and found nothing but tools he didn't know how to use and blueprints for devices that never got the chance to be made.

'This is interesting... but still not what I'm looking for.'

Silver got up and placed his left hand softly over his mouth.

"Uncle Tails, where'd you hide everything?"

Silver slowly got up and leaned against the cold, metal table. He let his right arm hang loose as he ruffled his brows to try and think of where more he could search.

'I don't know what I'm looking for,' Silver softly groaned in frustration. 'Uncle Tails... you were the only one who knew... why did you have to leave everyone so soon?'

'SNATCH!'

Silver shivered as the cool metal was ripped away from his wrist. Panicked, Silver swished his arms around into the open air around him but couldn't feel anything or anyone.

"Hey! What was that?" Silver looked around. There wasn't a single dim corner in the shed. He would have known if there was someone in there with him. "Give that back!"

"The time device."

A sultry, deep voice echoed through the workshop. Silver jumped a bit, freaked out by the mysterious voice. He looked around the room, and still, he couldn't see anyone in there with them.

"That means the stone was real," Silver couldn't recognize the voice. It ticked him off since his sense of control over the situation was at a minimum. "Where did you obtain this?"

"I'm not going to give out information like that to just anyone. I don't even know who you are!"

Something moved from the wall opposite him. It was faint, but he could barely make out the unstructured outline of a figure in the dim room. When the outline moved again, Silver stepped to try and get away from it.

'What the? What is that?'

The outline glowed purple and covered the being's body and revealed... someone. Their skin was fuchsia with a peach body. Where a nose would be, there was a broken yellow horn, the same yellow as his barren eyes framed with black. He wasn't wearing much gear. Just some tattered purple and black shoes and white gloves with beige bandages wrapped at the end to keep them from slipping off.

'He's too small to be a rhino... and too big to be a beetle... what is he?'

Silver kept staring at the person in front of him, who had a hard time maintaining eye contact with him. Silver sensed a bit of fear from him, but he couldn't have any sympathy for someone who stole that precious device of his.

"Who are you?"

He stepped away from Silver for a second, carefully clutching the device in his hands. Silver put his hand out gently, and he noticed the man untensed his body, and although his nerves were calm, it wasn't enough to return the watch.

"My name is not important," The man spoke. "I would have remembered it if it was."

"Oh," Silver blurted out. He shook his head and then continued. "I'm sorry you can't remember."

'This is awkward. I want to help him, but I have to get the time to watch back.'

"You said 'he' earlier. Did you know my uncle Tails?"

The man tried to think, his forehead wrinkled while trying to recognize if the name rang any bells. He shook his head and looked at the watch closely before flipping it over. He took a second to read the lettering on the back. Still, even long after reading it, he stood still.

'What is he doing?'

He walked up to Silver and grabbed him by the wrist. He clipped the device back on.

"I know that name. That person is deceased. I do not remember him as you do, but I cannot take this. This is yours now."

'Mine? If uncle Tails isn't the 'he' this guy was talking about, then who is?'

"You never answered my question," The man looked at him, confused. Silver thought about each out touching his shoulder, but doing that might staler him, so he decided to smile at him softly. "Did you know my uncle Tails?"

"He was murdered. I feel like I should know who he is," The man gripped his head with a shaky hand. "But I do not."

"It's okay, um, let me see if this helps. His name was Tails. Tails the Fox? This was his lab and he liked to make gadgets and planes. Uh, he made a lot of devices, like this watch. He was friends with Sonic the Hedgehog and married Cream the Rabbit. Does that help at all?"

"Tails. Sonic. Cream," Silver looked at him, anticipating what he had to say. "There were several of you. But, no, they are not the ones I search for. He wasn't the one who proposed the idea of the Time Stone."

'He remembers several of them. That's progress! Who does he remember though?'

"You are different. You were not there when it happened." The man walked over to him and looked him up and down. Silver tensed when he gripped his waist and patted him down along his frame. His face turned hot and he tried to look away to hide his embarrassment. "No, you're too young. You could not have even been alive then."

"Y-yeah, I-I don't remember you either," Silver stepped away from him and cleared his throat. He took a breath to try and relax. He didn't want to embarrass himself further. "I-I wouldn't worry about it. I don't remember a lot of them either. But I know what group you are talking about, at least, I think I do."

"You do?"

"I think so? There were several groups, at least, according to my father,"

'I know their names. Rouge the Bat, Knuckles the Echidna, Sally Acorn, and Vector the Crocodile, but nothing about who they were or what they did in their life. Everyone kept me in the dark. And he doesn't remember either. We'll need to help each other if we want to reveal the truth.'

"You said you didn't remember Sonic, Cream, or Tails. Does Amy or Shadow ring a bell?"

The man's eyes practically lit up. Silver could tell he had recalled something.

"Shadow! I need to speak with Shadow!" He gripped Silver's shoulders, scaring him a bit. "Do you know where I could find him?"

"You remember! That's great!" Silver smiled, happy he was able to make a bit more progress with the man. "Yeah, I know him. He's my father after all."

The man looked confused, at tilted his head.

"Father?" The man seemed surprised. Silver couldn't blame him. According to his aunt, Shadow wasn't known to be the 'lovers' type. "You're his son?"

"The one and only," Silver stepped away from the man and looked himself over, trying to find a feature that would relate to his father, but realized there was really nothing they physically had in common. "I don't look like either of my parents, so, I understand the confusion."

'I also wonder how black, red, and pink made silver...eh, maybe a relative on my mother's side.'

"But, you remember my father, correct?" Some hope fluttered in Silver's chest seeing the man nod his head. "My mother was also a great fighter, just like him. Her name was Amy, Amy rose. Do you remember her at all?"

Silver looked a bit hopeful. He longed to hear about his mother, to learn as much as he can about her. She lives through the stories of his family. He wants more of her memory; that's all he could ever ask for.

"Amy Rose," The man thought about it again. Silver felt that the name sounded familiar, but it seemed that the man couldn't come up with anything. "I'm sorry, I do not."

"It's okay, I don't either. I never really go to meet her."

"That must... be difficult."

"Sometimes."

Silver stretched out the word awkwardly, trying to mask the sadness. 'Difficult' was an understatement. Even if he wanted to get into how he felt, he wouldn't know where to begin. There are so many emotions, too many questions, and way too many thoughts that he could write a book about it. But even that wouldn't be enough. He'd run out of pages and ink.

"I can empathize with how you feel. Though I should know these names, it's as if I have never met them. It's a lonely feeling. I fault myself for not being able to understand."

The man tensed his fists until his arms were bulging from emotion. He looked panicked. Silver knew he had to do something before he had a panic attack. That or something worse.

"Hey, no, don't do that," Silver grabbed his hand in his and laid his other hand atop his. "None of this is your fault. You didn't ask to be this way."

The man didn't say anything. Silver could feel his blood warm through the gloves. It was the heat of humiliation.

'Should I ask him? Does he blame himself because he knows, or because he doesn't?'

"You don't happen to remember how you lost them, do you?"

The man looked down in shame. Silver's intuition was correct; he didn't know how he lost his memories.

"My mind is a puzzle I cannot fix. A piece appears every now and again, but I have no idea how to arrange it, or where it should even go, or if it is even real or not," The man scoffed at himself, probably frustrated with his own scattered mind. "I wonder if the memories are worth uncovering. Perhaps it is trying to protect me. But I supposed I'll never know."

'He looks sad...' Silver looked around the room for a bit. He understood the man more than ever. The man longs to remember, while Silver wishes to attain unspoken memories. There is something admirable about that. 'My father knows about him, he must know what happened.'

"If you want to remember," Silver nodded toward the man. "Then I'm going to help you get your memories back. You said you knew my father, right?"

"I believe so."

"If there is anyone who could help you, it's him. He knows... he knows a lot of things. He probably knows what happened to you," The man's mouth pursed. It was difficult to explain what the man may be thinking, but Silver could tell he was in pain. The mention of how he lost his memories makes him tense. His mind doesn't remember, but his body certainly does. "I would take you back to the house, but you don't fit on my bike. Just say here, I'll be back for you."

"He'll be here?"

"Yes, he'll be here. I promise."

"Okay," The man took a breath, almost as if he were worried about something and trying to reassure himself. "Just, come back. Even if it isn't with him."

"Hey," Silver placed an arm on his shoulder, ensuring eye contact. "I promise, I'll come back for you. No matter what."

"Mhm."

Silver nodded at him and let go of his hands. The man clutched his fists and backed away slightly.

"Just hang out here. And hide if you see them pass by,"

Silver could feel the fear in that man's soul. He didn't even have to say their names. He knew who they were. Everyone knew who they were.

'He knows about Ace and Anti. I wonder if that's how he lost his memories. He doesn't remember them, but he has to have fought alongside them if he remembers my father and time device.'

"I'm off. I'll be back as soon as I can."

The man didn't look back at him. He had the same expression as he did when he wanted to remember something but couldn't.

'"Please be careful. I need your help more than you know.'"

"I will, don't worry about me."

The man looked at Silver, confused.

"I-I did not speak?"

Silver simply blinked at him.

"Huh?"

The man looked away and waved him off. Silver blushed as he quickly left the garage with his bike in tow. He could tell the man didn't want him lingering around him anymore, and truthfully, he needed to get back to his father before he worried him more than he already has.

'He spoke to me. I swear I heard him,' Silver fished the keys out of his jacket pocket and hopped on the bike. The road in front of him was vast. Just as he expected it to be. 'I must be hearing things. Maybe I'm stressed, or crazy, or something... Ugh, what's crazy is that I'm hearing voices in my head.'

It wasn't the first time Silver had heard voices. When he was little, he could swear he heard his father talking. But whenever he asked about it, he would deny ever speaking. As he grows older, it is harder to ignore. He hears the voice clearly, like they are within his mind. But he never hears an echo or vibration in the area around him.

'Maybe I am crazy. Psychological stress maybe? I did grow up in a war zone. It wasn't completely out of the realm of possibility.'

Silver began his journey back to his house. He picked up the pace a bit, going fast enough to not draw too much attention to himself.

'Why would you come by the lab if you don't remember the person who lives there?' He tried to focus on the road, but a thought kept nagging him. 'He remembers my father, that's a given. But why the lab? Unless he was after the device and just hoped my father would be there.'

Silver bit his lip. He wasn't sure what to make of the situation. He sympathized with the man as he knows the struggle of wanting to connect with people he doesn't know. The man could have easily hurt him, or worse. Yet, he didn't. He seemed to have no mal intentions. He could have killed him from the beginning. He could have taken the time device and ran. He could have turned him in and sold him for profit.

'But he didn't. He's looking for my father for a reason, and I'm going to help him figure out why.'

Silver was quick to park the bike in front of his house. Still being careful enough so that it wouldn't fall or tip over. He ran up to the door and opened it, hoping to see his father waiting for him. Luckily, he was. He was resting at the table with his eyes closed, his arms crossed around his chest, and his head tilted backward.

"Father!"

His father jolted up and looked at Silver, who most likely looked like a sweaty maniac by now.

"Son, what's wrong? Did something happen?"

"No, I'm okay, I'm fine, but needed to ask you something!"

Silver was so out of breath that he took a pause. He wanted to spill out his sentences as fast as he could, but his body didn't let him say everything he wanted to.

"Calm down, you're worrying me."

"No! I'm honestly okay!" Silver took one more breath before speaking again. "I need your help. I met someone, someone really cool, I think! He knows about Anti, Ace, the time device, EVERYTHING! I have a picture of him, do you think you can identify him?"

"I suppose? What did he look like?" Silver pressed a couple of buttons on his wristband, and an image of a mysterious fuchsia man appeared in a small projection above his wrist. He was glad he snuck in a scan of the man when he did. "Espio,"

'Espio. At least I can give him a name now. What does he have to do with me traveling through time?'

"I haven't seen Espio since I found the stone."

"You do know him! I knew it! You are the only person he seems to remember!" Silver laughed in relief and shut off the projection. "He's looking for you."

"He is?"

"Yes, and I want to know why."

His father looked somber while staring at the projection. The same look of guilt on his face when he talked about his deceased friends.

'Something happened. He knows why Espio can't remember things. Are you going to hide things from me, or are you going to tell me what happened?'

Silver took a seat down in front of his father. He followed suit and sat back down in the chair he was dozing off in minutes before.

"Espio the Chameleon. I've known him long before the war even started. He was an old friend of Sonic. He was truly a good man of his time. He was among the first to help us back when this war began. He was as smart as he was skilled," Shadow paused for a second. Which meant he was measuring the words he wanted to say. Meaning that he was looking to hide more information from Silver. "However, that made him a threat to Ace and Anti. You know what they like to do with people they deem threats."

'A chameleon, huh? That explains the horn.'

"A threat," Silver paused for a second. He's only known Espio for less than an hour, yet, he could tell he had a fighter's spirit in him. Silver couldn't even sense him back in the lab. And when he expressed distress over the Time Device, he gave it back with zero hesitation. He came back for a reason, a noble one, no doubt. But that doesn't explain why they would go after Espio specifically when there were other fighters like Sonic and his father. "What would Ace and Anti want with Espio? Is that why he can't remember anything?"

"You already know about Ace's abilities, and when they figured out how could manipulate hordes of people to fight her battles for her, Espio was her first target," Shadow took another pause. Silver wanted to roll his eyes. Was he trying to hide information again, or was it because it hurt to remember? Silver liked to think I was both, but unfortunately, his father would never tell him. "Extreme intelligence and strength were exactly what she needed to help her manage her army. She got into his mind and searched for his weakness. When it got down between letting the love of his life live or giving himself to Ace, he choose to sacrifice himself."

'Why did I expect anything less from Ace. Espio doesn't seems like the type of person to give himself up. What did she do to him?'

"Did those monsters kill them anyways?"

"No, Mighty is still alive. I lost track of him years ago."

'That's a first. Maybe she needed alive in case Espio got out of line.'

"Wait, so if Espio chose to give into them, how is he still alive? And how does he know about the time device?"

"Espio promised Mighty he would find him again. The one thing you should know about Espio is he puts honor above all else. He told Mighty he would find him again, but he needed to escape Ace and Anti if he wanted to do that."

"Hm," Silver was impressed. Not only did he endure Ace and Anti for years, he escaped, and then went on to keep living. Be it with no memories but alive, no doubt. "He's the luckiest, most unlucky, guy around."

"That poor soul," Shadow uncrossed his arms from his chest and relaxingly crossed them on the tabletop. He leaned his body forward, maintaining his posture as he did so. "Espio fought hard to gain his control back. Fighting against an old friend like him is complex. But even forcing my hand against him, it felt like fighting a cheap imitation."

"Do you think he still remembered you?"

"I would like to believe so. but no one can be sure. What I am certain of is how, through all of the battles and agony, he was determined to gain control over his mind. It could be why he was not fighting to his full potential."

'I knew it. That explains his reactions and how he remembers to fight and remain stealthy. His mind might have forgotten, but his body still remembers.'

"How long did he stay like that?"

"Years, too many years," Shadow sighed, looking down at the table. "It broke his mind. Completely shattered his psyche. When he regained some sense of control, he came looking for me, but by then, it was far too late. Tails was gone. He didn't know who he had lost, but he still grieved upon hearing the news,"

'He didn't remember who he was. If it eats at him now, I can't believe how he must have felt then.'

"Espio, most likely, doesn't remember it, but I certainly do. He knew he had a mission, but he will never know what it was."

'...He knew about the time stone. He only remembers my father. Could it be that it actually... Espio's idea?'

"Father," Silver paused. Did he really want to know the answer? Not that it would change anything; he was worried that his father wouldn't bother to tell him the answer. He never specifically said it was Tails' idea; it was mostly just assumed. But could it be that Espio figured out how to travel back in time, and Ace found out about it? Was that the real reason he was targeted? "Whose idea was it to travel back in time?"

Shadow seemed a bit taken aback by the question. Like physically taken aback. Silver didn't realize it was that serious of a question.

'Is he actually going to tell me something important?'

"Dr. Robotnik would talk about the time stone as many times as he talked about the chaos emeralds. He believed if he got his hand on that stone, he could bring back Maria,"

'It was his idea?! Why would he hide something like this from me?'

"I thought it was nothing but a myth of an insane man gripping at straws to escape his own grief. I called him a loon for searching for a stone that might not even be real," Shadow laughed bitterly at his words. Silver could sense the sadness in his father. He was undoubtedly going to talk about his mother next. "I understand him now more than ever. I too followed him and did whatever possible to bring back someone I loved dearly. The difference is I found the stone. I was prepared to bring back your mother, to fix this war. Even if it killed me,"

'But, what does Espio have to do with this?'

"Eventually, I confided in Tails to set the device up for me. He believed me to be too reckless to send me back. So, I had to make the choice to send someone else."

Then, it hit Silver. Clear as day, he knew why Espio was at the lab. There was no other reason.

"It was supposed to be him, wasn't it?" Silver asked slight annoyance in his voice. "You wanted him to do this, not me."

"I never wanted you to be a part of this, any of this," Shadow shook his head and leaned forward in his chair. "You were still an infant when I mentioned the time stone, and still a toddler when I found it. How was I supposed to send you off to fight for a future when you barely understood the world you were living in?"

"So that's it? I was nothing but a replacement to you?" Shadow looked offended and gave him a look to calm down. But Silver was feeling hurt, and he refused to keep his mouth shut any longer. "I thought YOU choose me. I thought I was special to you. But no, it turns out I was just the second choice. You expect me to risk never seeing you again for a job you NEVER wanted me to do?"

"That is not what I said, you know-"

"No! I don't know, DAD. You never want to tell me anything! It's always something. 'I can't tell you that Silver', 'You'll find out later Silver', 'You understand, right Silver?'. Well, no! I don't understand. Because you never want to explain ANYTHING to me."

"I tell you plenty! I say what I must to maintain order," Shadow sighed, hating the way his voice raised at Silver. But Silver kept staring at him in silence, waiting for him. "I did not want you to fight in this war. I never wanted this life for you. I chose Espio to protect you from all this. But now you are a part of it, I have to hide some things to preserve both the past and future. You need to respect that."

"The more you hide from me, the less I trust you! I would have known this if you had just told me! Now I look like an idiot because we don't communicate!" Silver felt a rush of heat form on his face. He didn't know how to phrase it, his words. They wanted to rush out and get the conversation over with. But he still had so much to say. He needed to preserve his dignity and stand up for his feelings without an apology. "What was the plan for me? To stand around in an empty wasteland forever without knowing about mom? Or what happened to her friends? To wait around and die? No, I'm not doing that! I'm going to help this future, and I don't care that you never wanted me to!"

"You listen to me. All of that is far from the truth and you know it. Tails wanted you to do this job. He designed the watch for you. He wanted to train you. He sacrificed EVERYTHING for you. I never want to hear you say that you were second fiddle. You were never that to him."

"I know what I was to him, I never doubt that Uncle Tails loved me dearly, almost like a son. But not to you. I was second choice to you," Silver eyes filled with hot tears. He wanted to cry, but he couldn't. Not in front of his father. And not at a moment like this. "I bet you never even wanted me."

"Silver, do not EVER say that I did not want you. I love you, I loved you even before I saw you. Your mother and you were my world, my pride, my love. That never changed when she passed away. You are my son. Mine alone. You are what I live for; the same goes for your mother."

"Why should I listen to you? I'm starting to think all of this lying is to protect yourself rather than me," Silver squinted his eyes, and he saw Shadow hesitate for a second, and it suddenly clicked for him. "This was to save her, right?"

"Silver, that isn-"

"That's why uncle Tails couldn't trust to send you back. You were too reckless to go back on your own."

"If all you are going to do is assume I will not participate in whatever conversation you think you are having with me."

"This wasn't about stopping them at all. You wanted to save her," Silver felt his eyes water. He looked over at his father. He hadn't noticed he had been crying. "What did Mom die from again?"

"I am done talking about this," Shadow stood up from his chair, making it squeak loudly. "Go to your room Silver. That is an order."

"Well, that's you. I for one am not done talking. I-"

Shadow slammed his hands on the table, demanding Silver's attention. Silver didn't flinch as his father's eyes glowed with anger. Rather, Silver squinted, letting his father know he wasn't scared of him.

"Go. To. Your. Room." Shadow's voice seethed with frustration. Silver didn't care. He wasn't scared of his father. He respected him, but Silver knew he wouldn't lay a hand on him. "Before I make you."

"I was just leaving."

Silver shoved his fists in his pocket, feeling around the empty space for the keys to the bike outside.

'I made a promise to Espio. I will go back to him. Although, my father is choosing not to join us. At least I can tell him what my father knows about him. I hope Espio will understand.'

"Silver, do not go outside this house!"

"Too bad!"

Silver slammed the door behind him. He heard nothing as he rushed to the bike. He quickly turned it on and took off without looking back. He just wanted to forget everything he said to his father. He doubted his father even cared about what he had to say.

'I am not going to let him play me for a fool like this! He wants to do all of this to get her back, not because of me,' Silver blinked away some of his tears. He didn't want to ride the bike with tears in his eyes. He's done that before and it didn't solve his problems. It left his eyes puffy, sore, and dry. He wasn't about to make the same mistake twice. 'What does that do to me? Does he love me for being me? Or because I am the last thing she left behind?'

"WOAH!"

'What the hell was that!' Silver squinted his eyes and focused on the figure in the mirror. His breath hitched. He knew that black and red frame anywhere. 'Is that-?'

"SILVER IF YOU DON'T PULL OVER RIGHT THIS INSTANCE I WILL-"

'He'll what? He wouldn't hurt me... right?'

"NO! I'M GOING TO TALK TO ESPIO!"

