Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

        The world whirled around him in a blur, he moved so quickly he was hardly aware of what was happening around him. Sonic felt the chaos energy buzzing in his veins, paired nicely with the adrenaline that the thrill of battle brought. He grinned so widely that he thought his smile might split his face. He could see light glinting in his peripheral’s, his own fur glowing a brilliant gold color. But something nagged at him, the unshakable feeling that something was wrong, his smile fell, a little at first, and dropped entirely when he saw it.

        Shadow was falling, no, not falling, plummeting. He could see the twinkling gold fur of his newest pal being snuffed out, and returning to its usual charcoal black. Shadow was out cold, too. Sonic felt a new kind of adrenaline fill his veins, like ice. He dove after him. As fast as he could go, arm stretched out towards him, even as he could already see the fire licking at Shadow’s quills, just another piece of debris burning up in the atmosphere. He kept going, trying to grab the other hedgehog’s limply outstretched hand before he lost sight of him, because there was no way anyone could survive a fall like that.

        Sonic lurched forward, disoriented, caught in a tangle of sheets and covered in a thin veil of cold sweat. His hand flew up, almost on its own accord, hitting himself hard in the chest, where he still felt the cold pit of dread all the way to his core. Sonic felt his heart beating rapidly under his hand and could even vaguely feel the erratic pulse in his ears. He pressed his other hand into his forehead, using it as a makeshift headrest and squeezing his eyes shut. ‘Oh Chaos, he’s dead, I wasn't fast enough..’ The mental image of saving nothing but a loose inhibitor ring was fresh in his mind. The golden cuff looked incomplete without the other three. Sonic felt his eyes and nose tingle in the way that they do when he’s about to cry.

        It took a good couple of seconds stewing in this thought for reality to kick in. ‘Just a dream. Just a dream.’ Of course, all that had actually happened, but he’s trying not to spiral right now, okay? Sonic exhaled shakily and looked down at the sheets of his bed. Except, 'these aren't my sheets.' Sonic jolted up for the second time that night and… immediately felt stupid for it, as his stressed and tired mind finally supplied the context for the unexpected change in scenery. ‘Of course,’ he thought to himself, the turbulent pulse of his heart finally beginning to die down a bit. He looked to his right at the second bed in the hotel room, ‘I can’t believe I almost forgot about the mission!’

        Shadow and Rouge had been planning this mission for a while now, but apparently ‘something came up’ according to Rouge. In Sonic’s opinion it seemed like an excuse to go blow up one of the egghead’s high security bases with Omega rather than travel all the way to a long abandoned site just on the off chance it had some valuable information left behind. He huffed, not his first choice either, but Tail’s had been off on a research expedition, which left the house feeling empty, so of course he agreed to fill in for Rouge. Thankfully his little buddy would be back by the time he finished his super cool top secret, not actually that cool mission.

        Sonic drew in a deep breath and laid back down, trying to calm his jumpy nerves. This kind of feeling never ended well for him. The feeling of being tired, but too anxious to fall asleep. Normally he would go for a run, but he was pretty sure Shadow wouldn't take too kindly to him leaving the hotel in the middle of the night to run around the city streets when they were supposed to be sticking together. Oh well, he could handle one night inside, he was sure of it. Sonic brought his arms up behind his head, and stared wide awake at the ceiling. The room was quiet aside from the quiet sounds of the city outside, which was never entirely asleep.

        He laid like that for a while until the unrest got to him and he had to shift positions. This time, he rested his hands on his stomach, drew his knees up a bit, and looked over at where the faint light of the city shone through the too sheer curtain of the hotel. This side of the room was the only lit area, his roommate’s side was enveloped in darkness. ‘The lucky jerk..’ Sonic stared blankly at the curtain, and began to tap his finger against his other hand, too restless to sit entirely still.’tap tap’ He wasn't even entirely sure why he was anxious.

        Of course, he was always a little bit worried about his friends, a little voice in the back of his head, sometimes loud, sometimes barely a whisper, but never entirely gone. He guessed that was just kind of what happens when you’re a crime fighting hero. Always seeing your friends in danger. Sometimes accidentally being the one to put them in danger. ’tap tap tap’ Maybe it was because of the dream, seeing Shadow nearly die right in front of his eyes, again. ‘Tap tap tap tap’ He had mourned his death, and tried to move on. ‘Tap tap tap tap tap’ Only to have the other return from the dead, and become an agent for one of the most dangerous organizations out there. ‘Tap tap tap tap tap’

        Suddenly Sonic became aware of a faint buzzing, and realized that he had been tapping his finger so quickly that it was making a dull droning sound. He immediately stopped, and sat up in bed again. Sonic’s heart fluttered uncomfortably in his chest, because he wasn’t alone in that room, and his roommate had particularly good ears. He didn’t hear anything coming from Shadow’s side of the room, but just to be sure, he decided he’d better check. Trying not to make too much noise, he slowly turned to look to the darker side of the room where the other bed sat…Only to come face to face with two glowing red dots looking at him intently. Sonic yelped and fell backwards into his blankets. Of all the things he thought he’d see the last thing on his list was Shadow wide awake and staring right at him, with glowing eyes.

        “Oh my Chaos! Shadow!” The other hedgehog’s face squinched in displeasure at the loud response, it was an expression that Sonic would have found funny in another situation. “What are you, a spy!? I thought that was Rouge’s job!” Sonic blustered while he sat back up in his bed and tried to get ahold of his racing heart and shaky breathing. He was already feeling rough, this just threw him off more. Not to mention how embarrassing it would be if anyone knew earth’s greatest hero was up at night like this, haunted by memories of all things.

        Shadow was also beginning to sit up, looking the blue blur over, and somehow managing to make him feel even more self-conscious in doing so. He was all too aware of how he must look, quills and fur ruffled, most likely bloodshot eyes, and an overall anxiety about him that was very, very, out of character for Sonic the Hedgehog. Not to mention the oncoming flush in his cheeks, for some reason he felt like he’d been caught red-handed. Amidst his own internal ramblings Shadow finally spoke, completely ignoring Sonic’s question, which is fair, it was mostly rhetorical..Though he could probably pull off the whole spy thing.

        “Are you alright?” The other hedgehog murmured, in defiance of everything logical. Sonic blinked, caught off guard, he was entirely expecting Shadow to get all grumpy about Sonic waking him up, Sonic would have made a few jokes about Shadow getting his beauty rest, or something else equally as annoying. The two might have even gotten into a tussle, and then maybe that’d take his mind off his worries and he’d finally be able to get some shut eye. Sonic figured he must look pretty pathetic right about now if Shadow of all people was pulling his punches. He winced at the thought.

        “Uhh, hey dude, mornin’~” Sonic grinned sheepishly, dragging out the last syllable. Shadow was not amused, and threw a pointed look at the analog clock on the wall nearest to them, which read ‘01:24 AM’, so technically morning! But whatever, not the time. The hot topic hedgehog sighed and swung his legs off the bed, perching on the edge of it, and crossing his arms as if to say ‘I’ll wait’. Sonic groaned, he did not want to have this kind of conversation. “How much did you see?” Maybe he didn't see anything too bad. Shadow raised an eyebrow at him.

        “I awoke when I heard you thrashing around in bed. Initially I assumed that we were under attack, until I identified the issue,” The edgehog explained calmly, “I know a nightmare when I see one.” So, all of it then, ouch. Despite his wounded pride, Sonic scoffed, embarrassment giving way to the irresistible urge to argue with his rival.

        “Okay, well that still doesn't explain why you were watching me like that! Kinda creepy, dude.” Sonic noticed the other hesitate at that, maybe some mutual embarrassment, at least.

        “Lower your voice, hedgehog, we’re not the only one’s in this hotel,” Sonic rolled his eyes at the tone, but..

        “Yeah, yeah, got it.” He did have a bit of a point. “And my question? You gonna answer or deflect some more?” Whoops, that came out harsher than he’d meant it to.

        “I…I was waiting to see if you’d fall back asleep on your own.” Shadow begrudgingly responded. Sonic tilted his head a bit.

        “What do you mean ‘on my own’?” Shadow clicked his tongue, and brought up a hand to rub his temple as if he hadn't meant to reveal that much. He probably hadn't, considering the amount of grumbling he was doing. This had to be a new record for under his breath complaining, and that's saying something, Sonic is 80% certain that over half the words Shadow says are angry grumbling to himself. Sonic was drawn from his sidelined thoughts when Shadow spoke again.

        “If.. You’re really struggling, I can try to help,” The other hedgehog finally responded, not looking him in the eye, and face delightfully squinched in discomfort, similarly to earlier. Despite his own embarrassment Sonic had never been so flattered in his life, and was frankly at a loss for words. He didn’t realize he was staring until Shadow spoke again, trying to dismiss the statement, and relieve some of the awkwardness. “After all, I need you at the top of your game tomorrow. For the mission.” Sonic startled and quickly nodded, trying to pretend like he wasn't just gawking at the other.