Silver yelled at the image of his father from the mirror, which was becoming a bit closer with each word he spoke. Silver could feel the heat of fear grow on his face. He knew what he was doing was wrong.

'I made a promise. I'm not going to hold off on it because of him!'

Silver turned the handle and placed the bike to maximum speed. He didn't have time to conceal the vehicle, not that it would do him any good anyway. His father was already hot on his trail.

"AND YOU CAN'T STOP ME."

Silver did a hard turn. In his mirror, he could still see his father trailing behind him. His eyes squinted from the harsh winds and he began to regret not putting on some glasses before his plan.

'I got to lose him. And fast,'

The longer stared at his father's figure, he almost gasped at what he noticed. His father was sporting his house slippers rather than his rocket shoes.

'Wait,' Silver looked toward the road ahead and rolled his shoulders back to relax. 'Although I'm impressed, I still might be able to lose him.'

"SILVER I-"

What Shadow was about to say was out of earshot. Silver slammed his foot on the gas. The way the tired ripped beneath the dirt road made him cringe. It was too loud for his liking, and a sense of dread warmed his body. He understood the risk he took, but the last he heard of Ace and Anti, they were far away from this part of the city.

'I'll add that to the list of things I'll be getting an earful for tonight.'

Silver slammed on the brakes next. He held onto the handles for dear life as the bike stopped. His bottom lifted off the seat briefly before he regained his balance.

"Eek!"

'I hope no one saw that. That was embarrassing.' Silver felt a sense of relief when he turned around and saw a vast field of nothing and no one. It wasn't to say his father was not on his way to get him, but that he still had a chance to make sure Espio knew he stuck to his promise. 'I'm done hiding how upset this makes me. I know what will happen once I fix everything. Before it ends, I want to know as much as I can.'

"Shadow?"

"No," Silver quickly closed the garage door behind him. Thought the lights didn't work, the afternoon sunlight lit up the room through the slashes in the door. "it's Silver again, remember?"

"Yes," He nodded. Silver noticed he was in sitting right in the same place he had left him, as if he hadn't moved a muscle in the entire time he was gone. "you were just here, weren't you?"

"Sure was," Silver felt a sense of relief go to his face as he smiled. "So, I told my father about you!"

"Really?"

"Yes, really!"

Silver nearly took a step back when Espio stood up. The chameleon breathed out an airy chuckle of relief. What surprised him the most was his smile. It was bright and soft as the sun hitting his face. He was so deep in his emotion he his hand to his cheek and clawed at the corner of his mouth.

'I guess he couldn't believe it either. I don't blame him.'

Silver's guilt didn't even let him crack a smirk. He was so nervous about his father bursting through the door at any moment he could only stand there in fear.

'What will I even say to him? It isn't like he isn't coming.'

"What did he say about me?"

"So what I found out wa-"

'BANG! BANG! BANG!'

"I KNOW YOU ARE IN THERE SILVER! OPEN THIS DOOR OR SO HELP ME I WILL BUST IT OPEN!"

"Is that Shadow?" Silver quietly nodded. "Is he... okay?"

"Nope," Silver turned around timidly. He could make out his father in between the slashed metal. Luck would have it that his father didn't notice Silver looking right at him. "but I don't want you to know what will happen if I don't open that door myself. You don't mind, do you?"

"I am not equipped for this."

Silver sighed, not knowing why he even asked. Espio hadn't seen Shadow in years. The last thing he would want to see from his long-time friend is his angry face because of a mistake his son did.

"Right," Silver exhaled sharply. He was so nervous he couldn't open the door himself. "I'll just get the door."

He reached out his hand and a blue mist illuminated around the door. He moved his hand up slightly, and the door followed suit, making a loud screech echo through the room. Shadow stood there with his arm crossed watching Silver with an unamused look on his face. Silver let go of the door and stepped aside as his father walked in to stand in front of him. He noticed as his father's chest rose and fell and wondered if it was from how angry he was or from being out of breath getting there.

'Just say something. He isn't going to hurt you or anything.'

"F-father. Hi."

For how Shadow was yelling at him earlier, Silver expected him to scream at him from the moment he opened the door. Yet, he didn't. In actuality, Silver noticed his father was unusually calm.

'He's... quiet.'

Shadow was standing at the doorway in silence. His arms were crossed, and his eyes were shut forcibly, undoubtedly from all the pent-up emotion within him.

'Too quiet,' Silver started at his father, waiting for him to say something to him, anything at least. 'he's scaring me a bit.'

Silver noticed his father wasn't acting as he usually was when upset. His foot wasn't tapping, nor was he looking at Silver. Silver's shoulders tensed up slightly when he realized the position he had put himself in.

'Oh shit. He's livid.'

"Silver. I am very, very, VERY upset with you. And I will not yell at you in front of company. But I am sure you know what we will discuss later at home."

'There it is,' Silver held in a sigh. One part of him knew it was his own doing that his father was so upset. The other part, however, still blamed his father. 'If he had just talked to me more, none of this would have happened!'

"Yes, father, but before we do," Shadow looked unimpressed as he opened his eyes just to glare at Silver. "I stand by everything I said."

"Not now Silver," Shadow groaned as he turned around toward Espio. For a moment, he forgot the chameleon was witnessing the entire interaction between him and his father. He would have been embarrassed, but he was too busy looking at the reunion between the two. His heart melted at Espio's reaction when Shadow walked toward him. The way his eyes were widened Silver would have thought the other was looking at one of the world's wonders. "Espio. It's been some time."

"Shadow. I-I remember you," Espio looked Shadow in the eye before bowing to him like royalty. His father wasn't bluffing when he said Espio was a man of honor and respect. "I remember what I had to do."

"My old friend, you have nothing left to do," Shadow lifted Espio up and pulled him into a hug. Espio's body tensed up, but he soon sank in. Silver could tell Espio had forgotten what a hug felt like. And his father just reminded him how it felt like to be cared for. "You could rest easy now."

"Wait, that isn't right," Espio released himself from Shadow. "I...I had to complete the mission. It is what... I was meant to do. Was it not?"

"Not anymore," Shadow shook his head. He then looked toward Silver. He sighed. "Whatever mission you were to complete will be fulfilled by my son, Silver."

Espio looked at Silver long and hard. It was clear that he was analyzing the sixteen, almost seventeen-year-old. Silver paid no mind to it; he could always rely on his senses to tell him what Espio was feeling.

'You know, I'd rather not know what he thinks of me right now.'

"Shadow, are you positive? I understand that I know nothing of your son, yet, I wonder if he is capable of completing something like this?"

"Why'd you say it like it's a bad thing?" Silver mumbled, kicking a stray pebble to the other side of the room. 'I am more than capable of defending myself against him. I didn't know I was supposed to fight him with everything I had earlier.'

Shadow sighed and looked toward his son. Silver still refused to make eye contact with either of them. Shadow could tell his son was still fuming from the comments earlier.

"He has his faults and irrationalities, I admit that he had some maturing to do," Shadow tried to reach out for him, but Silver was too distracted to notice and accidentally stepped away. It made Shadow frown slightly, but he hoped everything could be cleared up after dinner. "But Silver is my son. He is capable of doing what he pleases with that mind of his."

"Both literally and figuratively."

Shadow gave Silver the side-eye, which wiped off the little smile on his face. Silver just rolled his eyes and crossed his arms, again beginning to mumble angsty jargon under his breath.

"R-right, I believe in your judgment Shadow. I meant no disrespect to your son,"

'Sure,' Silver mocked in his head. 'I hope we get to train together so I can show you how I really fight.'

"I would never disrespect the person who promised me so much."

"Oh," Silver uncrossed his arms, and both men turned to look at him, wondering what else the silver-quilled hedgehog had to say. "Espio...."

"Yes?"

'I think it would be best for everyone, right? Just say it, I should just say it.'

"Come home with us."

Silver looked at his father, surprised at what he had said. It was exactly what he had been thinking and contemplating since he met the chameleon.

'Yes, this way I won't get yelled at by my father!'

"Home? With you?" Espio glanced at Shadow, who nodded at him. "Shadow, am I honored, but I am in no need of your assistance. I still have one mission left to complete before I could think of resting."

'Mission? Is that why he needed the time device?' Silver looked at his father's face. His eyes looked sad. 'No, it's something else. It seems personal. If he really needed the time device for it, he would have taken it and ran.'

"Espio," Shadow shook his head. "I have lost track of Mighty five years ago. If you are so instant on finding him, I will help you," Shadow looked behind him, signaling over to Silver, looking through some files on his wristlet. "Believe me, if you continue searching, you will only lose more of yourself."

Espio's pupils seem to shake at that statement. Silver could sense a deep anguish within him. Within them both.

'They're alike, aren't they? My dad and him. The only difference is...'

"You lost track of him..." Espio chest battered out an empty chuckle. His eyes pooled over with tears. A memory resurfaced. No one could tell what it was, but Silver felt content knowing that Espio had found a piece of himself again. "I-I remember now..."

"You remember?" Shadow visibly restrained himself from jumping on the man. He cleared his throat and mumbled a soft apology. "What is it that you remember?"

"It-It's not important to what we are trying to accomplish. Mighty was one of the most impatient people I knew. I should have known he would not wait around for me forever."

'He was supposed to stay. He said he would wait, that it could have been forever. How long has forever been?'

"Ow." Silver's whisper went unnoticed by Espio and his father. Though he was looking right at Espio, Silver didn't see his lips move at all. Yet, it was his voice clearly playing in his head. "What was that?"

'Mighty,' Silver never heard the name before. He most likely didn't fight in the war. His father would have mentioned him by now if he was. 'Whoever he was, he was important enough to Espio to look for my father. Time device aside. My father knows who he is.'

"He said he would wait for you forever, right?" Espio nodded and mumbled something under his breath. "Someone who loves you would wait forever."

Espio moved his hand toward his heart. Silver's words had greatly touched him, yet, Silver could still see his face scrunched up with hurt.

"I suppose so."

"We should get home," Shadow interrupted. "You must be starving if you came here all the way from the ruins in Mobotroplis."

"I came from the Temple."

The room went silent for a moment. Silver looked over to his father who had a frown on his face.

The Temple was something Silver knew so little about despite it being the reason he could time travel in the first place. His father rarely mentions the place, only bringing it up when talking about acquiring the stone. It wasn't surprising to Silver that he never elaborated on where the Temple was or what else could be inside.

'Whatever it is, that look he's giving Espio means that whatever was near that Temple is bad news.'

"The Temple? As in the one I found the stone from?"

"Is there...another one?"

"No, it's just, that's so far from here. What were you doing all the way out there for?"

"I was retracing my steps, trying to remember why I only remembered you so vividly,"

His father's face strained, and Espio kept his eyes fixed on that look. Silver could not bring himself to say anything. Not the look, not the temples, or how his father keeps his secrets even to his friends.

'It's strange.'

"It's strange."

'That's what I'm saying.'

"We...We'll discuss this later. Son, take him home. I'll meet you there."

"Yes, father."

"And Silver," Silver straightened his posture as his father approached him. Shadow pointed to the bike parked outside the lab. "If you know what's good for you, go straight home. Don't pull something like that with me again."

"Yes, I know."

"I forgot how off putting he makes others feel."

"Yep, that sounds like a memory I would have kept repressed," Silver looked to him to see if he'd even react. But there wasn't even anger in his stone-set face. Silver smiled awkwardly and began walking to his bike. Espio followed suit. "Sorry, bad time to be making jokes," Silver mounted the bike and adjusted the mirrors before turning it on. Silver looked at Espio and patted the back seat. "Just hold on tight. don't need you falling out."

Silver had to stop himself from shivering from how cold Espio was. His hands rested lightly on his shoulders. But before Silver could ask him to tighten his grip, he saw his father approaching them. He didn't even look at Silver; he grabbed Espio by the hands and adjusted his grip on Silver's shoulders.

"You have to grab on the right way, or you'll fall. Now, let's get going."

"Right," Espio answered meekly. Silver kept his gaze on the open road ahead of him, waiting for his father to take the lead before he even thought about moving.

Neither of the three spoke to the other, which was fine with Silver as he was so focused on not going. Silver was careful to try to match his father's speed. He was scared of what he might do to him if he did not follow him to a t.

"We're here," Silver whispered. He hated being the one to always break the silence. He turned around to look at Espio. The chameleon's eyes were doing circles with the way he was taking everything in.

'I wonder what that feeling is like. To take in everything as if you were seeing it for the very first time.'

"Do you remember this place?" Silver said a bit louder than before. Espio vision finally settled on him. He shook his head.

"For me, it is like looking at it for the very first time."

"I don't blame you for not recognizing it," a voice from behind bellowed. Silver sunk into himself a little bit as Shadow approached. He, too, was now standing in front of the house. His eyes made the same circles as Espio's did moments ago. "I don't. Not anymore. This is not the same home I created with her."

"With who?"

"With his mother," His father looked at the house a little longer. "Amy Rose."

Silver nearly gasped when he heard the name from his mouth. Shadow rarely addresses his mother by her full name. Not that he never mentioned her before this. Silver always heard 'your mother,' 'the love of my life,' 'Silver's mother.' She was always intertwined with one of them.

'When was the last time I heard him say her name? Has it really been that long?'

"Amy. Rose?" Espio looked at Silver. He stared at him like he was trying to complete a puzzle on his face, which was visible only to him. "Amy Rose." He repeated. "The pink hedgehog?"

"Yes, her, that name," Shadow tears his eyes away from the house to look at Espio. It was a dead-eyed stare. Silver almost felt a bit scared for Espio. The last time he saw that look on his father's face it didn't end well for the other party.

'It was the first time I saw him fight. That day in the anti-zone.'

"What do you know about that name?"

Espio didn't answer. His head dropped toward the ground and his eyes closed. Shadow kept staring at him with that look, his chest heaving more than before.

'He's trying to remember something. He feels like he should know, but he doesn't. I know what that's like.'

"Nothing," His eyes opened. He looked at Shadow and shook his head. "I don't know her from the past. But he mentioned that name to me. Even showed me a picture."

"I-I never showed him a picture?"

Shadow looked at Espio, who was still looking confused as he stared between the two of them.

"Y-you didn't?" He whispered. "Did I..."

"Espio, you remembered!" Silver laughed out. "You do know her!"

"You both fought in the last battle in the war for the Quartz Emerald in the Seventh galaxy together. You both have so many memories together. I'm glad that she still lives through your memories," Shadow's voice was so low he almost didn't hear what he said. That was until he turned over to Silver. "What prompt you to ask him about your mother?"

Silver felt his face grow hot the longer his father stared at him. It might have been out of embarrassment. Truthfully, Silver was desperate to know anything he could about her. His aunt and uncles were gone. The only uncle he has around is Sonic. And the last time he mentioned her, he threw a glass of water at his face.

"I-I," Silver stumbled over all the thoughts in his head. They all screamed so loud. All longed to learn about her. "I wanted to see if he remembered her. I don't hear a lot about Mom from you."

"You never ask."

"You never seem in the mood to talk about her!"

"Silver," Shadow sighed out. He didn't sound angry. Not like before. Silver could tell his father was exhausted. A part of him felt guilty. The other part, however, felt like he wanted to push more.

"I'm just saying. You got to know her. We both lost her, but I only know of her through pictures on the wall. How is that fair?"

"Silver," He repeated, almost like a warning.

"What?"

"Get inside now."

Espio remained quiet as he followed Shadow up inside the house. Silver stayed outside, looking up at the house. He tsked, kicking the dirt underneath his foot so forcefully he thought it would get in his eyes.

There were so many emotions brewing up inside of his stomach. It wasn't like any post-mission nausea he had ever felt before.

'What did I even do? Why do I have to sit through another one of his lectures?'

"Silver! Get inside here, now!" Silver tensed up. He sighed, clenching his fists. He stomped up the two steps leading up to the front door. And closed it shut without even touching the knob. Shadow was standing at the kitchen table with his arms crossed and a fire in his eyes. "I'm going to get Espio situated. Do not move from this chair, do you understand me?"

"Yeah, I do," Silver mumbled out.

"I mean it, Silver. Do not get up."

'Well, this is going to be a long night.'

Silver was so angry he wanted to kick the chair before him to pieces, but he knew that would only worsen his case. The emotions in his stomach kept getting stronger and stronger. He rested his arms over the area. It didn't feel like any stomachache he'd ever had.

'I swear, I'm going crazy,' Silver tapped his foot slowly against the floor, trying his best not to make too much noise or sound too annoyed. The last thing he wanted was to make the whole situation worse for himself.

"Silver?"

Silver was so lost in his own thoughts he didn't even notice his father walk in.

"Yes?" He responded, trying to bite back his sour attitude as much as he could. Silver could see all over his father's face that he was doing a poor job at it.

"Son," Silver stared at his father as he sat in front of him. "Do you want to know why I am so upset?"

"Because I ran after Espio and parted ways upset with you?"

"That is one of the reasons," Shadow sighed out.

'What else could there be?'

"Moreso, I am upset you do not trust me."

"I do trust you." Silver retorted.

"Silver, I taught you better than to be dishonest with me. You do not trust me. If you trusted me, you would not have kept this from me."

"But-"

Shadow raised up his hand before Silver could give a reply. Silver jaw clenched.

"Truly, did you really think I am such a terrible father that I would risk the life of my only son to fix what happened?"

"I never said-!"

Shadow stood up from with such force the wooden chair he was sitting on flew back. The screeching and tumbling rattled the entire house and made Silver's breath hitch.

"I would do anything to trade places with you! I have risked everything and everyone to keep you safe! Yet still, I see the anger on your face whenever I have to hold my tongue so that the trials run their perfect course and we can give a chance at the future everyone deserves. Why, Silver?! Tell me why you hate me so much?"

"I don't hate you, father." That's all Silver could muster to say while his throat grew warm and scratchy. If he said another word, his words would break, and his eyes would pool over with tears. He didn't deserve to cry. Not there in front of his father who was pouring his heart out with dry eyes and his voice stable and clear. He could even muster a couple of words without becoming a pathetic mess.

"Do you think I get gratification from lying to my son? Believe me, I don't! It breaks my heart to have to keep things from you. It tears my soul in two to know that one day, I will stop waking up to your face. But..." Shadow sighed, shaking his head. "What must be done will be done. We'll be happy in our other life. But for now, please, my son. Don't waste these moments we have together being angry at me."

"I'm..." Silver couldn't hold it any longer. A tear strayed down his cheek. "I'm sorry."

Shadow looked behind him and dragged his chair back to be right in front of his son. He wiped the tears off of his son's warm face. Silver's lip quivered as Shadow looked at him with his tired eyes. Those same old, ruby eyes that have been him like this since he was a little boy.

"I accept your apology," Shadow said softly. He caressed Silver's cheek as he continued to wipe the tears from his face just like he used to when he was a boy. "You should have told me, Silver. I assumed my son would trust me enough to tell me his fears."

"I'm starting to realize I should have done a lot of things differently," Silver laughed softly, his face still warm and wet from crying. His father took his hand and instead rested his arm on the table. "I really am sorry, dad."

"Silver," Silver looked towards his father from across the table. "Do you remember what I told you when you were young?"

"I think so?" Silver crossed his arms and began to think. His father had told him a lot of stories, mostly about the past he had before meeting his mother and before the first time he met his uncle Sonic. "Is this about your time with the doctor and his granddaughter?"

"Yes," Shadow's voice grew dark, and his eyes began to glow red. Silver could tell his father was deathly angry. "I detested that man with every fiber of my body. I could never understand how heartache and the fear of losing someone could destroy a person," Shadow shook his head. "Even when I lost Maria, I was able to come back to my senses."

'He never really talks about her. From the databases, she died from a government-initiated raid.'

"That was not the case when I lost your mother,"

'Mom...'

"Only then did I understand the man I hated. I never thought it was possible to lose her. And when I did, I went mad with grief. Sick with rage. The time stone was something Dr. Robotnik would speak of, all to reverse what happened."

"It never was the stop of the war, was it?" Silver began to remember when his father would cry alone in his room. Although he would see his father be strong around him and even stronger on the battlefield, he could not imagine all the pain he was going through because of his mother's death. "It was to get her back."

"I knew it." Silver whispered. His father looked rather ashamed of himself at that moment. Silver held back a gulp, too afraid to make any noise.

"It was selfish, yes, but I could not forgive myself for what happened to her. The simple thought of you growing up without her broke me apart like nothing ever has," Shadow's eyes began to tear up. He clenched his fist, not wanting to cry. Silver stared at his father, riddled with shame. He tried to comfort him, but his guilt prevented him from offering him a comforting touch. "I went mad trying to find the stone. To prevent the death of your mother and those of my dear friends. I proposed the idea to Tails. He was the one who explained to me my plan could not come to fruition."

"Well, yeah. What would be the point of stopping Mom from getting killed if the war is what killed her."

Shadow nodded in agreement.

"As I told you before, we were unprepared. We were at peace. No one had even bothered to pick up a weapon after the first war ended. That was our downfall."

"No one could have known," Silver reassured. "No one could have blamed you guys for wanting to retire after fight 'the war of all wars'."

"What is funny is your mother was the one person who never stopped fighting."

"She didn't?"

"No, not ever. She would say her strength was a gift, and because of that, it was her calling to use that strength to help those who could not help themselves."

Silver adored the way his father talked about his mother. Though melancholy, a light sparked in his eyes and a permanent smile appeared on his face at the mere mention of her. In these moments, Silver can glimpse into the past and see what his father used to be before the scourge.

'She sounds awesome.'

"Your mother could solve anything she puts her mind to. She'll be able to fix this mess we're in. Whatever threat comes, she'll stop it. You have to let her know that."