        “Er, right, yeah, the mission.” There was another short pause, until Sonic finally spoke “Y’know, I appreciate the gesture, but I’m alright, you don’t have to worry ‘bout me” Shadow narrowed his eyes at him, and Sonic had the distinct feeling that he was being seen. It made something in his gut twist uncomfortably but there was also something else too, maybe it was the sympathy in his rival’s eyes that seemed almost reliable, and trustworthy, although he felt awkward to be on the receiving end of it for once. Usually it was Sonic extending this kind of reassurance to his friends, citizens, or even enemies.

        “Sonic, you don’t have to hide your worries.” The agent told him gently. “Hiding? Hah, I’m Sonic the Hedgehog, who do I have to hide from? “ ‘Yikes, great cover genius.’ The blue hedgie looked off to the side, and rubbed his nose, feeling fidgety under his rival’s piercing eyes. Shadow’s near constant frown deepened. The ebony hedgehog sighed a long, weary sigh. The agent braced his elbows on his knees and buried his head in his hands. Sonic had almost forgotten the current time of night. ‘Oops,’ Sonic twiddled his fingers, and said nothing, letting them stew in silence for longer than he was used to. It took him a good 30 seconds to find the right words, but even still he wasn’t sure if it was the right thing to say or not.

        “Just go back to bed, Shads,” Sonic tried to laugh, but it came off a little flatter than he’d intended. When the broody edgehog didn’t respond, the cobalt hedgie cleared his throat, and tried again, “I’m alright, bro, seriously.” His ears perked up at the sound of Shadow letting out a sharp little huff of air, the tell tale sign that Sonic had almost made him laugh. The blue blur tipped his head to the side a bit, he wasn’t actually trying to make the grump laugh this time. Nonetheless he couldn’t fight a small grin, proud of the accomplishment; it’s not easy to make his edgelord of a rival laugh.

        “How many times do I have to tell you, hedgehog, we are not related,” Shadow lifted his head from his hands as he spoke, trying to look stern but only pulling off fondly exasperated. Sonic scoffed, equally as exasperated, and equally as fond. ‘Ah so that’s what he was giggling about.. that tracks.’ He couldn’t help but tease.'

        “You know that’s not what I mean when I call people ‘bro’, bro.” The blue hedgie retorted, clearly overusing the lingo entirely on purpose. Shadow cocked his head to the side, visibly amused now.

        “You’re something else, faker.”

        “I think we both know you’re the only faker here.” Sonic responded without missing a beat. Shadow scoffed and rested his chin in one hand letting the other lie in his lap, the faint impression of a smile remained, on his muzzle. Sonic thought the agent might have something else to say, but instead of making a rude, or blunt remark, he just.. Sat there, staring at him with an unreadable, yet undeniably soft look to him..

        Sonic, albeit a bit confused, followed the other hedgehog’s lead, and let his head rest lopsidedly on top of his own hands. Sonic peered into ruby red eyes that looked sleepily back at him. On closer inspection, the hero couldn't help but notice that the pupils of his eyes were slightly thinner than what he’d expected, sort of like a cat, or maybe a lizard is more accurate. Probably the work of his alien DNA. As he stared into sparkling rubies, finally feeling the tug of sleep at the back of his brain, another thought occurred to him. ‘Since when did I start noticing, or even caring what Shadow’s eyes look like?’

        Speaking of noticing things about Shadow, he was currently looking into Sonic’s eyes with an unreadable emotion that he was pretty sure he hadn't seen from his rival before. His eyes were half lidded, due to sleepiness, or maybe.. Something else? Either way, the agent was clearly deep in thought. Sonic stared back, blindsided, and intrigued by this new sight to a degree that he would absolutely deny if asked. The blue blur sat as still as he could, it felt like even breathing too loudly could shatter whatever this moment was.

        A loud thud against the only window in the hotel, the one near Sonic’s bed, snapped them both out of their impromptu staring contest. Both spiky rodents whipped their heads around to look at the window. Sonic glanced over his shoulder at Shadow, and saw the ebony hedgehog already stood from his bed, ears pricked and posture tense. ‘Poor guy’s always ready for a fight,’ Sonic waved him off dismissively. Shadow raised an eyebrow at him and gave him an incredulous look. The hero rolled his eyes at his rival’s stubbornness and shuffled to the other side of his bed.