"I know," Silver muttered. He has heard the same speech hundreds of times. It tears him up inside that he will only see what his mother is capable of in another life that isn't even his.

"Son?" Shadow sighed and placed his hand atop his son's. "I have been too hard on you. For that, I owe you an apology."

"It's okay, dad. You do what you have to do, right?" Silver whispered.

"I am changing your mission."

"Huh? To what?"

"You are to stay in the past and help them win. You can spend time with them, meet them, and get to know all the things words will not be able to justify."

"Wait, really?" Silver stood up in surprise. Shadow nodded as his eyes shut, lost in thought.

"I write a list of everything there is to know about them. I hope that will make you happy."

'Stay with Mom and her friends?'

"Really? You're not joking?"

"You should know that jokes aren't my strong point."

"Thank you!" Silver grabbed his fathers hand and brough him into a hug. His father's surprise chuckle rang through both of their bodies. "You have no idea how much this means to me, Dad."

"Anything for you, son."

Shadow patted Silver's head before letting him go. Shadow stares into Silver's eyes for a moment.

"You look just like her," Shadow whispered. A small smile on his face. "I can't wait for you to meet her, son. She will love you."

"I hope so."

"She will. I know it." Shadow reaffirmed with confidence.

Silver smiled sheepishly, not knowing what else to say. He felt like a weight had been lifted off his chest. The talk he had wanted with his father had finally been had, and now he didn't know what to do with himself.

"Let's hope we didn't disturb Espio too much. He is still getting used to his room."

"Oh, I almost forgot about him. How is he doing?"

"Adjusting would be the best word," Shadow sighed out. "We should let him rest; he traveled miles to get here."

"When was the last time you saw him?"

"His body was dumped out in a landfill about three years ago. It was then I learned that he had lost most of his memories. His mind was gone, but the body doesn't easily forget. He knew how to claw his way out of a dangerous situation."

"But he remembers you now. What happened in between those three years?"

Shadow shook his head. "I wish I could answer that. I don't know why I am the only one he can recall. I wasn't even the one closest to him."

"Hm," Silver hummed. "Memories work in weird ways."

"You both have met before this."

"Huh?" Silver blinked. "What do you mean?"

"You were still small, barely able to make out a babble. He held you in his arms and nearly cried when he saw you open your eyes. He said you reminded him of your mother. Mighty was there two. He made you those wooden toys you loved so much as a child."

"What? He did?!"

"He did," Shadow nodded. "I wish you both could have remembered all that."

"So do I," Silver got up from his chair. His legs were wobbly from all the nerves, so he steadied himself on the top rail of the chair. "Do you know if Uncle Sonic knows about Espio?"

"Of course he does. They were close before the war."

'I wonder what he'll say about him?'

"Before you go on saying anything, I wouldn't bother bringing it up to him. You know how he can be."

'Of course, I know how he is. I have to bring him his food. Not that Dad doesn't talk to him. I can hear them fighting through the walls.'

"But while you're there," Shadow stands up from his place at the table and makes his way to the food safe. It's a basket of assorted foods from the rations station. "Take this to him."

"How did-?"

"You think I wouldn't know my own son?"

"Yeah, yeah, I know," Silver grabbed the basket, taking in the scent of semi-stale bread and metal cans that stunk of dirty copper. "Dad?"

"Yes?"

"I'm sorry. Again."

"You're okay, son. Remember how much I love you."

"Me too, Dad." 'I love you too.'

Silver took the basket off the table and walked to the door. He silently creaked it open and walked outside. The sight of a disheveled shed made him sigh.

Silver is usually the one to deliver him his dinner, but whenever he comes back from trial runs, it becomes harder to ignore his Uncle's annoyance with him as it becomes a fight of 'the trials are pointless' or 'how dare you leave your father in charge of my meals.'

'As if I have any control over what he and my father fight about when I'm not here.'

Silver knocked on the door first before pushing the heavy wooden door open. There was an audible groan coming from the shadowy lump curled on the bed. To Silver's surprise, the room smelled as if it had been freshly cleaned.

"You two will never let me starve to death, will you?"

Sonic was turned away from the door. All Silver could make out were faded, blue quills. Silver couldn't remember the last time he saw his uncle's face. It could have been months or even years. From all the years of Sonic yelling at him or giving him silent treatment, he has learned it is best not to visit his room often.

"Hey, Uncle Sonic. I'm sorry I haven't been around too much."

"Yes, I could tell. Look what your father came and did!"

'Cleaned?'

Silver heard him grunt from his bed. His body shook with the vibrations of his voice.

"I came to ask you something."

"Whatever it is, I don't know."

"It's about Espio."

There was a pause. Silver could not even hear his Uncle's breath. It was so deathly quiet.

"Espio?" He finally spoke. "What about Espio?"

"We found him. He's alive and staying with us."

"Oh? What, he wants to see me or something?" Sonic let out a low chuckle. Silver had never heard a laugh so devoid of emotion. "Tell him no thank you."

"No, he came looking for my father?"

"Shadow? Why would he want to look for Shadow? He despised the guy."

'Really? They seemed pretty friendly before. I wonder what changed.'

"He doesn't remember much, but he knows who my father is," "It got me thinking that, if he sees you, it might trigger some memories. It happened when he saw my father; maybe it can happen with you, too?"

"I don't think he'll want to see me like this," Sonic rolled over to look at Silver, who nearly gasped at looking at his face. The former hero's eyes were sunken deep in his skull, far deeper than his father's. He could see the thick outlines of battle scars that had begun to lose their pigment and texture. As Sonic frowned, Silver could see the wrinkles in the corner of his lips. Anyone could see that grief has aged him. "I wouldn't.''

"Please," Silver pleaded. "He needs to remember."

"Don't pull that with me, kid. It won't get you anywhere," His words were laced with a sadness the anger was trying to cover. Silver was sure his uncle had to know that he could look past it. Yet he still tries to keep up the facade. "Espio should be grateful he doesn't have to remember. Leave him like that, you'll do him a big favor."

"That's the thing. He wants his memories back," Sonic raised his brows, seemingly remembering the name. "I can't force you to see him, but at least tell me what you know about someone he's looking for?"

"Let me guess. This is about Mighty, isn't it?"

"How did you-?"

He's been trying to protect that guy for years, Of course he'd be looking for him," "Sonic tsked. "Just leave it be, kid, trust me."

"Please, I need to know everything you know about him."

"Ugh! Fine," Sonic hosted himself up and was now sitting upright. Silver stopped himself from gasping. It's been years since they had a conversation that warranted his Uncle to sit down like that. "but I'll only tell you this once so pay attention!"

'Woah, I didn't think it would be that easy!'

Silver looked to his wristlet and began to type something onto it. He looked up and waited for him to speak. His uncle looked back and rolled his eyes.

"He's an armadillo with black fur, a red shell-hair thing that goes down to his back, and black eyes. I met him way back before the four-year war. He used to be a part of a team with Charmy Bee, Vector the Crocodile, and Espio, which is probably why he's looking for him,"

'That's a bit of an over-explanation, at least I know what he looks like.'

"All I know about him is that he's a bit of a treehugger. He used to live up in the forest before this war, and the last time I knew anything about where he was, he was living up in Emerald Groves. When Espio was captured, he left everyone to look for someone named Ray. Probably a friend that Mighty hoped would help him get Espio back, but that isn't any of my business,"

'Ray? I've never heard of that name, not even from father. So who could that even be?'

"Look at a forest of something. Maybe he'll fall out of a tree."

"Thank you, Uncle Sonic. I'll bring it up with my father later."

"Whatever," Sonic grabbed a piece of bread and shoved it in his mouth while waving Silver to get out of his room. "Thanks for the food, kid."

"Anytime."

Silver rushed out of Sonic's room and made his way back into the house through the back door. His father was still sitting alone in the kitchen. A glass of fig wine sat in front of him. His attention drew towards Silver, who had a wide smile on his face.

"Dad! I know how to find Mighty."

"Shhh!" Shadow nearly lunged at him. "Someone is sleeping in here."

Silver tensed up and tried to keep his footsteps quiet as he approached his father. "Sorry!"

"What do you mean 'you know how to find him'?"

"Uncle Sonic told me."

"What did he tell you?" Shadow asked, confused.

"That he'll fall out of a tree!" The look of confusion only deepened. Silver smiled awkwardly, knowing how weird all of this must sound to him. "I know this all must sound weird, but I'm going to make this right. Dad, I'm going to get Mighty back."

"I lost track of him years back, but I know if anyone can find him, it's you," Silver stifled a chuckle as his father petted his head like he would always do when he was a child."Did you make him a promise or something?"

"No, but how else will I get the person who was able to one-up me so quickly to train me?"

"Always the clever one. You're her boy, alright."

'Mom...I can't wait to see you.'

24 notes · View notes

expresso-bean · 6 months ago

Text

The Man Out of Time [A ShadAmy and Silver Story]: Chapter 27

Pairing: Shadow the Hedgehog x Amy Rose

All is well until a silver hedgehog comes knocking on Amy Rose's door to deliver the tragic news about an incredible force that seems to be the cause of the future's destruction.

Will anyone believe the mysterious hedgehog's cry for help? Or will he be left to fight for his future alone? Read to find out!

Warnings: None

Word Count: 4.3k

POV: Third Person

!! I do not own any of the art/gifs/borders used in my chapters. All credits to the rightful owners !!

Masterlist ❀ Ch.1 ❀ Ch.2 ❀ Ch.3 ❀ Ch.4 ❀ Ch.5 ❀ Ch.6 ❀ Ch.7 ❀ Ch.8 ❀ Ch.9 ❀ Ch.10 ❀ Ch.11 ❀ Ch.12 ❀ Ch.13 ❀ Ch.14 ❀ Ch.15 ❀ Ch.16 ❀ Ch.17 ❀ Ch.18 ❀ Ch.19 ❀ Ch.20 ❀ Ch.21 ❀ Ch.22 ❀ Ch.23 ❀ Ch.24 ❀ Ch.25 ❀ Ch.26

The house was quiet. It had been long since Shadow, Silver, and Amy over Silver's cooking while drinking the fruit-flavored sodas Amy had brought back from her quick trip to the market. Though they talked for a while after their meal, Shadow had convinced her to go and rest while they clean up the kitchen and prep for the big spaghetti lunch he had promised her tomorrow before training.

He stood in front of her door and quietly cracked it open to see how she was sleeping.

'She looks so peaceful,' He smiled, softly closing the door. 'The things I do for you.'

Shadow crept downstairs where Silver was waiting for him in the kitchen. On the counter near the stove there was a walnut wood cutting board and a wide-cut knife next to it. When the silver hedgehog spotted him, a smile spread on his face. Shadow nodded to him in acknowledgement.

"So," Silver clapped his hand's together. "what do you know about making spaghetti sauce?"

"There are salt and tomatoes in it."

"Yes, that's true. What else?" Shadow just stared at Silver. There was nothing else for him to say. Silver pursed his lips until they made a 'pop' sound. "So I'll take that as nothing else. Lucky for you, this is actually pretty easy. Since you're a beginner, we'll start with the most basic tomato sauce anyone can make."

Shadow nodded as he sat in front of the counter near the stove. Silver started going around the kitchen. First, he grabbed a pot from inside the oven and quietly placed it on the stove. Then he started rummaging through the fridge. He looked over at Shadow and motioned him to come over. Shadow swiftly walk over to him. He held out his arms and Silver placed a clove of garlic, a branch of basil, and another of parsley.

"If you could just put those on the cutting board that would be great!"

Shadow nodded and placed the on the cutting board as directed. He looked over at Silver how was organizing something in the fridge. He then stepped away from it and closed it. He walked over to the stove and pointed at the bowl next to the stove.

"Usually, we would use fresh tomatoes to make sauce, but we're going to try and fix this, um," Silver smiled nervously while looking at the mess of tomato water and pulp in the bowl on the counter. "base. But don't worry, this is an easy fix!"

"How?"

"It's real simple," Silver reached out and grabbed a can off the counter. He popped open the can of paste and placed it on the counter. "So, for this, we're using some unsalted tomato paste. It's thick right now, but once you mix it in with this, it'll balance everything out. And remember, no more salt. Amy doesn't really care for salty food that much."

"And you know how?"

"I told you, I helped her out with grocery shopping," Silver reiterated. His tone slightly aggravated Shadow. But he knew if this partnership with him was going to work, he had to keep his thoughts to himself. For better, or worse. "This is all we need. Before we turn on the stove, we're going to prepare the ingredients,"

Silver rolled back his shoulders and dusted off his hands. He opened a cupboard and pulled out a pepper shaker, oil, a bag of sugar, a dry herb shaker, and a big and small can with red labels on them. After organizing everything on the counter near the stove, he grabbed the knife by the protective sheath and handed it to Shadow.

"When cutting with limited supplies, it's best to use a wide-cut knife like this one."

"Okay."

"Your going to want to finely mince the garlic. Here, let me peel it for you first," Silver picked up garlic and moved to the sink on the other side of the kitchen. Shadow took of the knife's protective sheath and began practicing different cutting motions.

'Seems easy enough.'

"You've done this before, right?" Shadow jumped a bit at Silver's sudden presence next to him.

"Yes?" Shadow nodded. Silver smiled and placed the naked clove in the middle of the cutting board.

"With the knife, you are going to want to cover the clove with the side of the knife and press down on it. Try not to use all your strength, just enough to mush it," Shadow nodded and turned the knife onto the side and softly pressed down on the clove. He then lightly striked the side of the blade with his other hand. He was relieved that he didn't break anything and even more relieved when he saw that the garlic split perfectly into three even parts.

"That was perfect. Now just chop at it until it's finely minced," Shadow carefully chopped at the gloved several times, careful not to let the paste of the garlic get ever where. It was a slightly tedious job, but the more the chopped, the easier it got. "In any other case, you would add a touch of salt, not only for added flavor, but to also to keep the garlic from separating while you chop it. But like I said, no more salt."

'I feel like I should be taking notes. I'll just have to write all of this down later.'

"Wow, you're a natural at this!"

'I am aware that my culinary skills are limited, but I could handle a knife pretty well all things considered.'

"That should be enough," Shadow nodded quietly and scooted the minced garlic to the end of the board. "Now just chop up a couple of the leaves of basil and parsley while I get the pot ready. Don't worry I'll tell you what I'm doing so that you know what to do for next time."

"Mhm."

"You want to lightly coat the bottom of the pan with oil. You don't need to much," Silver took the oil and lightly poured it into the pit. He grabbed the handles and tilted until the bottom was evenly coated. "When it comes to cooking, unless your rushing or reheating, you always want to set it to a medium to high heat," He turned on the stove and looked over at Shadow. "That looked perfect! Be sure to set some parsley aside for the end, okay?"

Shadow looked around and spotted a small bowl near the oil. He gathered some of the parsley and set aside.

"First, we'll add in the paste and the base you made. Let me get you a spoon," As Silver went to fetch a spoon, Shadow looked at the oil in the pot beginning to shimmer with the heat. Already the kitchen was beginning to smell like the beginnings of a delicious meal.

"Here. Pour in the paste and base and give it a stir," Shadow dumped in the paste followed by the mess of watery tomatoes and salt. He grabbed the wooden spoon that was neatly side on a small plate next to the stove and stirred it in carefully until it became one smooth concoction.

'Wow. You can't even tell it used to be an abomination.'

The more he stirred, the more the sauce began to boil and the aroma of tomatoes began to build up in his nose.

"When you hear it start to sizzle like that, it's your cue to put in the rest of the ingredients. If you let it sit for too long you're more prone to burn yourself with the hot oil."

'That is actually quite helpful.'

"Start with the items on the cutting boards. Just use your hand or knife to slide it into the sauce carefully. Then, you will want to stir it in for just over a minute. Burnt garlic will ruin the flavor of the sauce."

"Right."

As Silver instructed, Shadow slid the basil, parsley, and garlic into the red mixture. He then stirred it all into the red sauce.

"That looks good," Silver commented. Shadow could hear him in the back putting things he had used in the sink. He then walked back next to Shadow and grabbed one of the spice containers. "While you have an eye on that, I'll open these up for you. Trust me, the smell is going to be amazing."

Shadow was too focused on stirring to respond. He wanted it to be perfect.

'I'm doing everything right so far. I can't mess anything up now.'

"Okay, the sauce looks amazing so far! Now, add in these."

Shadow set the spoon on the small plate and looked at the other ingredients before him.

"Any particular order?"

"It doesn't matter, but you can start with the oregano for a bit more structure. You'll only want a pinch since we'll add the rest of the parsley later. Then a couple of churns of pepper. And finally, some sugar to balance everything out and to neutralize the salt."

"Oregano. Pepper. Sugar for balance," Shadow added the corresponding ingredient with each word. A thin layer of the three ingredients set itself on top. Shadow stirred it until it was finely mixed in with the red sauce.

'It looked better!' Shadow smiled to himself proudly. Something about accomplishing something that looks so delicious from something that not even a starving wild hog would eat fulfilled Shadow. 'I wonder what else I could make?'

"Ah, smells like home."

"Home smells like tomatoes?"

"It smells like my father on birthdays. He would always make spaghetti dinner. Though, he liked to add pepper flakes to his for a bit of a spicier taste."

'Oh. Adding in pepper flakes doesn't sound too bad.'

"Have I stirred it right?"

"Yeah, make sure to reduce the heat."

"Sorry."

"It's okay," Silver quickly looked over Shadow's shoulder and chuckled softly. "And there it is!" Shadow heard Silver rummaging around the cupboards underneath, and he planked down a clear glass cover. "Here's a cover for the pan. After this, we have to wait it out for the next half hour. Just stir it every ten or so minutes to make sure it doesn't stick, and then we can put it in the fridge to chill it until tomorrow."

"Hm." Shadow gave the red sauce a couple of gentle stirs. The aroma was amazing for something so simple. He made sure the heat was on the lowest possible setting before covering the pan. Silver had already started putting things away. 'It's a shame the kitchen won't smell like this forever.'

"Wait," Silver's hum was barely auditable. "Let me take care of the dishes and wipe the counters. Just make sure everything is put away."

Silver nodded. There was a thick silence in the air only broken by the sound of running water. The smell of soap filled the room. He had already missed the rich smell of tomatoes from before.

"S?"

"Hm?" Silver hummed, closing the cupboard gently. Shadow could feel his eyes lingering on him. He didn't break away from scrubbing the cutting board. "What is it?"'

"Thank you, for teaching me this recipe."

"No problem. I've never taught anyone before, I worried I wasn't going to do it right," Silver let out an airy chuckle. Shadow could feel his smile from where he stood. "But I'm glad you could get something out of it!"

Shadow felt the air become less thick. As if a weight was lifted out of the atmosphere. Shadow carefully rinsed the knife off until it was gleaming. He placed it in the dish rack. He walked over to the stove and leaned on the counter next to it. He watched as Silver lifted the lid. The steam rose to his face and his nose twitched from the warmth. He stirred it a bit before closing the lid and putting the spoon down in a little bowl next to the stove.

"I'll check on it again in another ten minutes."

Shadow hummed in response.

"Did your father teach you this recipe?"

"Actually, this is the first recipe my aunt taught me when I was really young. She loved making pasta and would make me a spaghetti dinner for my birthday. When she passed, to make me feel better, my father would carry out her tradition," Silver check on the heat again before moving to the counter across from Shadow and hoisting himself up. "But to answer your question, yes, he loved cooking. He would tell me stories about how his cooking won over my mother. It was so embarrassing to have to listen to him fawn over like that," A sad chuckle filled in the area. His once-broken gaze found its way to the glass of water in his hand again. "I'd do anything to hear those stories again."

"Your father taught you greatly."

"I truly am sorry."

"Don't be. We both knew the consequences of coming over here."

'I knew it.' He nearly whispered. Though, he wishes he could have been wrong.

There was something Shadow had been hiding. Something that he hadn't even told Rose.

He knows about the Time Stone.

He knows that once he is done using it and he attempts to go back, there will be nothing for him to return to.

The Time Stone often requires a sacrifice for each use. The doctor who created him would sacrifice his work to get Maria back. His sacrifice will be dying without seeing his father for one last time.

"Still. Your sacrifice will not be in vain. What you are doing here is noble. Never lose sight of that."

"I'm not scared of what will happen. A part of me is happy. I will have another chance in a different life. And you guys will have a new future to discover."

"That must be..."

"Difficult? I know. I haven't exactly come to terms with it either."

'I haven't exactly made it easier, have I?'

"I have faced worse enemies in my lifetime than the ones coming. Another battle would be nothing I couldn't handle. But I have come to realize that version of me had nothing to lose. I've built too much now. There are too many people I have to protect," Shadow looked up at Silver, who was staring at them, completely engrossed with Shadow's words. He was at least glad to have Silver's attention. Rarely has he shown the ladder this much vulnerability. "It was unfair of me to pick you as the bearer of my anger towards my own failure to protect what I cared for deeply. I'm sorry for that."

"Oh, um, it's okay, Shadow. I am in the prime of my life right now and I still haven't exactly processed everything completely," Silver held out his hand and Shadow watched as a cyan mist covered the empty cup next to Silver. The cup moved to hover itself over Silver's lap. It then began to slowly flip over itself. "But with everyone's help, I know there is nothing I can't do."

Now that we have that out of the way..."

Shadow readjusted his posture against the counter. Silver, confused, slid his finger over and lightly placed his empty glass in the equally empty sink.

"What is it?"

"I need you to start being more honest with me."

"But-"

"I could care less about who your parents are. But there is something I need to know," Shadow interrupted. "You aren't related to those villains, are you?"