        He pulled open the curtains, squinted at the brightness of the city, and gave the area a once over. It took him a couple seconds to notice the little raven laid on the ground. Sonic’s lips shifted to an ‘o’ shape as he realized what must have happened. He turned to look at Shadow again, who, despite his obvious impatience had actually stayed put, instead of shoving Sonic aside to look out the window himself.

        “All clear, just a bird,” Sonic assured Shadow. The other immediately relaxed a bit, and sat back down where he’d been sitting on the edge of his bed. The cobalt hedgie looked out the window again, seeing the bird hop to its feet and take off again, hopefully to fly to a place with fewer windows. “Poor thing” Sonic added under his breath, and saw Shadow nod in agreement out of the corner of his eye, despite how quietly the hero had said it. With one last glance at the city, Sonic closed the curtains, and scooted back to where he’d been sitting on the edge of his bed.

        The blue blur thought maybe they could continue the precious moment they’d left off at, but when he looked up. The ebony hedgehog had already laid back down and turned away from him entirely, so that he had his back to Sonic. The cobalt hedgehog blinked, and couldn't help but frown a little at the sudden shift. The ebony looked over his shoulder, and Sonic could see the slight glint of ruby eyes, before he quickly faced forwards again.

        “If you change your mind about wanting my help, let me know.” The agent said simply. Sonic tried to fight the twinge of disappointment in his chest. He gripped the sheets under his hands. Obviously he wasn't going to take Shadow up on that offer. ‘What kind of a hero needs help fighting off nightmares of battles he’d already won?’ Sonic shook his head sharply, to dismiss the silly notion. ‘Pfft, not this hero, that’s for sure.’

        He laid down again, and tugged the blankets over himself. Once again he found himself looking at the curtains. He thought of the raven, the poor thing sounded like it hit the window hard, and then the little guy fell onto the concrete. He wondered if Shadow had gotten up just as quickly as the raven had. Simply, picked himself up and continued on with his life. Or had it hurt him more than he ever let on? He could picture it in his head, months, maybe years of recovery time, I mean, a fall like that? Sonic hadn't thought Shadow would even survive. His heart squeezed uncomfortably at the thought.

        Sonic rolled over in bed for the umteenth time that night. His eyes felt dry, and his limbs felt heavy, but he still couldn't actually sleep. Sonic watched Shadow’s back, the gentle rise and fall of his sides, as he breathed. There, right there, he’s fine.

        The blue blur watched attentively as the other edgehog shifted in his sleep. He couldn't help but zero in on a glimmer of an inhibitor ring, visible even in the relative darkness of the room. Unwelcome memories forced their way to the front of his mind. A single golden ring, looking lonely in his hands without the ebony wrist it was supposed to rest on. That was all he had left behind. The cold panicky feeling in his chest had returned.

        Except, no, because he could see Shadow laying there, right in front of him, very much alive. He could see the outline of his counterpart’s quills, relaxed and- And beginning to burn as he began to enter the atmosphere. Sonic shook his head firmly and brought his hands up to scrub at his eyes. ‘C’mon pull it together!’

        His eyes fell to the inhibitor ring again, this time drifting down to the agent’s wrist. Logically he knew that Shadow’s pulse was steady and strong. He’d seen him awake and healthy like an hour ago. Despite this, the anxiety niggled at the back of his brain. The image of the other hedgehog’s limp body plummeting towards the earth was still too fresh in his mind for comfort. He thought that maybe if he could just feel the beat of Shadow’s heart against his fingers that it would soothe his worries. Then he’d be able to sleep, and the next morning Shadow would be none the wiser.

        It made sense in his tired head, a relatively non intrusive way to subdue his own irrational worries. Before he even really realized what he was doing he had slipped out of bed on quiet feet; he didn’t want to disturb Shadow’s sleep again, of course. The blue hedgehog shuffled quietly over to the agent’s bedside, and paused for a moment to make sure he hadn’t accidentally awoken his rival. Shadow huffed, but otherwise didn't move from his uncomfortable looking sleep. Sonic couldn't help but stare a little, he was so tense, even in sleep, eyes squinched tightly shut, arms crossed over his chest.

        But critiquing Shadow’s sleep was not why Sonic had snuck up to his roommate’s bedside. With a lot more caution than he approached most things with, he reached over to the other’s glittering inhibitor ring, and gently grasped the sleeping hedgehog’s wrist between his fingers. Sonic felt his shoulders slacken when he found the steady pulse of Shadow’s heart fairly easily. It thrummed rhythmically against his fingers, a calm steady pace. This reprieve was short lived though, as the pulse almost immediately began to pick up in speed, alongside Shadow visibly jolting from his stiff rest. ‘Oh shit.’