"Why would you even think that?"

"I understand the secrecy behind it because it could be one of us. But the problem is that you look nothing like us or other people we may know."

"What are you suggesting?" Silver questioned with an almost offended tone.

"The girl you mentioned has physic-like abilities, as do you."

"Trust me; it isn't like that. I'm only following my father's orders. He didn't want anyone to know who he was."

'An anonymous being...?' Shadow pondered.

"Did you have siblings? Or at least a mother?"

"No, no siblings. It was only my dad and I. My uncle and aunt never had any kids," Silver went slight for a moment. Shadow tilted his head, not knowing what was on the other's mind. Then, Silver let a sigh. "I never met my mom. She passed away a little after I was born. My father talks about her a lot, though. He says I have her eyes."

'None of us have golden eyes. Unless it's Espio. But he's a hedgehog and has no signs of being a chameleon. Could it be someone new? What about an old enemy? Someone else?' Shadow shook his head slowly. 'No use in asking him. It's noble that he respects the wishes of someone he will never see again.'

"I'm sorry about your mother."

"It's okay. Can we just move on already?" Silver muttered out.

"Of course. About that plan," Silver's head perked up at the word 'plan'. Shadow cleared his throat slightly before continuing. "It makes little sense that we should train together. Both groups have different tasks to complete and other opponents to face. Would it not make more sense to have those groups dismantle and work with those same people?"

"That's actually a good point. And I'm regretting not thinking about that sooner."

"Do you even know everyone's abilities before planning everything out?"

"I know...some!"

Shadow rolled his eyes and sighed. He knew he had his work cut out for him with that one sentence.

"Each person has a unique fighting style, and through the war, we saw who worked better with one another. Despite many changes personality-wise, there are certain things that we both need to be wary of."

Silver nodded intently. He pressed some buttons on his bracelet before looking back up at Shadow and waving his hand for him to continue. Shadow chose to ignore his strangeness.

"Amy and Knuckles work well together as they have similar fighting styles, but their hot-headedness makes their strong personalities class. I've seen them stop in the middle of battles to dish one out at one another."

"They get along well now, don't they?" Shadow gave Silver a look. A look that he hoped would communicate some of Amy and Knuckles' last interactions. Silver's expression shifted, and he nervously chuckled. "Oh, right. Yeah, you've got a point."

"Knuckles works better with Rouge compared to Amy, but they are also prone to arguments. They need a buffer."

Silver typed out more things into his watch. The tip of his tongue slightly poked out from his mouth as he concentrated.

"So, Knuckles and Amy are a no-go, but I can put him with Rouge. Got it," He looked up at Shadow with a slight grin on his face. "What about everyone else?"

"Tails is the strategist. A genius if I ever saw one. His mechanical intellect was on par with the Doctor's. Though, he can fumble under pressure if doesn't have a fighter with him."

"Why not put Cream with him? She knows him best."

"Cream is a good scouter since she can fly. She can fight, though, she would rather avoid it if the choice was hers."

"Oh, hm, that's tough," Silver paused to think for a moment.

"Sonic?" He questioned haphazardly.

"That could work, but no. Not only is this serious, but Tails is too compliant with Sonic. Tails will allow Sonic's arrogance to rain freely and push the opponents past their limits to test his own strength."

"I remember. He's full of himself," Silver muttered. He shook his head in almost regret as he said that. "But what do we do with him then?"

"Put him with Rose and I. Unlike the others, I am not afraid to step in to prevent any conflict with him."

Silver nodded in agreement.

"That form of him. It's too dangerous to be let out again."

"What anyone has failed to tell you is that isn't as absent-minded as he appears to be. He is in full control of what he is doing, form or not."

"So you mean, if you hadn't stepped in, he would have...?"

Shadow shook his head. "No. Despite his anger, he would never dare to kill an innocent person. Which brings up his main issue."

"What is it?"

"His stubborn nature allows him to try and spare someone if they show any sliver of humanity. He will try and negotiate with the enemy to try and avoid killing someone. In any other predicament, I would agree with him. But from what you tell me, both of these beings are beyond redemption."

Silver went silent. His demeanor seemed to darken in a way Shadow had not seen before.

"You can't let him try and reason with them," Silver said in a low voice. He wasn't even looking at Shadow, which uneased the black and red hedgehog.

'This is strange, even for someone like him.'

"You have to promise me you will put an end to this. For the future of you and the people you love."

Shadow nodded, not entertaining the odd seriousness in the other's voice with a response. This seemed to anger Silver. His eyes gleamed with what seemed to be anger.

"Promise me."

'This is important to him,' Shadow bit back a sigh. 'I shouldn't…'

He rarely makes promises. He has only ever promised four people anything.

He promised the Doctor who created him that he would always look after Maria.

He promised Maria that he will always keep kindness in his heart even after she is gone.

He promised Sonic he would destroy him and everything he stands for.

He promised Rose to stay and protect Mobius.

Though it does not count, he even made a promise to him to protect those he cares about. That includes the things those people care about too.

He has only kept two out of the five. Both of which were Maria and Rose respectfully. All things considered, he has a 50/50 track record.

"Shadow?" Silver interrupted the silence. Shadow nodded again.

"I promise," Shadow reassured.

"Good," Silver whispered, relieved. "There is some evil that cannot be reversed."

'Something about that sentiment…'

Shadow tried not to let his real emotions show on his face. But he couldn't help but have this pit in his stomach. Usually, Shadow was more calm in these situations. Nothing phases him. But Silver's words have been spoken to him countless times before, even by the very people whom he calls his friends.

'It doesn't sit right with me.'

"Getting back to the plan," Silver interrupted. Shadow perked up and nod for him to continue. "What I’m getting at is Sonic, Amy, and you will take on Anti…”

"Rouge, Knuckles and yourself will distract Ace long enough for the three of us to neutralize the other. You said you came close to defeating her, correct?" "Yes, but-" Shadow help up a finger to signal for him to stop. Silver shut his mouth almost immediately and hummed a muffled 'yes?'.

"With training, you are only bound to grow stronger through these coming weeks. Not only that, you will have two other people to help you."

"Do you really think I can do this?" Silver's words were laced with uncertainty. He looked at Shadow, who could tell he was desperate for reassurance.

"I don't think you can, I know you can do this," Shadow moved slightly closer to Silver. He noticed the silver hedgehog's wandering eyes. The nerves were practically eating him alive. "Do not doubt you own abilities because of the pressure. You have experienced warriors on your team that rely on you as much as you are willing to rely on them in this moment."

"T-Thank you, Shadow. That's pretty nice of you to say."

"Well," Shadow smirked. "I'm not heartless."

Silver couldn't help but smile softly. Shadow tried to ignore the contagious happiness it brought to him.

"Wait, there still something I don't understand."

"What?"

"Why are there only two teams of three? What about Cream, Tails, and Sally?"

"Sally can be the fighter to complement Tails and Cream. We can still keep the aspect of the plan where Tails drops the enemy at our feet, but until then, the rest of the them will ensure the other’s army does not expand. I doubt they will come empty-handed. We have to set aside people who can care for that," Shadow paused for a second, trying to gather his thoughts. "If you didn't already know, Sally is no ordinary person. She's the heir to a kingdom and a natural-born leader. She will likely request aid from her father, the King, for the use of their royal guard and access to their technologies."

"Oh, wow. Really?"

"Hm." He hummed.

"I-I didn't know that."

"It isn't outward obvious, considering she lingers around us as if she isn't royal-born."

"It's so funny. I thought I finally figured everyone out. But it seems this timeline is full of surprises."

"Did your father not inform you of everyone?"

"Not really. I wasn't even supposed to stay this long. But he wanted me to meet of of you. He wanted me to help all of you. But after I informed all of you of what would happen, I was meant to go back in time and show up for the main fight."

"It feels like I'm living out the childhood I never had. That was his dream. To be surrounded by the people he loved."

"I'm sure he's very happy for you, even if you are not there with him."

"He has company," Silver reassured. Something in his expression changed when he did. Shadow tilted his chin up for a moment, trying to read his expression. "There is something I haven't asked you."

Shadow nodded. Silver seemed to hesitate, looking away to avert his gaze to his hand that was resting on his knees.

"There is still someone who's missing. I meant to bring it up earlier, but with everyone's emotions at an all-time high, I forgot to mention it."

"Missing?"

"Yes," Silver's gaze suddenly landed on Shadow. It was oddly intense for the usually aloof hedgehog. Shadow tilted his head upwards as he tried to read his expression. "There is still one person I haven't met in my time here."

"Who?"

"Where is Espio?"

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expresso-bean · 6 months ago

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The Man Out of Time (or MOOT for short which is kind of cute) author update!

So, I did the math, and MOOT is going to have around 52 chapter in total, which mean I still have 26 chapters left to write not including whether or not I write 'Outtakes' which will most likely be a mixture of prequel/sequel chapters of the main story.

My goal is, and always will be, to get the rest out by the end of this year. I hope you all decide to stick around for the journey!

With love,

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expresso-bean · 6 months ago

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Author Note #2

Poll for 'Man Out of Time [A ShadAmy and Silver Story]'!

I was think of making another Masterlist called 'Outtakes' where you can find all the chapters. Please, let me know!

With love,

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expresso-bean · 6 months ago

Text

Then Man Out of Time [A Shadamy and Silver Story]: Chapter 26

Pairing: Shadow the Hedgehog x Amy Rose

All is well until a silver hedgehog comes knocking on Amy Rose's door to deliver the tragic news about an incredible force that seems to be the cause of the future's destruction.

Will anyone believe the mysterious hedgehog's cry for help? Or will he be left to fight for his future alone? Read to find out!

Warnings: None

Word Count: 1.8k

POV: Shadow the Hedgehog

!! I do not own any of the art/gifs/borders used in my chapters. All credits to the rightful owners !!

I looked down at the bowl of smushed tomatoes that I had cruelly bludgeoned to a messy pulp. Whatever was in the bowl would hardly considered to be a sauce.

'It looks like a massacre,' I wanted to whisper. 'Maybe I need to add another tomato?'

I looked beside me to S opening the rice cooker and lifting up the vapor plate. He carefully poured the contents of the plate into a pool of brown sauce that he'd been preparing for the past ten minutes. The sweet smell of the vegetables made my mouth begin to water slightly.

'Anyone could see that his abilities put mine to shame,' I continued to smoosh the contents of the bowl with so much force that the juices began to stain my white gloves a bright red color. 'Not that I would ever make that known to him.'

I put down the fork I was using and grabbed the salt from the spice rack on the countertop. I unscrewed the top of the shaker and began lightly sprinkling the salt in.

'How much should I even put in?'

I shook the shaker a few more times, still feeling unsatisfied.

'I did say that I like salty things. Maybe she expects it to be salty?' I shook the shaker harder for a few more seconds until I could no longer see the tomatoes anymore. A crusty, pinkish layer was all that was visible. 'I think that is enough?'

"How is the sauce coming along?"

As he looked down at the content of the bowl, his eyebrows raised. I did my best to not look insulted. Though, I knew it was warranted.

"I've only just started."

"Can I try?" I nodded. He took a fork and slushed the 'sauce' around before putting some in his mouth. His lips scrunched up as tears pricked at his eyes. "Ooh, that's pretty salty." He heaved out, placing the fork onto a small plate I had set aside for the utensils. "How much did you put in there?"

"Aren't they supposed to be salty?"

S shook his head. He grabbed a glass from the cupboard and stood next to me by the sink. I gave up smashing the tomatoes from the bowl. It was nothing but a slop of juice and pulp.

"Not like that," He poured himself some water straight from the sink. I would have told him about the cold, purified water in the refrigerator. But his remarks on my culinary skills made him worthy of the lukewarm tap water he was going to consume. "Where is Amy anyway?" He gulped down the water so fast that he nearly choked at his first inhalation of fresh air. "Ow, maybe I shouldn't have drank it that fast."

'You think?'

S doubled over, holding his side.

'He...is more strange than usual,' S grunted again. He tried to say something through his teeth, but failed. 'Or is he dying?'

"You made your stomach cramp from drinking the water too fast. Steady your breathing and rub the area. If you panic, it will make the pain worse."

S unfolded himself and with a shaky arm he grabbed onto the countertop and hoisted himself up. His body shivered as he tried to breath.

"G-got it..."

He rubbed his side slowly. He bit back grunts of pain in between rubs. I stood there watching him repeat the same process over and over again.

'He's so helpless sometimes.'

"You think I'd be used to it by now. My stomach always get sensitive from traveling."

A hum in response is all I could muster. Just watching him frail up like that was enough for me to pity him and allow him to air out his story.

'No one knows anything about him other than the role he plays in a future wasteland. This could be the chance to try and see who he really is.'

"I was only fourteen when I began the practice trial runs. None of us knew what to expect from it. One the day of my first one, my father gathered the whole neighborhood to send me off. This couple prepared some soup for me made from rice noodles and a wild boar her partner had captured. It scared my father a bit because meals like that are only supposed to be served on special occasion like if someone is born or if someone dies," S' interrupted himself by coughing. He grunted, holding his side and trying to maintain his posture. "S-sorry..." He whispers.

"Your straining yourself."

"No, no, I'm fine. I'm almost done," He breathes in and out slowly before continuing. "I was meant to stay for half a day since the time device needs to be in idle for twelve hours before it is used again. When I finally got the chance to eat some of the food, well, it didn't go so well for me when I jumped back into my current time."

'The watch's ability to allow him to jump through time puts momentous strain on his body? I may have been underestimating his competency.'

"I learned the hard way why you should travel on a full stomach. I still can't eat pork belly to this day. My stomach refuses," He laughed. "I can eat noodles funnily enough. It was hard at first, but I got over that hurdle."

I hummed again only to indicate I was still paying attention to his incessant rambles. I could hear his breathing slowly going back to normal the more he spoke. The breathing technique I showed him seemed to be working.

"So far, I've been snacking on the instant noodles you guys have. They're amazing!" He gleamed. "It sucks, though. The more I enjoy the innovations of this timeline, the more I think about all the starving people this could have helped in the future."

I then turned to look at him. Even through his pain, he sounded confident in his ranting, not caring if he had an audience.

Glimpsing at him was like putting up a mirror to my past. All those moments after escaping my prison, standing alone plotting revenge, monologuing to anything in my sight.

'That feeling. I know it so well,' I kept my mouth shut, not even bothering to look at him. 'Why is he telling me this?'

"I don't mean to ramble. Talking distracts from the pain. Tails taught me that."

"He was your uncle, right?"

S looked conflicted for a moment. With his body still doubled over, he managed to smile softly.

"Tails raised me, along with Cream and my father. The three of them taught me a lot."

"I'm sorry." I meant my apology with all sincerity. A pang of guilt shot through my body. It wasn't until now I realized how much we truly have in common. It was in that moment of my weakness I realized this was the most I have spoken to him since he got to this timeline.

'I know what it is like to lose yourself for so long,' I sighed. Memories flowed back to me as hard as a wave crashed against rocks on the shore. I forgot how hard it was to experience all that loss on my own. How heavy the burden of loss is to a lonely person. 'He lost everything. Through the impossible, he found a way to travel through time to repair everything that had been broken. To help people that he did not even get to meet in his own lifetime.'

The more I stare at the red hue of the sauce, the more I think of Rose. I would not be standing here making a mockery of culinary art without her kindness and belief that I had something stronger within me than revenge and hate. She found love still resided in me—love for creatures and beings alike.

Love for the place Maria adored and called home.

I swore I would die to protect it. I would die to protect Rose and the people she loves. But the one person who could help is the same person I have been pushing away since he arrived.

'He has a good heart. I have not been exercising the kindness both of them fostered within me.'

"I..." When our eyes met, my voice trailed off. There was a familiarity within them.

'Where have I seen them before?'

I cleared my throat and tried to brush my question off. S tilted his head as he, no doubt, waited for me to finish my sentiment.

"Yeah?" He questioned, still slumped over.

"You asked earlier where Rose went. She is at the store, grabbing some refreshments. She mentioned some things she wanted you to try."

"Really!" He gasped, and I flinched at his eager response. "I hope she gets the fruit stuff again. Those things are GOOD!"

"Keep yourself composed before you go on and hurt yourself again."

"Oh, you're right," He chuckled. I could tell his voice was slightly strained from his groaning in pain earlier. "What is that stuff I ate anyway?"

"It's sauce."

"THAT is the sauce?" S covered his mouth and mumbled out what I think was meant to be an apology. "I didn't mean to say it like that. It, um, has a good color to it."

'So my suspicions were right. This is wrong,' I put what I had been clenching in my fist down back in the bowl and sighed. 'I've never made anything like this before, I have no choice but to...'

"S?"

"Huh?" He hummed.

'Ask him for help.'

"I need..." My voice trailed off. The words were stuck in my throat, which was now dry.

'Why is my chest so heavy? It's just a request. The worst he could say is no,'

"You need...?" He questioned, a nervous smile on his face. I could tell I was making him uncomfortable with the silence between us.

'I retract that. The worst thing is asking him of all people for a request.'

"I need to learn how to make a pasta dish,"

'Finally. That was...hard.'

"It's for Amy. She deserves to have something nice to eat in these times."

My face grew hot with embarrassment. 'Why did I phrase it so strange?'

"Oh, that's easy! I'd love to help!"

'Really? Just like that? Has it always been this easy to ask for favors?"

"Perfect timing, too. I helped Amy pick up some groceries the other day. We can make the sauce tonight. Do you want me to show you how to make it?"

"That would be...a lot of help."

"Cool," S smiled, moving away from the counter and stretching his body upright. A few of his joints popped as his back adjusted itself. "Let's wait till she goes to bed; it shouldn't take long to make, so you'll still be able to get some rest."

"Hm. I agree."

'Never in my life would I put myself in this predicament, but for Rose, I'd do this and more.'

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expresso-bean · 6 months ago

Text

The Man Out of Time [A ShadAmy and Silver Story]: Chapter 25

Pairing: Shadow the Hedgehog x Amy Rose

All is well until a silver hedgehog comes knocking on Amy Rose's door to deliver the tragic news about an incredible force that seems to be the cause of the future's destruction.

Will anyone believe the mysterious hedgehog's cry for help? Or will he be left to fight for his future alone? Read to find out!

Warnings: None

Word Count: 3k

POV: Shadow the Hedgehog

!! I do not own any of the art/gifs/borders used in my chapters. All credits to the rightful owners !!

Masterlist ❀ Ch.1 ❀ Ch.2 ❀ Ch.3 ❀ Ch.4 ❀ Ch.5 ❀ Ch.6 ❀ Ch.7 ❀ Ch.8 ❀ Ch.9 ❀ Ch.10 ❀ Ch.11 ❀ Ch.12 ❀ Ch.13 ❀ Ch.14 ❀ Ch.15 ❀ Ch.16 ❀ Ch.17 ❀ Ch.18 ❀ Ch.19 ❀ Ch.20 ❀ Ch.21 ❀ Ch.22 ❀ Ch.23 ❀ Ch.24

Friends.

Is that what I call these people lying on the grass in front of Rose's lawn?

My creation was meant to be an aid to my creator and humanity. An emotionless vessel meant to serve a greater purpose compared to others. My destiny was changed when I met Maria. She showed me that I can be beyond my so-called 'purpose'. Despite being 'created', I was a being worthy of love just as much as anyone else.

When I lost her, a part of me went with her, as what happens when you lose anyone you love. I never wanted to connect with another being for the rest of whatever life I would have left. I dedicated my life to fighting and helping a man who told me I could one day destroy the people who murdered her. That alone was the only peace I had up until the last year of the war.

Rose changed everything for me. My entire frame of thought was brought into question with a single phrase:

'What is it that you are truly fighting for?'

I could barely answer her then, yet I can now.

The people lying on the lawn come from all walks of life. There is no reason to insult them. How can I blame them for fighting for the freedom of others?

Any anger toward them comes from my discontent of feeling underserving of all the kindness they had offered me despite my grievances.

If not for Rose, who knows where any of us would be.

'Ensuring her safety means protecting the others,'

There was a sense of familiarity seeing their tired corpses laid out. I couldn't help but smile as my eyes laid upon Rose. She looked so at peace, staring up at the evening sky. Cream's fingers lightly played with her quills as she looked as if she was going to fall asleep right where she sat.

'That is something I can live with.'

As I grew closer, S broke away from his conversation with Tails to wave over at me.

'He is just as vibrant as ever,' My gaze locked on her again. A still and perfect being was encapsulated within my vision. I could not break it if I tried. 'I've come to terms with it. How could I not? It is impossible to not fall for her, the future heroine of Mobius. To deny my feelings for her is an insult to her character.'

I took a breath. My body felt hot again. I hated it when it did that. Though love is a weakness, I am willing to endure it for her sake.

"This looks oddly familiar," I announced to everyone as I gained the courage to approach her. I heard a collective groan come from Rouge and Knuckles. I rolled my eyes as I stood over Amy. Her eyes pierced mine as I leaned down as to put my face toward hers. "Especially you."

My body grew warm again upon seeing her smile. Her playful glare nearly broke me into laughter.

"What's that suppose to mean?"

"Nothing for you to worry about, Rose."

I stood upright before sitting down only inches away from her. Cream looked and softly beamed at me. I could only nod at her politeness.

"So," S stood up and smiled slightly at everyone. He was clearly filled with emotion despite his eyes seeming tired. I failed to remember he and Tails had spent almost all day planning this. "Everyone who decided to stay is checked in on base. We let them know they are in the clear to come home whenever they please, but by the end of September, they should bunker down with food and water."

Tails stood beside him, nodding.

"Each resident has an 'emergency call' button that is capable of transmitting audio messages. As of now, they are offline until the end of September when we can monitor them."

"I can't thank you all enough for helping us. We wouldn't have been able to get everything done if it weren't for you all helping. Truly, I really appericate it."

'No one can deny the boy has some heart. The more time they spend here, the worse I feel for him,' Anyone can see his unsettling smile. I could only sigh at his uneasiness. 'That isn't my burden. Why entertain worry in the first place?'

"Thanks to you, we're saving the lives of a lot of people,"

'Oh, great, another profound speech I have to sit through.'

I looked over at Rose. She was still looking up at the sky. I could not tell if she was paying attention to what everyone else was saying. What I could see was how tired she looked.

'She has been getting more sleep than usual. It is unlikely that this entire session has tired her out. I've seen this woman take on way more than this and still be able to walk back to base and fight harder than before. What is it that she is hiding now?'

Sonic stood up and walked toward S. As much as I wanted to, I refrained my eye roll from escaping onto my expression.

I can stand Sonic better than before. He cannot say I haven't tried to be civil toward him.

'I call him by his preferred name,' I can still remember the arrogance on his face the first time I said it. He nearly threw a party the fool was so thrilled. 'Ugh, it still makes my skin crawl.'

"I think I speak for everyone when I say you're a true Freedom Fighter, S."

"Thanks Sonic," The two stared at one another, exchanging an oddly knowing nod. "I mean that."

'Did they reconcile that quickly?'

The others around me weren't even looking at them by this point. They were too distracted by their own exhaustion to continue to gaze upon whatever situation S and Sonic were working through.

'I am not one to go around prying into people's personal lives, but the way Sonic fought him makes me question what caused either of them to snap the way they did.'

They were smiling at each other as if the battle was a figment of my imagination.

It was real. I know it was.

I never felt that pain in my chest before. What was that from anyway?

"Can we go home now? Don't we have to wake up early for training tomorrow?"

S broke away from his silent conversation with Sonic. Knuckles was lifting a fist, pointing at S' sorry expression.

"Y-yeah, sorry, I'll see you guys tomorrow. Thanks for the help again!"

Bodies lifted from the grass like corpses. Sonic shook S' hand for the third time in his short conversation before waving goodbye.

"Good night everyone, we're going to turn in."

Sonic swept his fiancée off her feet. Her eyes were closed as she rolled over in his arms to hide her face. An eruption of similar farewells followed suit.

"Good night!"

"Bye!"

"See you tomorrow."

"See ya!"

I stayed situated in my place beside Rose. The entire time, she has said nothing about what was discussed. Her eyes were closed. They were no longer staring longingly at the sky.

'It's a shame too. The stars are so beautiful.'

"Hm..." A noise escaped her lips. My eyes were still glued to her face. "I'm gonna lay here for just a while longer."

"Rose," I breathed out her name, holding in a chuckle. "your house is inches away from you. Surely you can muster up the strength to make it there."

"No...!" She covered her eyes, refusing to look up anywhere other than the skin of her own arm. "Leave me here..."

"Nope," She didn't move an inch as I grabbed her by her upper arms and lifted her up. I carefully placed her on her feet, and she opened her eyes only then. She said nothing while she stared. I took the time to analyze her face. "Wow."

"W-what is it?"

'I didn't mean to let that out! What do I say now?'

"You seem tired."

Her mouth creased into a nervous smile. My fingers curled into my palm. I couldn't bear to move an inch.

"What? Tired? Says you, you did most of the work!"

"I..."

'Was that the wrong thing to say?' My heart was pounding against my chest. I could hear it so vividly in my head that I feared she would notice. My fingers shook slightly as they curled into my palms. They felt... clammy. 'What is this? What am I doing? I can't believe a being such as myself is acting so...' I looked at her. She stared at me, waiting for me to utter something. But I couldn't stop looking at her. I could never get tired of looking at a face like hers. 'I'm probably looking pathetic right about now. Say something!'

"I recover quickly."

"I was thinking you'd say that," Rose giggled a bit into her hand. My mouth twitched, holding back a smile. I did not want to embarrass myself further than I already had. "We should try and get some rest. Tomorrow is pretty important."

"Our training formally begins tomorrow. It's been a while since we've sparred."

Rose nodded, sighing a bit.

"Well, it's been a while since we've all been in this situation."

She looked down towards the ground. Her shoulders tensed up, her eyebrows knitted together tightly. She did not look angry. No, she looked worse. She looked intense.

'Is that why she looked so tired? Could it be because of how much she must have been thinking about the fight?'

It seemed like even the air around her changed as I shuddered at the sudden cold that drifted between us.

"Rose?"

"I'm starving," She announced. I blinked, and she looked completely different in that moment of distraction. Her body was relaxed, and a small smile adorned her face. It was almost as if whatever she felt a moment ago was never there. Yet, I was not convinced. "Do you want to come over? I can treat you to something."

"Hm, That does sound appealing,"

'I don't want to cause more trouble for her than I already have. She looks exhausted. I could run out to buy something. Maybe at the 24-hour marts in the area?'

"Let me treat you this time."

"Shadow! You can cook?"

'Cook?'

The word caught me off guard so much that I nodded. This fatal mistake made her eyes come back to life. Her hands intertwined together, and she placed them towards her chin.

"Of course I can, anything you desire, I can make."

She gasped, and her face seemed to glow. Whatever I said, I can't take it back now.

'I know I can't cook! But,' I stared at her face. It seemed to beam as I anticipated her next sentence. 'She looks so happy. I can't take that away from her now.'

"Strange, I didn't know this about you. I thought you didn't need to eat."

"Yes, I need to eat. Rose, you've seen me eat before," She shrugged and smiled brightly. I almost wanted to laugh at the lighthearted misunderstanding. Ironically, this isn't the first time I have had this conversation. "Wait, did you really think I didn't need to eat?"

"Maybe a little bit. You always boasted about being the ultimate life form."

"I'm still made up of biological matter. I need to sustain myself with something."

She looked unconvinced.

'We have shared meals countless times by now, what does she think will happen to me if I don't eat?'

"What even is you're favorite food?"

"Salt."

"Salt?"

'Salt?'

"Salt is my favorite additive. It keeps me hydrated longer."

"Yeah," She shook her head, giggling quietly at my comment. I was surprised she didn't taunt my poor choice of words. "salt does that to you."

"But I enjoy foods with lots of salt in them. Like pastas, and soups."

'How do you even make soup? Doesn't broth take hours to make?' The louder my thoughts get, the more I realize that not even I, the ultimate life form, can be the master of all things. 'No, this isn't entirely hopeless. Pasta is simple. I've made it before, but I have no idea how to make the sauce.'

"Oh, those sound delicious freedom now. I love soups after a long day."

I felt warm again. It was different from the warmth I felt before. It was as if I was bracing myself for a hit I knew would never reach me. Yet, I wanted nothing but to stand and wait for it.

'Panic will do nothing to improve my culinary skills. Though, at least now I know I will eventually need to learn to make soup from scratch.'

"Well, if you're offering to make something, you can choose. Either way, I can't wait to try it!"

"The broth I like to make takes hours to steep. Would you like some spaghetti instead?"

'Perfect salvage if I ever saw one.'

"Oh that's perfect, I picked up some stuff for spaghetti the other day. I think S mentioned something about wanting to make it for everyone."

'Of course he is.' I tried not to make the bitterness and annoyance evident on my face. It seemed as of late, S had been outshining my presence in her life. 'I would give anything for things to go back to the way they were.'

I followed Rose into the house. When we opened the door, there was a smell of sweet vapor coming from the kitchen.

"Hey you two! I'm in the kitchen!"

S' sing-songy voice rang through the house. Amy giggled and made a bee-line for the counter. I followed slowly behind her.

"Hi, S. Shadow and I were just talking about you outside," My arms were crossed and when S finally came into my view. He was putting things away in cupboards to even look toward either of us. "Shadow here wanted to make a spaghetti dish."

S met my gaze. When he closed the cupboard he looked like a child who had broken a vase and was about to confess.

"Oh, um, I just started making some rice bowls with steamed chicken and vegetables. I thought I could treat you guys to something for helping me with this,"

S shot me an apologetic look. Though I wanted to look annoyed, I was somewhat glad he had saved me from potentially embarrassing myself from my mediocre cooking skills.

'At least it gives me time to experiment before I actually have to come through with my promise to Rose.'

"But I could help you make the sauce and we can have it for lunch tomorrow."

Rose's face lit up beside me and she looked up at me with a smile that already had me caving into any request she was about to make.

"Doesn't that sound like an amazing idea, Shadow?"

I tried to hide my nervous gulp by nodding my head. That seemed to make her smile even more lively.

'In the end, that's why I'm doing this, no? Her smile. Her happiness.'

"Let me see if there's space in the fridge first."

She rushed over to the fridge. The cool air made the smell of the vapor stronger. I looked over to S, who was mixing in different sauce bottles together. He worked so effortlessly, no sense of struggle of hesitation as he mixed, poured, and tasted. Truly, he was more skilled than most people I've seen in the kitchen.

'Maybe I could...'

"We should be good to go. But I'm going to run to the store first. We're out of a few things."

I perked up at the sound of her voice.

"Alone?" Was the first thing I said to her. She tilted her head while closing the dual doors of the refrigerator. "I mean, it's already nighttime."

As she approached me, she reached out and set a hand on my arm. She might as well have doused me in gasoline and ignited me aflame from the way my entire body burned with excitement of her touch.

"Shadow, we've done far more dangerous missions in far worse conditions. I think I'll be fine," She smiled, and patted my arm to attempt to reassure me. "Plus, it's only a six minute walk to Mobi-Mart, I'll be quick."

"I did not mean to come off as overbearing."

That confession made her go silent for a second. She didn't break away from my eyes before she parted her lips to talk again.

"Don't be sorry. It makes me happy that you worry about me at all,"

She moved her hand away from me. Even as he walked away from me to grab her bag from the coat hanger near the door, I thought of her sentiment towards me.

"'It makes me happy that you worry about me at all,"' It pounded in my head, drilling itself into the core of my being. 'Worry? Rose, if you only knew how important you've become to me.'

"I'll be back! I can't wait to try the rice bowls, S."

"Bye!" S' shout echoed through the kitchen.

"Be careful, Rose."

She smiled at me again, she hummed and nodded her head once.

"I will. I'll try and be quick."

The door clicked behind her and there was an lonely silence that left the moment she did. And although I wanted to walk out after her, I knew it would do nothing good.

'I should know more than anyone how capable she is.'

"Here," I turned my attention back to S who, the entire time I had my attention on the door, was cleaning around the kitchen space. "I can move this so you can have some space to work," S moved several sauce bottles and moved the rice cooker to the side. He grabbed a rag from under the sink and wiped down the area before holding his hand out to present the glistening counter space. "It's all yours!"

'This is going to be a long night.'

47 notes · View notes

expresso-bean · 6 months ago

Text

The Man Out of Time [A ShadAmy and Silver Story]: Chapter 24

Pairing: Shadow the Hedgehog x Amy Rose

All is well until a silver hedgehog comes knocking on Amy Rose's door to deliver the tragic news about an incredible force that seems to be the cause of the future's destruction.

Will anyone believe the mysterious hedgehog's cry for help? Or will he be left to fight for his future alone? Read to find out!

Warnings: None

Word Count: 3k

POV: Amy Rose

!! I do not own any of the art/gifs/borders used in my chapters. All credits to the rightful owners !!

Masterlist ❀ Ch.1 ❀ Ch.2 ❀ Ch.3 ❀ Ch.4 ❀ Ch.5 ❀ Ch.6 ❀ Ch.7 ❀ Ch.8 ❀ Ch.9 ❀ Ch.10 ❀ Ch.11 ❀ Ch.12 ❀ Ch.13 ❀ Ch.14 ❀ Ch.15 ❀ Ch.16 ❀ Ch.17 ❀ Ch.18 ❀ Ch.19 ❀ Ch.20 ❀ Ch.21 ❀ Ch.22 ❀ Ch.23

'He's acting strange.'

I couldn't bear to take another step away from my home. I huffed as I sat down on the doorstep. The noise of the chaos happening around me made my eyes want to swell up with tears.

'What's the point in crying now? Training hasn't even begun yet!' I wanted to look up. But I knew what I would see would only break me apart tenfold. 'I just hope I'm not too rusty after all these years. Doing odd jobs and keeping up with a physical training regime have kept me battle ready for the most part. Although, I have been neglecting it since S came around.'

The sounds of cars racing off and Tails' muffled voice forced my eyes to pry themselves forward. As I thought, what was before me was nothing short of a disaster.

Crying children holding their mothers hands. Said mothers looking on in distraught as they tried to quickly move around for more things to gather into boxes and cars.

Others were on the phones looking stressed.

Elderly folks were sitting on chairs in front of the houses that would soon be destroyed. I could see people like Knuckles, Rouge, and Shadow going in and out of house or running about in the streets checking for items.

All of it will be destroyed. Or so does the future determine.

"Don't worry. Rebuilding will commence as soon as everything is back to normal!" Tails voiced boomed through the streets as little floating devices scanned each individual home from different angles several times over. "Everything is okay! Panic will only prolong the process!"

'If only it was that simple. I couldn't imagine myself in their situation.' I shook my head as I looked on at the array of people. The more I stared. The more I understood that I am like them. Bound to this future. Desperate and dependent to change in the best way possible. Although it feels impossible, there comes the slow realization that there is no other choice but to follow those orders. If they say 'pack it up', you pack. They yell 'run', you run. But none of us can tell them to fight. We can't. We exist to ensure they never have to worry about having to fight a force that is beyond what they can handle. 'That feeling. It must be...'

"Awful," I kept my voice to a whisper. "It's awful. This is all awful..."

I stared down at the gray pavement ahead of me. I could do nothing but clenched my fists from the frustration building up inside. After all, it wasn't at all fair. To anyone. That's why we fought so far the first time around. Nothing like this was ever supposed to happen again.

Yet. Here everyone is. Preparing for it to happen again.

'That was the fate of this timeline. My neighborhood destroyed. My friends, gone. Me.' I looked down at my hands. 'Dead.'

I made a promise to not let that happen. Therefore, it won't.

'Well, I can't make good on any of my promises by just sitting here! I hope no one noticed I was gone for too long.'

As I got up, I stretched my arms upwards toward the sky. Instant relief spread through my muscles when I exhaled.

'I can do this! I've done worst missions before.' I took off a rubber elastic tie off my wrist and gathered my quills into a pony tail. 'I should trim this. If the elastic breaks in the middle of a battle it'll be impossible to fight.'

I looked back at my front door. There was nothing by silence.

'He'll... be right outside, right?' I lingered by the door for a second before stepped down from the doorstep. 'Not that it wasn't unusual that he would just come into my home to talk to me, but this time felt... different.'

I was surprised that no one paid any mind to me walking about. They all looked to be in their owns heads or trying to gather items to stuff them in their vehicles as best they can. My beautiful neighborhood seemed to be reduced to shambles. The once happy, friendly faces I would see in the mornings looked scared. I nearly wanted to cry and the thought of the cherry trees being burnt to crisps.

'It'll take years to get them to look this beautiful again!'

"Amy?" Cream came rushing toward me. She grabbed me by the arms and shook me a bit. "You're here! Tails said S was looking for you, is everything okay?"

I was a bit taken aback by her concerned reaction. Cream has always been one to overly worry about me, to which the feeling was mutual.

"S is looking for me? I haven't seen him," I looked around me again. S was nowhere to be seen. "In fact, I was talking to Sonic. he just stopped by to talk to me."

"Where is he?"

We both snapped our heads towards Sally, who looked like she was going to burst into tears. I hadn't realized she was standing near us loading things into a white truck as my neighbor Mr. Song, an elderly fox gentleman, watched from the front seat.

'He's leaving...?'

Mr. Song moved to the neighborhood after the war. This place was the part of the city that got hit the hardest and one of the first neighborhoods that were completely rebuilt. It was Mr. Song's idea to plant an abundance of fruit trees around for the residents to enjoy while rations were low.

Seeing them loaded up in the truck shocked me. Yet, I couldn't blame them. No one thought another war would ever come. Cowering in a bunker was not for everyone, especially a young child and an elderly man.

'I wonder where they will go? Maybe to Carter's father's house? But that's so far. He lives on the other side of the state!'

"Amy?"

"Huh? I-I'm sorry! I didn't mean to zone out like that! What did you say?"

Sally looked distressed by shook off my comment. I smiled at her nervously as she loaded up two other boxes into the truck.

"What happened to Sonic? He just up at left two days ago and know I find out he came to see you! What's going on with him?"

'Two days? How come I didn't notice?'

"Y-yeah, I-I couldn't tell you, he-he just worried about me and this WHOLE situation we are in."

Sally sighed as she loaded the last few boxes into the moving vehicle. She jumped up and grabbed a hold of a white rope before pulling down on it. I flinched at how loud the door slammed down.

'I can't tell if she's angry or not,' I watched as she secured the latch and dusted off her hands. Cream looked up at me, shrugging. 'Neither can she.'

"Hey kid, do you have the lock?"

"Yeah!" The passenger door opened, revealing Mr. Song's young grandson, Carter. "Here it is! Don't worry, my granddad has the key!"

She nodded and put the lock on the door. She tugged on it before tapping on the metal door. Carter looked towards Mr. Song and nodded.

"Thank you, Miss!" As he was leaving toward the truck, he turned his head and locked eyes on me. "AMY!" Carter rushed toward me and Cream, making her move out of the way as the boy stood in front of us. "I was hoping you would show! I'm gonna miss you and the cookies you make!"

"Oh," I looked down at him. I tried to match his bright smile, but I'd be lying to myself if seeing him leave made me upset. "So I was right. You and your grandfather really are moving."

"My dad wants us to go live with him. He says it's too dangerous to stay," Carter crossed his arms dramatically and pouted. "I told him I don't want to leave. Being neighbors with a Freedom Fighter is so cool!"

"I'm sorry you have to go, But hey, my door is always open. I'll make you whatever you'd like if you ever come by to see me."

Carter's arms came undone and his mouth immediately curled back up into a smile.

"You mean it?"

"Of course! How can I turn down my number one fan?"

"Aw! Cool!"

I could hear Mr. Song knocking on the door of the truck. Carter looked back and jolted up a bit.

"Coming!" He turned and yelled. He turned back around and looked at me again. Although he was smiling, his eyes looked as pouty as ever. "I'm gonna miss you, Amy! I'll try and visit!"

"I'll miss you both too."

Carter turned and ran back to the truck and crawled into the passenger seat from the open window. I held back a laugh as he jumped back into the car from the open window on the passenger side.

I caught a glimpse of Mr. Song as he backed out of the driveway. They stopped in the middle of the street to let some of the other residents cross.

"Bye Carter, bye Mr. Song!"

I saw him nod from the visor window and waved at him, hoping he'd at least see that last gesture.

'I hope things go well for them.' I could only watch as they drove off. 'I think it's for the best they get out of a place like this.'

"Are you okay, Amy?"

"I'm fine, just a bit sad, I guess."

"He was the man who helped plant those trees, right? For the children during ration time?"

I nodded at Cream's comment. Sonic, Tails, and Cream were the only ones that stuck with me while we went around rebuilding the neighborhoods. Others like Shadow, Sally, Knuckles, and Rouge went their own separate ways. It wasn't until four years ago that we all came back together and decided that it would be a good idea to live near each other in case of an emergency.

'I never thought it would amount to anything like this.'

"I had no idea. I forgot you all helped rebuild most of Mobius," Sally shook her head as she hugged herself slightly. That three-year period we were all separated was hard on everyone. "At least, most of you did."

"Well, it isn't like you had a choice. You had to go back to the Acorn Kingdom."

"Yeah!" Cream interjected. "If you hadn't gone back, half of Mobius would still be in ruin!"

"I suppose you're right," Sally tried to laugh off. Her smile was a bit to wide, like she was forcing her mouth ajar to appear happy. But she couldn't fool me. I've been trying just as hard to appear as happy as she is right now for months. "I'm just beating myself up for not being here with you all."

"It's best to not be so hard on yourself like that. None of us could have guessed what we had in store for us after the war."

Sally didn't say anything while she stood there, hands wrapped around ther forearms rubbing them up and down slowly. It was almost as if she was trying to console herself.

'Is she okay? Why is she only bringing this kind of stuff up now?'

"Amy?"

"Hm?"

"About what we were talking about?"

"W-what was it again?" I scratched my head and sighed. "Was it about Sonic?"

"Is he okay?"

Her tone was dead serious. Her hands were no longer trying to self-sooth, but her fists were balled and nearly pinned to her side.

'What do I even say? I can't confess this to them! What if he hears? What if someone else hears and they tell him! It will ruin EVERYTHING!'

"I-I, I don't know," I managed to whimper out without stuttering too badly. "H-he looked tired. But I had no idea was gone for so long."

"Oh," She looked down again. I could see from the corner of my eyes that Cream looked mildly uncomfortable about discussing Sonic. "It's alright. I thought if he would have told anyone he would have mentioned something to you."

"Why to me?"

At looked at Sally. She opted to avert her gaze as she rubbed up her arms again.

'What is up with her? She seems scared. Or maybe, nervous?'

I would have liked to have thought that Sally and I mended our relationship after my whole obsession. When it was time to go visit her for the first time at Acorn Palace, all I could do was apologize to her. It took a year for her to sit me down and sincerely tell me that she accepted my apology. Sometimes, I still feel there is a veil of awkwardness and resentment whenever we discuss Sonic. I can't help but feel she still holds some anger toward me.

Not that it would be entirely undeserved. I know how mean I have been in my past.