        Sonic didn’t have much time to realize his absolute blunder of a move, before his arm was knocked back, the blue blur tried to stumble away in response, equally as startled, but an ebony hand seized his wrist in an iron tight grip. Emerald green eyes stared back at burning crimson.The agent was already halfway out of bed and practically growling at him, fangs bared and everything.

        “Who the fu-” Shadow began to demand, only to cut himself off halfway through his sentence. “Sonic?” They both sat in silence for a moment. The ebony hedgehog did loosen his crushing grasp, but he didn't entirely let go, forcing Sonic to step forward when the agent sank back into his bed, now sitting on the edge of it. The agent stared at him in an expression that could only be described as ‘What the hell was that?’. The hero felt his ears press flat into his head, and his face burned with embarrassment. Sonic figured he should probably say something.

        “So… I know this looks weird. I just.. I was only going to-” Shadow abruptly cut him off, tightening his grip again, and using it to yank the other hedgehog closer.

        “You were going to what? Do not lie to me, hedgehog.” The hero winced at the stern tone. ‘How did he know I was going to lie?’

        “Fine! I won't, I won't! Just give my wrist a break, will you?” The ebony nodded curtly and quickly released his wrist. His roomate crossed his arms and looked at him expectantly. Sonic winced, he was sure that Shadow would be able to tell if he lied. So instead of lying he went for the next best option, downplaying it. “I was just checking your pulse, dude!” Shadow literally gawked at him, it was a ridiculous look on him, that Sonic would have teased him for if he hadn't been so keen to repair whatever damage the truth had just done. “Cause, uh, y’know! You looked a little stiff, that’s all!” The hero smiled widely, but even he could tell it didn't look sincere.

        Shadow didn’t seem to think the cover he’d hatched was even worth responding to, as instead of saying anything, his face took on a painfully neutral, thoughtful, and perceptive look to it. Sonic could have wilted under a look like that, but he tried not to. This whole situation was embarrassing enough. Sonic was too anxious to say anything else, even as he could see the gears turning in his rival’s head, connecting the dots. ‘Damn it! This is so, so, stupid. I've taken on way worse than this! Armies of robots, like a bajillion rivals, literal gods-’ The hero’s chattery inner monologue was interrupted by Shadow speaking again, still with that same thoughtful look.

        “..This has something to do with your nightmare, from earlier.” Sonic didn't bother denying it, it was more of a statement than a question anyways. Shadow continued, “so it was related to me somehow? In your dream I… Was injured..?” The agent trailed off, seemingly coming to a dead end. Apparently he couldn't think of a single instance in which he was seriously injured.

        Sonic raised an eyebrow, clearly his fall to earth wasn’t a big deal to the agent, if he couldn't even remember it. Just another reason why this silly memory seriously shouldn't be keeping him up this late. His rival obviously took notice of his expression, and the ebony raised an inquisitive eyebrow of his own. The hero huffed and turned around throwing his hands in the air in exasperation, mostly with himself.

        “Just forget it, Shads, it’s fine! Really.” He hadn't even made it a full step before his wrist was grabbed again, this time significantly more gently. Sonic couldn't help but look back over his shoulder. Shadow had gotten out of bed for about the 3rd time that night. The ebony’s expression was soft, and vulnerable, nothing that he’d expect from his rival. Maybe the lack of sleep was hitting him even harder than it had hit the blue blur.

        “Listen, you’ve been up for another-” A quick glance at the clock, and Sonic could’ve sworn he saw the agent wince, “2 hours, since we last talked. I’m assuming whatever coping techniques you have, either failed you or aren't an option in our current location.” The hero averted his eyes awkwardly, Shadow had a knack for hitting the nail on its head. Sonic’s stomach flipped when the agent’s hand made its way down his wrist to hold his hand. Emerald green flicked up to meet soft ruby. “I won’t ask you to talk about why, just.. let me help you, alright? I’m..” The ebony glanced away from him for a moment before adding on, “I’m.. pretty experienced at this.” Something about that statement made Sonic’s heart ache.

        “You mean the getting people to sleep thing, or helping yourself sleep?” He asked, trying to clarify what specific flavor of baggage that comment clearly carried. Shadow’s response was short and equally as sad.

        “Both.”

        “Oh..” The agent frowned, clearly uncomfortable, and Sonic’s chest squeezed uncomfortably, not really sure how to reassure his friend. Mercifully, his tired brain didn’t have the time to talk him into a deeper hole as Shadow shook his head to dismiss the topic, and began to tenderly guide him forward towards- Wait..