"Well, Sonic, he, um, he trusts you more than himself at times."

'He does?'

"Um..." Cream waved her hand between us. I looked down at her, confused. Sally didn't avert her eyes away from the ground, not even to look at Cream. "I-I'm going to keep helping Tails, I-I-I'll see you both later!"

"Bye...?"

I watched her walk up to where Tails was scanning over some documents. She whispered something to him, to which he nodded and looked back at us.

'I wonder what she's telling him...'

"So, you thought about the same thing, right?"

"Yeah," I nodded. "I can't blame anyone for feeling off. This whole thing. I never thought I would ever have to fight again."

"Can't disagree with you there."

"Amy!"

"S?" As he jogged over to me, I noticed Sonic trailing behind him. "Oh, Sonic-"

"Sonic!" Sally ran toward him, practically tackling him to the ground. "You're okay! What happened?"

He smiled at her as she held her face and littered her face with kisses. S tried his best to look away without seeming rude.

'Ha, I forgot that he is still a teenage boy in spite of all of this going on.'

"I'm sorry I had to leave, I'll explain it to you later, I promise," Sally could only nod. I noticed that the moment Sonic took her hands off her, she gave him that same blank expression she gave me not too long ago. Whatever was bothering her undoubtedly had to do with him. "Let's get all these people situated in their homes."

"Its about time you all show up," Knuckles walked toward us, pointing at me with his fist. "What took you guys so long?"

"Sorry! I didn't mean to show up late!"

"So what if we're late? This isn't her or anyone else fault." Sonic put his hand on my shoulder and lightly pushed me behind him. I nearly would have bumped into S if it weren't for him lightly directing me next to him. "What matters is that we're here now. The only way we can get this done is if we work together."

"Right."

Sonic nodded at everyone's almost, unanimous response. I could see from behind him Shadow crossing his arms.

Say what you will about him, Sonic knows how to inspire people. He speaks with a voice so powerful that you can't help but listen.

'I am lucky to have him in my life.'

Sometimes, I want to laugh at myself for how I used to chase after Sonic.

So many hopeless nights, I would stay up and wait for him to swoop me up from my bed and take me to a place only he could show me.

'Oh, and the diary! I'm glad I tossed it out when I did! I wish I could go back and burn it.'

Those are the kind of childish romances I hold close to my heart. The kind that hurts in the moment but can look back on and smile as your mind cringes at the outlandish antics you've committed to get that one person to notice you.

It wasn't all for nothing.

Chasing him made me faster.

Fighting others to prove myself to him made me stronger.

Winning that war ensured peace for my friends.

I gained more than I ever lost. I could not be more grateful for that.

'I know I sacrificed my entire life to get Sonic to notice me,' I shook my head, looking down towards the ground. 'Got beat up a bunch. I fought in a war. I embarrassed myself in front of everyone that I knew,' I couldn't help but close my eyes and cringe once again. My body warmed itself with the awful secondhand embarrassment I caused for myself. 'I'm just glad that whole era is over! If not,' I couldn't help but smile. It was the only way to prevent the blush I knew that would eventually appear on my face. 'Someone I know I can give my everything too,' As soon as I turned to look his way, I was only able to catch a glimpse of his back turned toward me. 'If he can bother to look my way, that is.'

"Amy, catch!" I didn't even look toward Tails as I instinctively reached out my arms to grab the four or so stacked boxes. My knees buckled slightly at the new weight I suddenly had in my hands. "Get this to house '12' please! Then, I need you to help clear out those blue and yellow houses!"

I sighed, and smiled at Tails nervous as I whispered, "right away."

'I need to get out of my own head for a bit.'

The sky was getting dark with there barely being enough light to walk home without the street lights on. We dragged our feet beneath us in silence as we reached my home.

Sonic, Knuckles, Rouge, and Cream were lying next to each other, almost in a pile.

I was holding Sally by the arm as we joined them. Sally laid her head on Sonic's leg as I sat down next to Cream.

'It feels like we've done this a thousand times over...' I lay down next to her; my eyes stared up at the sky. I watched as the barely visible clouds graze across the dark blue background. I heard Cream whisper my name, I couldn't muster a response to her. Only a single thought danced in my head: 'I would sacrifice anything for this war to end like this.'

31 notes · View notes

expresso-bean · 6 months ago

Text

The Man Out of Time [A ShadAmy and Silver Story]: Chapter 23

Pairing: Shadow the Hedgehog x Amy Rose

All is well until a silver hedgehog comes knocking on Amy Rose's door to deliver the tragic news about an incredible force that seems to be the cause of the future's destruction.

Will anyone believe the mysterious hedgehog's cry for help? Or will he be left to fight for his future alone? Read to find out!

Word Count: 1.9k

POV: Silver the Hedgehog

!! I do not own any of the art/gifs/borders used in my chapters. All credits to the rightful owners !!

Masterlist ❀ Ch.1 ❀ Ch.2 ❀ Ch.3 ❀ Ch.4 ❀ Ch.5 ❀ Ch.6 ❀ Ch.7 ❀ Ch.8 ❀ Ch.9 ❀ Ch.10 ❀ Ch.11 ❀ Ch.12 ❀ Ch.13 ❀ Ch.14 ❀ Ch.15 ❀ Ch.16 ❀ Ch.17 ❀ Ch.18 ❀ Ch.19 ❀ Ch.20 ❀ Ch.21 ❀ Ch.22

I had several doubts that someone like Sonic, at least in this present, would ever be able to commit a single act of selflessness. I was thankful to be wrong, and even more grateful to see he won't try and intervene in my parents' personal lives anytime soon.

"I should probably go. S and the others are helping others evacuate to the shelters."

"S?"

'Shit.'

I looked around in panic. I had no idea I was able to teleport in the first place, and now I'm forced to not only learn but master it enough to get outside of the front door.

'What do I do? How do I do? How did I even do this?'

My head filling with thoughtlessness and solutions that lead to nowhere. I've been in worse situations, ones where I barely escape with my life. But this time, it isn't my life on the line, but my reputation. It is either reveal myself to my mother and Sonic and look terrible for eavesdropping on their personal conversation, look suspicious by walking out of the house by myself, or bet on Sonic to bail me out which, after everything that has happen, he might need some outlet to release his anger from getting his heart broken by my mother. All these are options that I dread.

'What am I supposed to do? Everyone is outside...they'll see me if I try to escape...what am I supposed to do!'

"Oh," I perked my head up at the sound of Sonic's voice trailing. I felt the embarrassment rise within him before letting out a heartfelt sigh. "Um, you go on ahead, if you don't mind, I want a moment to myself."

Amy let out a nervous chuckle, confused.

"O-oh, that's okay," Amy waved the awkwardness off before heading towards the door. "...did you want to talk about it? It doesn't have to be right now, but...I worry about you, you know?"

Sonic smiled before nodding and leaning his body further onto the couch. I could feel his urge to cry grow by the second. I knew if my mother stuck around for a bit longer, he would break down then and there.

"Alright then, I'm off," Amy rushed back to Sonic and kissed him softly on the top of his quills before running off towards the door. "I'll see you outside then!"

"I'll see you in a minute."

Upon the sound of the door closing, I heard Sonic groan. The sadness he had built up finally began to spill. Tears silently spilled as his body shook with the pain of heartache.

'How could I...' Sonic thought. '...believe she could ever love me again?'

Although it stung me to hear Sonic cry, I had to admit that I do not feel bad for him at all. It could be that I am a bit biased, but I knew that wasn't it. He had his chance, and he made my mother insecure about anyone ever loving her genuinely. It took a lot for her to build herself back up after years of humiliating rejection. His heartbreak is understandable, but I could never empathize with it.

"I-I-I...I-I do-don-don't even-even kno-kno-know wha-what to s-sa-say."

'You don't have to say anything, just leave so I can practice trying to teleport so I can GET OUT OF HERE.'

By screaming in my head, my body jumped a bit and my head hit the knob of the kitchen drawer above me. It wasn't the actual hit that hurt me, but I sucked in my teeth at the loud noise that came from the impact.

'Uh-oh.'

Each step he took was a blur to me. I didn't even sense him coming in my direction. All I know is that in a blink of an eye, Sonic was standing right before me, his face filled with a menacing look and his fists up and ready to attack.

"Oh," Sonic's voice softened, but his expression stayed the same. "it's you."

' Just play it cool. He'll leave you alone after you make it clear you aren't messing around anymore. He doesn't deserve answers after what he did.'

"Yes, it's me."

'That wasn't cool at all! I gotta try and get out of here. At least before he does anything he'll regret.'

I quickly turned around, opting to leave rather than bear the awkwardness of having to see his face. After the altercation that happened between him, Shadow, and I, it wasn't out of the ordinary for me to want a break from his face.

'I didn't think it was possible for him to lose control like that. I guess he really has always been this cranky.'

"Wait!" He stood in front of the door, his arms wide. I stiffly stood upright in shock. "You're not getting out of this that easily."

'I'm still not used to how fast he is. Even with the added context that he is one of the fastest things alive.'

"What are you even doing here?"

I unfixed my jacket exaggeratedly. I hoped it would prove to him that this time I was done giving him chances.

"Wouldn't you like to know?"

His arms folded and he rolled his eyes. I just stared at him, in awe at the fact that he is the one giving me attitude after he attacked me.

"Sheesh, I was just trying to be nice."

"Now you want to be nice? You can't be serious!" As I approached him, he put up his hands nonchalantly. I could feel my face growing warm with anger. He didn't even look my way when I pointed a finger to his face. "After everything that happened, you think I'll except your kindness?"

"Hey, that isn't fair! You started this fight. I was never going to act on my feelings, but you're the one who made a big deal about it!"

"I made a big deal about it because it wasn't fair to my mother or Sally!"

"Hey, don't bring her into this!"

Sonic put down his hands, I moved his leg forward as if he was prepping himself to lunge at me if necessary. It didn't scare me. I knew how desperate he was for me to keep my mouth shut.

"You forget one thing, Sonic."

"What?"

"I'm not scared of you. If our fight taught me anything is that I will stop at nothing to to protect the future of everyone I hold dear."

"I see that."

'Shadow won't be around to stop him forever. And although I know I can defend myself, it wouldn't look good to anyone if I attacked their leader for no apparent reason,' My jaw locked. It felt like I was stuck. 'Ugh! I didn't come here be apart of some petty drama. But, I guess, whether I like it or not, I need Sonic's help for this all to work.'

"Despite everything," I sighed. I almost didn't want to offer any sympathy to him. Although nothing happened, there was a icky feeling that weighed on my chest about the entire situation. "I'm glad you came to your senses."

"Oh," His voice grew quiet as he stared right at me. It wasn't a menacing glare, as I expected. Moreso it was one of deep shame. I've never seen someone so grand look so small before. "so you heard everything?"

"Y-yeah. Unfortunately."

'He's still looking at me like that. I didn't even do anything wrong! He's the one that got caught, why be mad at me?' I shook my head, holding in a sigh. 'I shouldn't give away myself so easily. No, I need something under my sleeve, even if I can barely use it right now, I can train myself up to making it stronger.'

"Look, I didn't mean to eavesdrop, but it would have been awkward if I had just walked out while you both were having a clearly private conversation."

Sonic nodded. His eyes were still blank, but he seemed to be pondering about something.

'I can't tell what he's feeling. It's like,' My eyes widened a bit before I forced myself to relax. Sonic, despite looking at my the entire time, didn't react to my little facial fumble. 'He isn't feeling anything. Did one conversation devoid him of that much emotion?'

"Look, about what happened."

"Hm?"

Sonic slowly moved toward the counter and leaned against it with his arms crossed.

'Is he going to...?'

"I'm... I'm sorry."

'HE ACTUALLY APOLOGIZED?'

"I didn't know what I was thinking, and I know that isn't an excuse, but," He turned his head away from me. I can see the tension growing in his face as he shut his eyes closed. "How I acted wasn't right, and I'm sorry for that."

'What do I do? Sonic isn't evil. I know he isn't,' I couldn't look at him for long. Something inside me twitched with the feeling of uneasiness. 'He's making a lot of mistakes. Like, he's selfish, but he's recognizing that he isn't immune from the consequences.'

Sonic looked over at me briefly. He had the face of a guilty man. I have no doubt that he genuinely regrets what he did. Still, I shouldn't determine whether or not he is worthy of forgiveness.

'He basically cheated on his wife. I can't see past that. I feel guilty just thinking about it!'

"Sonic?"

He didn't hum or say anything at the sound of his name. He slowly looked up at me, a look of sadness on his face.

'For this to work, I'm going to have to keep my distance, at least until he and Sally resolve whatever is happening between them. As much as I hate to say it, it isn't my place to say anything.'

"Let's try and put all of this behind us, we have bigger things to be worried about," Sonic nodded unconvincingly. It was as if he was waiting for me to say something else. "But this is the last time I'm going to tell you to stay of my mother and father's relationship."

"I understand," Sonic sounded rather sincere despite the look on his face. Considering all this is his fault, I could only feel so bad for him. Would he still look this guilty if I had never found out in the first place? "I'm sorry for being so stupid with all of this."

"You have a beautiful fiancé, focus on her rather than others. I would have told her if it was up to me, but I won't since I have no idea what repercussions it might have on the future."

"Thank you for that."

"I don't want your thanks," I tsked rather annoyingly. I could feel my patience thinning the longer the conversation lasts. "I don't mean to be rude, but there are more important things that we need to focus on. We have a lot of training and picking up to do. As much as I hate to admit, your friends will follow you to the ends of the world. Even Amy. I need her to be focused, and without you're distractions."

"I promise. I'm all in on this. No more fighting."

Looking over at him was like looking in a mirror. We both had that same expression of guilt. I couldn't help but be angry at how unfair this entire situation felt. The worst part is I knew he also understood what I was feeling. Yet, he hasn't said a single word about it.

"You better be right."

'For your own sake. I'm done letting you hurt other people for your own selfish reasons.'

"Let's get going. I'm sure Amy and the others are waiting for us."

"Right," I nodded. "Let's get this done!"

16 notes · View notes

expresso-bean · 6 months ago

Text

The Man Out of Time [A ShadAmy and Silver Story]: Chapter 22

Pairing: Shadow the Hedgehog x Amy Rose

All is well until a silver hedgehog comes knocking on Amy Rose's door to deliver the tragic news about an incredible force that seems to be the cause of the future's destruction.

Will anyone believe the mysterious hedgehog's cry for help? Or will he be left to fight for his future alone? Read to find out!

Warnings: None

Word Count: 2.1k

POV: Sonic the Hedgehog

!! I do not own any of the art/gifs/borders used in my chapters. All credits to the rightful owners !!

Masterlist ❀ Ch.1 ❀ Ch.2 ❀ Ch.3 ❀ Ch.4 ❀ Ch.5 ❀ Ch.6 ❀ Ch.7 ❀ Ch.8 ❀ Ch.9 ❀ Ch.10 ❀ Ch.11 ❀ Ch.12 ❀ Ch.13 ❀ Ch.14 ❀ Ch.15 ❀ Ch.16 ❀ Ch.17 ❀ Ch.18 ❀ Ch.19 ❀ Ch.20 ❀ Ch.21

Do you remember the days when you chased me? Did you cherish them like I did? Hidden behind my annoyance was someone stupid who had no idea how to show love.

And now, I see the consequences of my mistakes.

A single phrase.

Was that how much I meant to you all those years? Is that all it took to forget about me? About the love you had for me?

'Is this it? Is this some sort of cruel revenge?'

"I love Shadow."

Those three words. Three words are all it took for me to realize...

'I deserve all of this. For all the pain I put you through over the years.'

"W-what?" I mumbled unconsciously. It sounded more like a whimper, and I quickly recovered my composure before repeating myself loud enough for Amy to hear. "Wait, huh?"

"The person I love is Shadow," She finally gained the courage to look at her. Her eyes filled with love and her face pink with embarrassment. It was her confessing her love. Only, it was not for me this time around. "Shocking, right?"

"Um," I scratched the back of my neck, unsure of what to say. I came here with one goal in mind. To tell her all the things I have been suppressing. I assumed she still loved me. That I still held a place in her heart despite me being with someone else. "...I don't know what to say. This is, just, wow."

But her actions said otherwise.

Her words flowed with passion, her cheeks filled with love, and her mouth couldn't help but twist into a smile at the thought of the man she truly loves.

I've made so many mistakes throughout my adventures, but ignoring her affections for the sake of pride has to be my biggest one yet.

'Why did I let myself become so arrogant?'

"Sonic? Are you mad that it's...him?"

I stayed silent again. It was not anger I was feeling, more regret and sadness. I let everyone around me decide who I should give my love to, and I listened to keep up an image to please others. But images fade, and behind the scenes, I wanted nothing more than to be with the annoying, pink hedgehog who kept pestering me to go out with her.

'I did this to myself. I was the one being selfish and putting others' judgment over my personal feelings. I broke her heart so many times, yelled at her so many times, and rejected her so many times. After all that, why did I ever hope to think she would still be interested in me?'

"Sonic, are you okay?"

'No, this isn't about me anymore. I can't be messing with her feelings any longer. I didn't have a right then, and I don't know. The best thing I can do now is to try and make things right.'

"Me? I'm fine Ames," I wrapped an arm around her shoulders. She shrieked a bit and I managed to pull out a laugh despite my depressing mood. "So, Shadow huh? He's quite the character, though. Are you sure you want...him?"

"H-hey! You don't know him like I do. He can be broody and yes, he's been patronizing in the past, but underneath all of his 'layers' he's the sweetest guy I've ever met," Amy covered her blushing face, and let out a sigh. "That and so much more."

'Ever met?' I bit my lip and then forced a smile. 'This is going to be harder than I thought.'

With as much enthusiasm I could muster, I grabbed Amy by the shoulders and squeezed her towards me. I let out an empty chuckle while she cutely shrieked beside me.

"Ah, you know I'm just teasing you Ames," I gulped as I looked down at her. Her face was still red, and she now had a small smile on her perfect lips. But I knew the blushes and smiles weren't for me. They'll forever be for someone more deserving. "You don't know how happy I am for you!"

"You are?"

"Of course, I am!" I let go of her, ruffling her pink hair. She giggled, and playfully tried to slap my hands away from her. "As long as you're happy and safe, I'm happy with anyone you choose to love."

To my surprise, Amy squealed and threw herself onto me in a big hug. She cuddled into my chest, and I felt my face heat up. Shameful as it may be, I still do enjoy her hugs, and they mean everything to me, even if they mean nothing special to her.

"You have no idea how much this means to me Sonic!"

"How much does it mean to you?"

Amy looked up, the corner of her eyes rose with her smile, and she flicked me on the nose, instinctively my eyes twitched in annoyance.

"Did you not hear me earlier? You mean a lot to me," She once again buried her face into my chest. I could feel her warm breath near my neck. It sent chills of the pleasure I've longed from her for years. But I know better than to think like that now. "It's funny. I'm fussing so much over someone who doesn't even feel the same."

"What? You don't think he feels the same?"

"He can be difficult to read. But I can't help but feel that he doesn't even care that much about me. At least, not in the way I want him to."

For some reason, that sentence made me feel odd. I've always known Shadow had a soft spot for Amy even before Silver's reveal. It was obvious in the way he acted around her. He was calmer, kinder, and more tolerable. He appreciates her for being herself and never once have I seen him run away.

"Ames, do you even hear yourself right now?" Amy's head tilted, probably being taken aback by the sudden change in my voice. "We grew up together, we've fought together, we've won a war together! Trust me, I know you more than anyone and I could say with FULL confidence that you are a beautiful, caring, and amazing woman."

Amy's eyes sparkled with excitement with each word. I held in my smile as I continued with my rant.

"I've seen the way he looks at you. He doesn't look at anyone else in that way. I know during the war he was sort of forced to change to our side, but it was you who kept him here with us. It was your kindness; your determination to seek the good in people that Shadow is one of our closest allies. He feels the same way about you," I sighed, looking right into her emerald eyes. They were happy and bright, my words making them hopeful. "He would be an idiot to not fall for you, Ames."

Amy's face completely flushed red, redder than the dress she was wearing at this moment. Her hands immediately went to cover her warm face, and a small, muffled whimper escaped her lips. I looked over at her, not paying much attention to her overreaction, simply going in for a side hug.

"Don't give me hope, I bet half the time he doesn't even care that I'm around."

"Amy..." My voice trailed off into a sarcastic groan. It was hard enough to try and convince her will be hard, especially without giving away any of my feelings. "Don't say that."

"That is a nice thought though, right?"

'I have to fix this...'

"Amy."

'She doesn't deserve this...'

"Hm?"

'She doesn't deserve to feel this hopeless. To live her life believing that she isn't worthy of the love of someone else,' I wanted to sigh. I couldn't bring myself too. Not here. Not in this moment. 'Even if it isn't with me.'

"You can't be so hard on yourself."

"With everything going on, can you seriously blame me!" Amy's eyes grew wide and she quickly covered her mouth with her hands. Her shoulders, that were once raised in tension, sank down. "Sorry, it's..." Her words muffled through her hands. I wanted to reach over and take her hand away. But my arms were too stiff. My hands seemed to be bolted down to my knees. "it's been..."

"A lot?"

"Yeah," She, thankfully, finally moved her hands away from her mouth. I could see she was frowning from beneath where she was hiding her lips. "And this 'thing' with Shadow makes me feel so... I don't know. Weird? Alone? Scared?" She clutched her fists in her lap again. "It's hopeless to even think about. He doesn't want me. Point and simple."

"So what?"

Amy paused to look at me.

"So... what?"

"Yeah, so what if you feel that way? So what if he doesn't love you? I can give you a list a reasons why you are probably wrong," She gave me her 'look'. The look she would give me when she was annoyed. Yet, she nodded for me to keep going. "But, we'd be here all night. But just trust me and think for a second. What is Shadow doing right now?"

"He's helping outside."

"Right! He's He's out there, helping everyone he can. Why?"

"Because..."

"Because you asked him to. If it was anyone else, he would have said no, or worse." She nodded. I could tell even she knew that Shadow has his little moments. "He wouldn't do that if he didn't care for you," I shook my head. "No, he wouldn't do that if he didn't love you."

She couldn't look at me. She could only clutched the fabric on of her red skirt. It wasn't until now that I noticed she hadn't once looked at me since her little outburst about feeling overwhelmed. And again to give me a look of annoyance.

"When you love someone, you oftentimes sacrifice parts of yourself for them. For me, it was putting aside my own pride to finally open myself up to loving Sally. Never in my life could I imagine myself getting married. Yet, here I am. Wedding band and everything," I chuckled nervously as I looked at the ring on my gloved finger. It gleamed under the white light of the living room. "Shadow's sacrifice, well, him being here with us is living proof of what leaving Eggman did for him. Do you realize how crazy that is? All that hared, anger, despair. He put that aside to join us. Whatever it is you said to him, it worked."

"And me?" He voice was empty. It made me what to shudder from how devoid it sounded. "What was mine?"

"What is it that you sacrificed? It's easy to say really." I pointed to myself. "Thankfully, giving up on me led you to him," I touched her shoulder again. She felt less tense than before. "And I couldn't be happier for you. All I've wanted was to see you happy, Ames."

"Wow." Amy's voice didn't trail. She said it so quickly that I almost didn't catch it. "I never thought of it like that before."

'Has she really have this little confidence in herself?' I almost blurted that thought out. But, I couldn't bear the thought of having to apologize to her. I haven't been the kindest person to her when it came to rejecting her. 'Maybe I will one day. Today cannot be that day.'

"I guess... you can be right," She bumped her shoulder onto mine playfully. "Who would have thought you would have been the therapeutic type?"

"Hey! I have my moments!"

"I know," She giggled. I smiled at the sound of her light laughter. "I'm just poking fun."

Finally, she looked over at me. I could only stare into her soft emerald green eyes. I was always fond of them. The color clashed with her pink quills, sure. But I've never seen anything like them. Truly, they are uniquely hers.

"Thanks for always being here for me, Sonic," She stood up finally, and grabbed me by my hands to pull me up to a hug. "You have no idea what it means."

'Oh. This,' As I leaned into her warmth. I could feel the fiery passion of my love for her dwindle. 'This is nice. This is all it could ever be between us. Nice.'

"Of course," I rested my hand softly on her pink quills. I stroked them softly. "Anytime you need me, Ames. I'm always here."

'Although I didn't do this entirely for you Silver, I think I owe you one. And maybe a bit more.' I secretly wiped another tear before hugging her a bit close. 'I hope you could all be truly happy one day.'

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expresso-bean · 6 months ago

Text

The Man Out of Time [A ShadAmy and Silver Story]: Chapter 21

Pairing: Shadow the Hedgehog x Amy Rose

All is well until a silver hedgehog comes knocking on Amy Rose's door to deliver the tragic news about an incredible force that seems to be the cause of the future's destruction.

Will anyone believe the mysterious hedgehog's cry for help? Or will he be left to fight for his future alone? Read to find out!

Warnings: None

Word Count: 1.2k

POV: Third Person

!! I do not own any of the art/gifs/borders used in my chapters. All credits to the rightful owners !!

Masterlist ❀ Ch.1 ❀ Ch.2 ❀ Ch.3 ❀ Ch.4 ❀ Ch.5 ❀ Ch.6 ❀ Ch.7 ❀ Ch.8 ❀ Ch.9 ❀ Ch.10 ❀ Ch.11 ❀ Ch.12 ❀ Ch.13 ❀ Ch.14 ❀ Ch.15 ❀ Ch.16 ❀ Ch.17 ❀ Ch.18 ❀ Ch.19 ❀ Ch.20

Sonic stood at the front of Amy's door. He took a breathe and tried to settle his breathing. His nerves seeped throughout his entire body making his foot tap impatiently.

'Just knock, dammit! Before they catch you.'

'Knock. Knock. Knock.'

Of course his first instinct when feeling this guilt was to talk to Amy. She was the only one capable of making him feel at ease, not to mention her great advice was always helpful to rely on. Sonic was practically biting on his gloved fingers when Amy opened the door.

"Oh Sonic," Amy smiled sweetly as she moved over to let Sonic in. "I didn't know you were going to be here. Come in, I have some blueberry iced tea if you want some."

Sonic entered quietly, his hand fidgeting from the nerves he felt. Usually, he was able to control the feelings he had for her. He has been doing it for years, but after the fight he had with Silver, it was as if his nerves were out of control.

'Get a grip man! No one knows you're here so there is nothing to worry about. Just tell her everything you need to and then get on your way.'

Meanwhile, Silver managed to catch a glimpse of Sonic as he entered Amy's house. Silver felt his eyes widen and glow when the door closed. Even from where he was standing, Silver could feel the nervousness pondering that Sonic's heart and mind were filled with. However, he couldn't find any indication of why he was so jittery.

"He better not do what I think he is going to do!"

There was so much information that Sonic could tell his mother.

'He can expose my real name, or how she is my mother, and Shadow being my father! Or even worse, that blue bastard can tell my mother that he has always loved her and plead his sap story about how he was so blinded by his over-confidence and failed attempts at making her jealous that he can't take it anymore and he must confess! This is a complete disaster! She is already insecure about Shadow actually liking her and Sonic can possibly win her over! I have to stop this!'

Silver began to panic as he paced on the sidewalk in front of Amy's house. If anyone were to see him, they would deem him insane, and he wouldn't blame them.

"What do I do? I can't let him say anything that would hurt my future! Or my father for that matter. I need to get inside! If Sonic sees me, we would have to fight again and-" My voice trailed off. I hated the feeling of having to fight him. It didn't feel right having to defend myself against the only uncle I have left in the future, not to mention the pain of knowing that someone from my own family wanted me dead by his own hands. "I need to stop this!"

Silver clenched his eyes in frustration when, out of nowhere, he felt his body become light, lighter than it's ever been. He felt nauseous as he opened his eyes and saw he was in his mother's kitchen. Silver looked at the teal aura shimmering off his body as it began to disappear.

'How did I get here? Did I just-?'

"I teleported." Silver's voice was quiet, and he had a proud smile on his face as he sunk to the floor. "I teleported!" He then snapped out of his state of awe and placed a hand over his mouth, forcing himself into a state of seriousness. He needs to know why Sonic was there and what he was going to say before intervening. 'Focus. I can't let them see me. Yet, anyway.'

In the living room, Sonic sipped his iced tea in silence as Amy watched him gleefully. She couldn't remember the last time she was alone with him, and the possibility of having a heart-to-heart conversation excited her.

"How's everything going with Sally? I'm sure you're excited about the wedding. Although," Amy laughed nervously. "I'm sure the wedding is the last thing on your mind because of everything happening."

Sonic's chest felt a bit of hurt at the mention of Sally's name. He didn't want to come here to talk about Sally. He came to confess. He needed to make everything right the way things were meant to be. Amy was meant to be with him, and he would do anything to have her.

"I meant it when I said I was happy for you. If this were seven years ago, I would be furious and demanding that you break up with Sally and marry me instead," Amy giggled and took a breath before continuing. "Looking back on it, I'm glad you rejected me all for all those years. I feel like I wouldn't have been a good match for you. But you and Sally are truly something else. I've never seen you so happy before."

Sonic set the now empty glass of iced tea on the table. Her words felt bittersweet against Sonic's eardrums. He appreciated them, but he never wanted to hear them again.

'Family. I'm nothing but a brother to her, am I?'

Sonic bit his lip anxiously, and Amy stared at him with great questions in her eyes. Meanwhile, Silver stayed crouched down out of view of the two. His teeth were slightly clenched as he attempted to regain his composure. He could feel Sonic's undying love for Amy and his longing to tell her.

'I'm ready to pounce on you the moment you even mention loving her Sonic. My uncle or not, I will defend myself and my father.'

"You know," Sonic raised his eyebrow at Amy, who was avoiding his gaze and twiddling with her fingers. "I hate to say it, but I am jealous."

"You are?" Sonic felt his heartbeat rush and his cheek grow slightly hot. "Of who?"

'Was she jealous of Sally? Does she love me too? Is this...what I think it is?'

"Of you silly," Amy giggled and poked Sonic on the nose. "Seeing you so happy with the person you love, and them being happy and loving you back. I wish I had that with him."

"With him," Sonic felt his bottom lip quiver, his face growing warm, but not with embarrassment, but dread. "W-who?"

Amy blushed and set her hands firmly in her lap. She hadn't told anyone about her feelings for Shadow, mostly out of fear of how they would react. She didn't want to hear any criticism of her choice of who she loved. She dreaded a repeat of what happened when she had a crush on Sonic. She would get harshly teased and criticized by her friends to the point she would cry herself to sleep at night. There was no way she was going to relive that now.

"If I tell you, do you promise not to hate me?"

Sonic blinked at her words and chuckled loudly. Amy softly punched him on the arm and crossed her arms to declare her annoyance with him.

"Sorry Ames but," Sonic moved closer and caressed her left cheek with his hand. "I could never hate you. Please, tell me who it is."

Amy grew slightly uncomfortable with his touch, especially since he was going to marry her best friend in the near future. She moved away from Sonic, making him remove his hand from her face.

'Damn, I made her uncomfortable didn't I?'

Silver had no idea what was going on. All he knew was that his uncle did something to his mother to make her feel uneasy and conflicted. Several things ran in his mind, and he wanted neither of them to be true.

'One more wrong move and you done Sonic. I don't care if my mother is in the room or not, I won't be holding anything back this time.'

"I love Shadow."

18 notes · View notes

expresso-bean · 6 months ago

Text

The Man Out of Time [A ShadAmy and Silver Story]: Chapter 20

Pairing: Shadow the Hedgehog x Amy Rose

All is well until a silver hedgehog comes knocking on Amy Rose's door to deliver the tragic news about an incredible force that seems to be the cause of the future's destruction.

Will anyone believe the mysterious hedgehog's cry for help? Or will he be left to fight for his future alone? Read to find out!

Warnings: None

Word Count: 1.1k

POV: Silver the Hedgehog

!! I do not own any of the art/gifs/borders used in my chapters. All credits to the rightful owners !!

Masterlist ❀ Ch.1 ❀ Ch.2 ❀ Ch.3 ❀ Ch.4 ❀ Ch.5 ❀ Ch.6 ❀ Ch.7 ❀ Ch.8 ❀ Ch.9 ❀ Ch.10 ❀ Ch.11 ❀ Ch.12 ❀ Ch.13 ❀ Ch.14 ❀ Ch.15 ❀ Ch.16 ❀ Ch.17 ❀ Ch.18 ❀ Ch.19

I know he's here; I heard his voice and the guilt-filled remorse that was strung in his words. Yet, I couldn't sense him or feel his thoughts in my head.

"Hear what?"

"For a smart guy, you sure miss the smallest details."

"Hey, leave me and my observations alone!"

I chuckled as he punched my arm with no force whatsoever.

"Cheer up Tails! At least in the future, you can punch people way harder than that!"

The glare Tails gave me did not erase the teasing grin on my face. When I was a kid, he would always make fun of me, especially for my height. I was a late grower, so he would call me 'sprout'. But just because I was a short kid didn't mean I didn't pack a punch. One of the happiest memories I have in the workshop was accidentally punching him towards a wall. Although my uncle was one of the strongest men left in the future and capable of handling his own, nothing was able to prepare him for the punch I hit him with. The fact that I was able to hit him with that much force surprised me then.

Uncle Tails never called me 'short' after that. Instead, he began to train me. My father was severely against it, but after a talk with my uncle and aunt, his mind changed. I never found out what convinced him, and I guess I will never know.

"This is bad. We haven't been able to convince a single person!" Tails said as we both walked up the short amount of steps to reach the last house in Amy's neighborhood. "What are we going to do?"

"Have some confidence, Tails! We can convince this one! And if we have them by our side, we can have them convince the rest of the neighborhood."

"We should have just had Amy do this; she is so much better with people than us."

"You're not wrong, but I don't want to put more pressure on her than I already have."

Tails simply nodded, but I could feel his doubt. Many people in the past have known my mother and have seen what she is capable of and more, yet, they still doubt that she is an exceptional fighter. In my father's journal, he had written that they would stay with one another during the war with Eggman. My father cherished those moments more than anything, and I know he would do anything to get those moments back. He knew her strengths, and he would never doubt my mother's abilities, even if it hurt his pride.

Tails knocked on the door, and within seconds, a frantic, fusha cat-haired woman opened the door with two children clutching at her feet. I blankly blinked at her while Tails looked at me and nodded.

"Hello ma'am, we are sorry to bother you, but we must inform you that you have to leave this resistance for the safety of you and your family. Move all your essential and sentimental belongings into your assigned safe house within the month. Thank you for your cooperation."

"For my cooper-what? Young man, we have children in this household, we need to stay here. I've heard from the other neighbors that you have been bothering them with your superstition and such, but the war ended several years ago. We are at peace, so if you please, leave us in peace as well!"

Before Tails can react, the door loudly shut in front of us. Tails stomped his foot and grunted in frustration, holding his hand on top of his head in complete anger.

"S! Just tell them you're from the future and that everyone here is going to die if they don't move out of their houses!"

"What part of 'not everyone can know' do you not understand?"

"It's not that risky! They aren't fighters! Just tell them you are the future! Show them you watch! They'll have to believe you then!"

"What? I can't do that! Not only will that bring panic and fear on all these people, but then they'll think I'm crazy and weird."

"You already are! You have nothing to lose, S!"

"Yes, I do. My dignity!"

"Do you have a better idea?"

I kicked around a rock that was in front of the woman's door before meeting Tails' gaze again.

"Hm," I shrugged, and in turn, he sighed. "Brute force?"

"I'll go find Rouge and Knuckles. Do you know where they are?"

"There at Amy's place. I'll go get them. If I'm lucky, Shadow might help us too." I cheekily smiled, and he elbowed me slightly.

"Yeah, you won't need the luck to get to him, more like a miracle."

"I have a feeling that won't be necessary."

"That was pretty impressive how you were able to convince Shadow to help us. I thought it was impossible to get him to do anything!"

"See?" I smirked and widened my arms in emphasis. "What did I tell you? I am a very persuasive person."

"Shut your trap, you buffoon! I didn't come here to listen to you take all the credit for my help."

"Oh? Then who convinced Shadow, S?" I looked towards my father as he turned away. I felt the embarrassment seep up inside him, and his cheeks were now red. "Oh, don't tell me-!"

"I didn't come here to tolerate such mediocre conversation!"

I chuckled as he left to yell and help other people move items into their vehicles.

"I should probably go help them to speed up the process," Tails looked around before looking back at me. "Wait, where's Amy?"

"She said to give her a few minutes, but now that you mention it, I should probably go check up on her."

"Why, did something happen?"

"No, it's just," I paused for a second. I couldn't tell him about what happened between Sonic and I. Tails has always been Sonic's most loyal friend, he'll take his side over mine in a heartbeat, in the present and future. "I have a feeling someone I don't want talking to her is going to get near her. I can't let that happen."

Tails tilted his head in confusion as he raised his hand questionably.

"In that case, shouldn't you tell Shadow or Rouge to help with that? Don't get me wrong, I know you care about her and everything, but I know she trusts them more."

I looked away, not saying anything I turned my body to walk.

"Do me a favor and don't tell them about this. I have to do something important, and I would appreciate it if it were to be kept secret. I'll be back as soon as you know it."

"If it's secret information about the future, I understand. Just hurry before Shadow starts to ask questions and threatens me when I don't tell him where you are."

I nodded and sprinted my way over to my mother's home.

'I hope he isn't already there.'

9 notes · View notes

expresso-bean · 6 months ago

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The Man Out of Time [A ShadAmy and Silver Story]: Chapter 19

Pairing: Shadow the Hedgehog x Amy Rose

All is well until a silver hedgehog comes knocking on Amy Rose's door to deliver the tragic news about an incredible force that seems to be the cause of the future's destruction.

Will anyone believe the mysterious hedgehog's cry for help? Or will he be left to fight for his future alone? Read to find out!

Warnings: None

Word Count: 821

POV: Sonic the Hedgehog

!! I do not own any of the art/gifs/borders used in my chapters. All credits to the rightful owners !!

Masterlist ❀ Ch.1 ❀ Ch.2 ❀ Ch.3 ❀ Ch.4 ❀ Ch.5 ❀ Ch.6 ❀ Ch.7 ❀ Ch.8 ❀ Ch.9 ❀ Ch.10 ❀ Ch.11 ❀ Ch.12 ❀ Ch.13 ❀ Ch.14 ❀ Ch.15 ❀ Ch.16 ❀ Ch.17 ❀ Ch.18

When I woke up, the first thing I felt was a sharp pain in my side. I clutched it tightly as I slowly picked myself off the ground.

"What happened to me?"

I rubbed my head, hoping the gentle strokes would lead me to the answers I wanted, but I got nothing but pain in return. It was then that I grew aware of my surroundings. I knew we were in one of the wrecked cities from the war, but this place was seriously wrecked. There were cars and holes everywhere, and patches of fresh ash and burns on the roads which I could only assume were from energy blasts.

'Did I do this?'

I didn't remember anything, which wasn't uncommon when I pass out after battles, but this felt different, like my heart knew I had done something extremely wrong. The last thing I remember was the fight Silver and I had-

"Silver."

That word. No, that name left a bitter-sweet taste in my mouth. S's real name was Silver. But how did I know that?

"I am Silver the Hedgehog! Son of Shadow the Hedgehog and Amy Rose! I won't let you destroy my future or my family!"

'I was in my dark form, wasn't I? That's why I couldn't remember anything.'

"I wonder what I managed to mess up this time."

'I have to think. Where did he go? Why did he just leave me like this?' I tried to piece together what had happened in those last few moments. 'What happened…'

I had a bad feeling in my chest. Like there was something bad coming my way.

'He's going to tell her, isn't he?'

"No, no, no, no…this is bad…" I whispered with my hands on my head in a panic. "I gotta see Amy!"

I patted all over and sighed in relief when I saw I still had my Chaos Emerald.

'Good thing he didn't take this. If I ran from here to there, who knows what he could have said to her. I have to make this quick.'

"Chaos Control!"

To my luck, I landed in a bush.

"Ouch…" Rolling out of the bush, I groaned while picking out leaves that were sticking out of my quills. "Can't…let Silver see me."

'Silver…'

I walked around Amy's neighborhood, hanging my head down low in slight shame. I could have killed him. I had the power to erase him from the future and prevent Amy and Shadow from having him in the first place.

Yet, I felt his power. He was holding back a lot more than he realized. He was more than capable of hurting me, maybe even killing me, but he chose not to.

Why? Because we are family? Because he knew I could hurt him as well?

Family's a stupid excuse not to fight back, especially if I was so willing to take his life if he gave me a chance.

'Ugh! This is so stupid! Why do I always have to react to my jealous impulse! Amy gave me several chances when we were younger, but my pride was too big to accept any of her affections. Even if I know who Silver is, and what happened to him as a child, I still love her. But what gets me angry the most is that I feel guilty about everything!'

I gritted my teeth and clenched my fists as I continued to Amy's house, now stomping in the utter frustration that I feel.

'I've never felt guilty after any fight, no matter who it was with. I have never regretted anything I have done if it meant I could knock some sense into someone or feel of immense thrill whenever I could test my abilities even if it was for a couple of seconds. I didn't feel that this time. I got no thrill from fighting Silver, and I don't even remember all of it in truth. Only fragments like the words he said to me, how he was able to maneuver his powers in an attempt to hurt me, and the way his skin felt when I was hitting him. Most of all, I remember how his eyes looked when he was helpless on the ground, not even holding his arms up to defend himself, and not even raising a finger to hit me in return.'

"Why didn't he just hit me!"

I heard shuffling from around the corner of the block I was walking on, and in a blind panic, I jumped into the yard and left the white picket fence to hide my body from the people about to pass by.

"Did you hear something Tails?"

Although I couldn't see them, I recognized his voice. The same voice that taunted me with guilt all night. Why is he walking right after the beating he took from me?

"And more importantly, what the hell is Tails doing with Silver?"

8 notes · View notes

expresso-bean · 6 months ago

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The Man Out of Time [A ShadAmy and Silver Story]: Chapter 18

Pairing: Shadow the Hedgehog x Amy Rose

All is well until a silver hedgehog comes knocking on Amy Rose's door to deliver the tragic news about an incredible force that seems to be the cause of the future's destruction.

Will anyone believe the mysterious hedgehog's cry for help? Or will he be left to fight for his future alone? Read to find out!

Warnings: None

Word Count: 1.8k

POV: Silver the Hedgehog

!! I do not own any of the art/gifs/borders used in my chapters. All credits to the rightful owners !!

Masterlist ❀ Ch.1 ❀ Ch.2 ❀ Ch.3 ❀ Ch.4 ❀ Ch.5 ❀ Ch.6 ❀ Ch.7 ❀ Ch.8 ❀ Ch.9 ❀ Ch.10 ❀ Ch.11 ❀ Ch.12 ❀ Ch.13 ❀ Ch.14 ❀ Ch.15 ❀ Ch.16 ❀ Ch.17

My mother's touch was comforting, and I couldn't help but lean into it. It was soft and gentle, the true definition of a mother's touch. It was enough to make me want to cry, but I knew better than to shed tears right now.

From behind me, I could feel my father watching me attentively. I wouldn't call it creepy, but it is nothing short of awkward and intimidating. But behind those menacing glares is a deep pool of mixed emotions for me.

Anger.

Jealously.

Sympathy.

Pity.

I never believed that my father, in this present, would ever feel hateful towards me. I sensed his dislike of me from the start, and at first, I tried to ignore it, but the reality of the matter is genuinely starting to sink in. He hates me, all because he thinks I am romantically after my mother.

The only thing getting me through this is the satisfaction of knowing that he'll probably feel stupid when he finds out who my parents are.

I took another sip of the delicious tea my mother prepared. It was one of the best things my tastebuds have ever come into contact with. Surely, this drink is on my top three favorite drinks, right behind chocolate milk and my aunt Cream's strawberry lemonade.

"Shoot! I almost forgot! S, Tails called me and asked that he wanted to see you about the shelters. Ugh, I'm so sorry."

"Huh? He wants to see me?" I nearly spit out my drink. Ever since our last meeting, I thought he would hold some resentment towards me after refusing to let him know about our family connection and letting him know about the 'power of time travel.' It did bring a slight smile to my face that Uncle Tails wanted to see me on his own terms. "Why me?"

"Does that surprise you? It was your idea to have him build the shelters S."

"No, it's not that. Um, did he ever move his lab, or is it still the same old one in the garage?"

"He's never moved from that old garage of his. Something about having a 'psychological attachment' with it that would throw off his craftsmanship if he were to move. But that's just Tails for you." My mother shrugged. "If you know where it is, you should get going."

"Right," I gulped down the rest of the tea as fast as possible. After placing the glass down, I got up and rushed for the door. "Bye everyone, I'll catch you later!"

"Bye S, just be careful and try not to get lost. Because then Shadow will have to go find you."

"Absolutely not."

"Don't worry! I will!" I shouted back before closing the door. "I can't believe he asked to see me! He asked to see me!"

The afternoon sun was inviting and warm, not to mention the sweet smell of fruit in the air. I quickly rushed down the street to Tails' home, feeling the breeze against my excited face as I picked up the pace. I never really got a chance to have a casual conversation with him, and I hoped with everything in my being that the universe would allow me to. He doesn't know how much his words mean to me.

Before I knew it, I was in front of the same garage shed I used to visit as a kid. My gloved hand touched the ridges of the metal door, and I held back tears as I reminisced about the memories I had of this place. However, those with pure joy kept being tainted by my uncle's and aunt's dead eyes.

'I could have done something, but I didn't. Why didn't I scream?'

"S?" I turned around and saw my Uncle Tails twirling a wrench between his fingers with the confidence that it would not slip out of his hands. "You made it!"

"Yeah, sorry for not coming sooner, I was too busy trying tea for the first time."

"It's no problem," I gazed around the room of the lab. It looked clearer than I remembered it. There was less clutter and less gadgetry lying around. But that's to be expected. This is the past. He's accomplished a lot less as of now than he would in the future. "How is it in the past? Way less destroyed, I'm guessing."

'I was staring for too long, wasn't I?'

"As depressing as it may sound, you'd be right. I remember being here so many times. The door to your lab was worn and burnt, now, it's glossy and new." I looked my head back slightly to look back at the door. As stupid as it felt, I knew that door was a part of my life that was torn away from me because of war. "It's like a whole new place."

"Well, lucky for you, I got some news you might want to hear than. It was hard to find a remote and clean area away from here, but nothing is impossible with my brains,"

'He's a bit more full of himself when he was younger, that's for sure.' I tried my best not to smile nervously. 'I think he mentioned going through a phase like this. War really humbled him.'

"The shelters you wanted are done and ready to be moved into. There is running gas, water, and electricity that will last more than enough to time to outlive a battle. It's as spacious as a standard home so essential and sentimental items can be stored. If someone in Amy's neighborhood wants to move their whole house in one of these puppies, I recommend they start now."

"It sounds like you really outdid yourself, Tails. Is the area far from here?"

Tails stopped twirling the wrench, and instead, he gave it a slight toss upwards and clutched it in his hands as soon as it hit his palm.

"About an two hour walk from Amy's neighborhood. I didn't know how far you wanted it, so I ensured it was far from the city's outskirts."

I sighed and smiled a little. I didn't know it would be so far from my mother's home. I knew convincing the people would be hard, but I know it will be harder now since the place is so far away. Tails' noticed my discomfort and pointed the wrench at my chest.

"Don't worry too much S. I know most of Amy's neighbors are understanding people and would do anything to protect themselves and their families. Plus, they have cars so it won't be too hard or too far from here. I guess I should just ask if it is essential for them to move each one of them from their homes."

I shifted my eyes around, trying to think of the answer. I wasn't even a thought when the two villains attacked my mother's neighborhood, but from my father's journals, I know that it killed everyone but my mother when they first attacked. He wrote that her home was completely destroyed, and he found her buried and injured. How everyone else was killed is a mystery.

"I think essential and sentimental items should be enough. I don't exactly know how everyone died, just that the area was considered a wasteland after they arrived. My father only wrote so much in the archives he kept."

Tails raised his eyebrow as he turned his heel to open his workshop.

"As someone who craves knowledge, I recommend that you don't bring up your father too much. Knowing me, I could easily try to find context clues about who he is."

I clenched my teeth and let out my hitched breath. I tend to underestimate my uncle's intelligence and his love for puzzles. He desperately craves to know who my parents are and how they are related to him. The more I bring them up and describe them to him, the more clues he has to discover who they are. Hopefully, I don't slip up too much.

"Sorry, I'll try to be careful."

I gave out an awkward laugh as I walked into the workshop with him. Nothing stood out to me at first, and it looked nothing like the workshop I grew up in. But my smile soon fell as I saw a shiny metal box in the far corner of the room. My heart wrenched, and I couldn't bear to look at it. The guilt inside me was growing, and it was becoming too much to bear.

"I got the keys locked up somewhere in here. We can go and hand them out now if you want. Maybe some are even to move in right away. The sooner we confront them, the better, right?"

I snapped my gaze away from the box and nodded my head uneasily. I could feel that he took notice, and I could feel the worry arise within him. It made me feel nice that he worried about me, but I couldn't tell what he wanted to say to me. Curse these uneasy powers of mine.

"You seem uneasy here. Does it bring back old memories?"

"You could say that. Although, I'm not sure you'd understand," My voice cracked a bit at the end of the sentence. Something was building up in my throat as my eyes burned with tears. "I spent most of my childhood in here with you and Cream. It's strange to be here again. I thought I was ready, but I guess I was wrong."

I looked away and hugged myself. Tails grew near me, and the feeling of him putting his hand on his shoulder was loving and warm.

"I'm not good with these types of things, but I really am sorry. I didn't know this place had that much on an effect on you. I didn't know I had that much of an effect on you."

The smile I managed to fake was convincing enough to get his hand off me. Not that I didn't respect his touch, but I don't think I'll be able to handle it. He was practically my second father, one that I saw dead and said nothing about. To this day, I haven't uttered a word about what I saw, and I know it will only cause pain to those who knew these two if I were to tell the trauma I feel about their brutal deaths. The only thing I can do now is avenge the fallen and hope that I can bring justice to the family those two took away from me.

"I appreciate that Tails, thank you. Let's not dwindle on this, alright? If you want, we can try to convince Amy's neighbors to hightail it out of there and into the safe-homes you built."

Tails said nothing to me and gave me a thumbs-up as he searched for the various keys to the houses he built.

Hopefully, this doesn't go as bad as I think I will.

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expresso-bean · 6 months ago

Text

The Man Out of Time [A ShadAmy and Silver Story]: Chapter 17

Pairing: Shadow the Hedgehog x Amy Rose

All is well until a silver hedgehog comes knocking on Amy Rose's door to deliver the tragic news about an incredible force that seems to be the cause of the future's destruction.

Will anyone believe the mysterious hedgehog's cry for help? Or will he be left to fight for his future alone? Read to find out!

Warnings: None

Word Count: 2.8k

POV: Shadow the Hedgehog

!! I do not own any of the art/gifs/borders used in my chapters. All credits to the rightful owners !!

Masterlist ❀ Ch.1 ❀ Ch.2 ❀ Ch.3 ❀ Ch.4 ❀ Ch.5 ❀ Ch.6 ❀ Ch.7 ❀ Ch.8 ❀ Ch.9 ❀ Ch.10 ❀ Ch.11 ❀ Ch.12 ❀ Ch.13 ❀ Ch.14 ❀ Ch.15 ❀ Ch.16

"Ugh,"

My head arose from the mahogany table. The feeling of complete grogginess overtook my body, dazing me for a second.

"What happened?"

My eyes were tired and burned from the light in the room. I rolled back my shoulders as I fixed my posture in the chair. Despite my head feeling heavy, my body was energized and relaxed.

'I forgot. I'm in her kitchen,' I leaned back in the chair slightly. I could feel a hollow yawn building up in my mouth. 'How long was I asleep for?'

It was then I noticed the room was empty. Panic sunk in, and the legs of the front of the chair that were previously off the ground slammed into the white marble floor.

"Where is Rose?"

That is all I could muster to whisper to myself. Rose was always the first person on my mind ever since the mess of appearance of that idiot, S. Not that she has never crossed my mind before his arrival and his ominous warning of future events, but the thoughts I have are much different than from before. And they are getting harder and harder to ignore.

I would be lying to myself if I said I did not have a jealous streak against the imbeciles she chooses to surround herself with, especially for a certain silver-quilled hedgehog. The sheer thought of him and Rose together just brings chills up my spine. They are so alike in so many ways. The reason I was so hostile and cold towards him was humiliating to even think about.

I want to be more like him for some unbeknownst and revolting reason.

Someone kind.

Someone compassionate.

Someone who didn't try and destroy all the sacred and pure things of the world.

Someone who would catch the attention of Amy Rose.

Not even I am sure why I fuel my own despair. I think of being with Rose so often all I can do is laugh bitterly at my attempt to hide my affection toward her.

Even then, while that illusion dances in my mind, I actively go out of my way to be as distant and unwelcoming as possible.

Inconsiderate, maybe, but I was never ignorant. Whenever I felt she truly needed me, I was there. But the tides have changed as of late. Now, I am scared. I was scared of losing her. Of losing who I am to my grievances.

'I can put aside whatever hurts me if it means keeping her safe.'

I cannot bear to distance myself from her anymore. The look on her face becomes more arduous for me to ignore. It was easy in the beginning as my feelings weren't that strong, but now they are getting so intense that I can't even think straight when I am around her.

I, more than anything, want her to be happy, and I can only hope that one day she can be happy with me once the future is repaired and put in order.

'Love is difficult. You always warned me about that Maria. I didn't believe it then, but I do now more than ever.'

The distinct sound of loud and familiar shouting interrupted my innermost private thoughts. I leaned slightly to the left to peep through the kitchen door. Sitting on the living room couch was S, Knuckles, and Rouge. I rolled my eyes as the two idiots stood there, babbling nonsense to one another while Rouge tried her best to calm Knuckles down before he popped a vein in that empty head of his.

As I looked at her, a smile spread across my face. It brought me slight comfort that the one ally I trust the most has changed for the better since our previous affiliations with Eggman's forces. She was no longer the gem-hungry, relentless bat I met for the first time. As we all aged since Eggman's war, she grew more civil and somewhat mature, not to mention more charismatic towards her new-found friends, especially when it came to Amy. I could only dream that I could say the same for that red-headed boyfriend of hers. He stayed the same predictable and obnoxiously hot-headed echidna that I have come to know.

"No! My father is not Sonic, so stop saying that! All I said was that my father was personal friends with Amy, and he knew her well enough to know that she was capable of amazing things. Something that you seem not to understand!"

'What did that silver-quilled bastard say?'

I felt like my mind was on autopilot. I practically flung myself off my chair and rushed to the living room, trying my hardest not to make a single loud sound. I glared down at S as I loomed over him from behind the couch. The sheer sight of him made me grind my teeth in annoyance.

"And who is this man that was so close to Amy?"

"Shit."

S turned towards me, a pitiful panic-filled expression on his face as if he was begging me not to touch on the subject of his familial bonds. If he thinks a single facial expression will stop me from finding out what type of relationship this 'oh-so-mighty' father of his has with Rose, then he has another thing coming to him.

"Oh, Shadow! I didn't see you there. Uh, how does my father know Amy? Yeah, uh, he said that he met Amy during the war. He fought alongside everyone, people like Sonic and you! Yeah!"

S let out a pitiful laugh, and I raised a brow at him suspiciously. Why was he so damn nervous about answering a simple question?

"Dude, that was the most awkward thing I have ever heard." Knuckles chuckled before continuing his sentence. "That's saying something since I hang around you guys all day."

I growled under my breath as I shifted my annoyance from S to Knuckles, who was proudly laughing at his previous statement.

"Mind repeating yourself, you red imbecile?"

Knuckles' laughter came to an abrupt stop as I watched the slight color drain from his face. I smirked in satisfaction. I watched him pathetically try to avoid my hardening gaze.

"Wow, Knuckles, I never thought you of all people would be afraid of someone like Shadow." S retorted, almost biting his tongue as he erupted in laughter.

"Hey! Don't think I'm done with you yet! I need a name! What is his name?"

S calmed down and composed himself. His smile fell into an emotionalist thin line, and his eyes grew weary with seriousness. I could feel my jealousy for this man I haven't even met grow with each passing second I do not get the answers I strive for. I knew that my uncontrollable rage and jealousy is just another reason that Rose would never love me the way that I love and adore her.

"You already know the answer to that Shadow. I made a promise to not only my father but to myself as well. I can't risk any more slip-ups when it comes to my life story. So, if you mind, I would like to drop the subject."

I averted my eyes from S in annoyance. At least, I wanted to make myself believe it was annoyance. I was doing it because I didn't want to admit that he was right, and I was doing him an inconvenience by pestering a subject that was personally his.

"I still think it's Sonic, but whatever you say man."

"IT'S NOT THAT BLUE BASTARD TRUST ME!"

Knuckles stifled a laugh at S, who was slightly fuming with both anger and annoyance. I would be doing the same thing if I was in his place. I have spent less than an hour with the red-headed fool and I am already fed up with his demeanor.

"Woah, is everything alright?"

I turned around to see Rose, a bright look in her now rested emerald green eyes and a confused smile on her delicate lips. I don't know what it is about her, but every time I lay eyes on her, she gets more stunning than ever before. She made her way fully down the stairs before taking note of the uninvited house guest S dragged over.

"Hey, Rouge, Knuckles! I'm sorry, I didn't know you were here! Did you let them in S?"

S rubbed the back of his neck, and his cheeks tinted pink from embarrassment.

"Yeah, I did. I'm sorry I should have asked you first, shouldn't I?"

"Yes, you should have," I mumbled, earning a soft elbow hit from Amy. "Hm? It's a common courtesy."

She looked at me, smiled innocently, and reverted her gaze back to Knuckles and Rouge. I said nothing and instead crossed my arms in disprovable. I knew I couldn't say anything to her, not that I minded. Rose always had a way of calming my anger down which I am very thankful for. She has been the one who has truly changed me for the better, and I know I would not be the hedgehog I am today if it wasn't for her.

If only Rose knew the effect, she has on me.

"No need to apologize. It's not like they're strangers or anything."

Her smile. That's a sight I will never get tired of seeing. I found myself gazing at her lips, imagining how sweet and soft they are. With my known luck, I would probably never get to experience that delightful feeling.

'I need to get those thoughts out of my head.'

"Hun, you look amazing! New sleep schedule?"

Rose smiled brightly as Rouge approached her, engulfing her in what seemed to be a bone-crushing hug. I swore I heard Rose's breath hitch as Rouge wrapped her arms around her. As Rouge released her grasp, Rose let out the cutest giggle. I swear, what has this pink-quilled hedgehog been doing to me? My mind is spewing idiotic terms such as 'cute.' Never in my years have I ever imagined I would do such a thing. Yet, no matter how much it hurts my pride to admit it, I know I wouldn't mind saying to her that she is indeed 'cute'.

'What is it that I am thinking? Have I become so soft over all these years that I am really calling another person 'cute'?'

My face began to grow hot, and I looked away from the rest of the group as Rose continued talking.

'I calm yourself down, you moron! You are going to make a fool of yourself around her!'

The urge to rack me upside the head for acting inconsiderate was getting stronger, but Rose's honey-sweet voice brought me out of that mindset before I could act on anything.

"Actually yes! It feels so nice to finally get a bit more rest. Anyways, did you guys want anything? I have some iced tea brewed and ready in the fridge if you all want."

"Oh! Shoot me a glass! I have no idea how you do it, but your iced tea taste amazing!"

"Do you want any, Shadow, Rouge, S?"

Amy exclaimed, pointing at us as she said our individual names.

"No thanks hun, I'm not thirsty."

"No, give her some too. She says she's not thirsty and then she steals some of my tea."

Knuckles retorted, earning a childish glare from Rouge.

"Hey! No one asked for you to speak for me Knucky."

"So, I'm guessing that's a yes for you Rouge. Shadow, do you want some? S?"

"Iced tea?" S looked at Rose with questions and confusion. Rose gave S a small head tilt in return. Don't tell me this idiot does not know what iced tea is. "What is that?"

"Is that something that doesn't exist in the future?"

Knuckles shot his head S' and Rose's direction, clearly intrigued when the conversation turned to iced tea.

"I've never heard of it. What is it?"

Knuckles let out a laugh, and Rose rolled her eyes at his childish behavior. I felt a ponder of sympathy for the boy. Was the future that misconstrued that small, seemingly insignificant things such as iced tea disappeared out of existence? Buried under the rubble left from the war that the S' future is stuck in?

"Yes, it is. Have you ever heard of tea?"

"No, I haven't. What is it?"

"Tea is a type of drink. You normally drink it hot, but you can also drink it cold. There are different kinds of tea like fruit tea, herbal-based tea, green tea, black tea, and the list just goes on. They come in these little pouches that you put in water for a couple of minutes and then you have tea. I'm guessing there is no such thing as tea in the future, huh S?"

"To be completely honest with you Amy, the only drinks available in the future are water, milk, fruit juice, sometimes soda if you're lucky, and homemade alcohol."

"What? You've gotta be pulling my leg here! Okay, so I know I said I wasn't sure about helping you fix your future, but now it is like an obligation to me if it means preserving my favorite drinks!"

"Wow, you are so noble Knucky. Helping save thousands of people in the name of iced tea."

S sighed and tried to shrug off the red bastard's comment, but I could tell he was suffering. I knew that S himself was not to blame. He was born into a mess of a future. Who knows how many other essential things he has not seen or tried, and here we are in the present, taking those things for granted.

"Well, you definitely have to try it now S. I promise it will be refreshing."

S just smiled and nodded, agreeing with Rose.

"I'm guessing you want one as well Shadow?"

I smirked at her as her smile grew bigger. She is the only person who knows about my love for tea. She said nothing as she headed towards the kitchen.

"Don't tell me you also have a limited amount of food in the future too."

"Eh, depends on what your definition of 'limited' means. There are very few businesses left in the future, and most of them are disguised as houses to not raise any suspicion from the enemies. My father said there used to be a variety of fast food places before the war started, but now the only thing that is considered 'fast food' sandwiches from the secret deli-shop and the pizza place that is practically right next to my house."

"Wait, so you never had a burger? Or a hot dog? Or Chinese food?"

"I've had hot dogs before, but not the others. I'm starting to realize that I lost much more than a realize," S let out a sad chuckle as his shoulders slumped sadly. "But the surprises are nice. I like learning how things will be for you all in the future."

'That must be difficult. Maybe... maybe I was too harsh on the kid.'

Then again, when am I not harsh on people who attempt to build any type of relationship with me?

It took me a year to consider having a normal conversation with Rouge, so one could only imagine how I feel about creating new bonds with strangers.

"Teatime!"

Rose's songlike voice filled my ears with nothing but pleasurable delight. Her smile consumed her face as she walked in with a tray of cold, light magenta iced tea with several blueberries dancing through the cold liquid. Blueberry tea was one of the first varieties of tea that Rose introduced me to. Now I have an uncontrollable fondness for indigo-colored fruit.

"I hope you don't mind. I know how I usually make cherry lemonade, but I ran out of the cherry extract I usually use. So, I made blueberry lemon tea instead," Rose went around the room, passing out glasses to everyone. She was always kind and hospitable like that. She could have easily left the drinks on the coffee table and made us go and retrieve one of the glasses, but she chose to pass them out. It is probably my mind overanalyzing everything Rose does, but I can't help but admire these little traits about her. "I hope you like it, S."

"Well, here goes nothing." S took a sip, and his eyes widened as gulped the tea down. "Wow! This is so good Amy! This is probably the best tea I have ever drunk!"

"S, this is the only tea you have tried."

"And that makes it great by default!"

The room burst out in laughter, excluding myself, of course. This childish humor is beyond my taste. Rose's giggle was the only thing I admired, and I admit it, it was the only thing that made me smile.

"You're too much S." I watched as Rose pet S gently, and I gritted my teeth in rage and jealousy as the silver-quilled bastard practically melted at her touch. "I'll should make you some cherry lemon tea! That one is my favorite!"

"I'd love to try some Amy, thank you."

I had to literally bite my tongue to ensure that I didn't lash out, nor did I say something that I would soon regret.

The last thing I want to do is hurt Rose more.

'She had enough demons right now. I best try and make myself the least of her worries. For her own sake.'

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