        “Shadow, that’s your bed?” Sure he was tired, but he wasn’t tired enough to mistake the neatly made hotel bed, for his own bed that had been tossed and turned in so much it now reassembled more of a pile than a bed. The agent rolled his eyes with a general aura of ‘I’m too tired for this’ which, fair, but still!

        “Just sit down, faker.” The ebony hedgehog instructed, before he stepped away to the kitchen to do.. Something. Sonic considered completely ignoring the demand, he wasn’t fond of being bossed around after all, but.. He was dying to sit down on something soft. A few minutes later, Shadow returned holding a steaming cup of, tea? ‘Eugh..’ It came as no surprise that the blue blur was not fond of tea. Paying no mind to his rival’s sour look, the agent held it out to the cobalt hedgehog, looking at him impatiently.  

        “..Y’know I’m really not much of a tea guy..” He muttered under his breath. Shadow rolled his eyes and thrust the cup forward so that Sonic had to grab it, unless he wanted hot tea all over his lap.

        “It’s chamomile and lavender, it helps you sleep.” The blue hedgehog frowned at his reflection in the tea, and gently thumbed at the rim of the cup. He felt the bed dip as Shadow sat on the edge of the bed with him. He wasn't looking forward to downing what was almost certainly unsweetened herb water, but Shadow did go through the trouble of making it at like 3 in the morning. So he took the cup to his lips, and before he could reconsider, chugged the whole thing, in a display that he was sure would irritate the other hedgehog. Sure enough when he lowered the cup, he came eye to eye with a scowling ebony hedgehog.

        “Must you guzzle that fine tea like a wild animal?”

        “Sorry Shads, no other way to get it down!” Which was half true, the tea tasted awful, just as he’d expected, but he could swear it was a bit less bitter than normal. Either way he could feel the warmth of the drink seeping into his chest, but he didn't really feel ‘sleepier’ than before, and said as much. “Isn’t this stuff supposed to make me pass out?” The agent huffed in irritation, but didn't really seem to be able to dredge up the energy for much more than that.

        “It takes some time, about 30 to 45 minutes to start having an effect. Maybe faster for you, since you have a bit of a faster metabolism than average.” ‘How does he even know about my metabolism?’ Sonic groaned and flopped back against the neatly made bed, only just now noticing the lavendery scent floating up from the sheets. The hero blinked lazily at the ceiling and slowly turned his head to look at Shadow, who was already watching him.

        “Your sheets smell like-”

        “Lavender.” Shadow interrupted him with a self-satisfied smirk, “They smell like lavender.” The cobalt grinned lazily, amused.

        “Did you.. Did you douse the hotel’s bed in lavender oil?” He asked incredulously, his question accompanied by his slight chuckle. The agent shrugged noncommittally. “It smells better like this anyways.” The ebony replied, quickly changing the subject, “now move over and get under the blankets, faker.” The hero hummed and sank further into the bed, closing his eyes.

        “Nah, I think I’m good here.” His rival glowered at him and raised an unimpressed eyebrow.

        “Really, hedgehog? You’re not making this easy.” The other huffed, irritated. Sonic’s eyes flicked back open. He felt a little guilty for making Shadow do all this. The cobalt’s ears flattened in discomfort. He sat up as quickly as he could, and shuffled under the blankets with a mumbled apology. Shadow blinked, clearly not expecting the sudden shift. Sonic jumped a little when he felt the sheets move and the bed dip, he glanced over to see the agent halfway through climbing into bed with him.

        “Uhh..” He said eloquently.

        “This is part of how I was planning to help you sleep. Unless you think you can take it from here?” Sonic knew he could not take it from here. Guilt is hardly better than anxiety when it comes to keeping you awake at night, and right now, the infinitely patient look the agent was giving him was not helping. He had to admit it did feel somewhat nice to be taken care of, but it also felt wrong, awkward, like he should be doing the caring and not Shadow.

        The hedgehog in question seemed to read the conflicting emotions on his face, the cobalt hedgie was beginning to wonder if the other was telepathic. “Sonic, I don’t mind helping you out.” Sonic shrank away from the sympathetic look and tone, rolling over so his roommate couldn't see his face. The ebony hedgie took this as his cue to move in closer. He shifted his weight fully onto the bed and laid down next to his rival. The hero cast a hesitant look over his shoulder.

        “You seriously don't mind?” He asked suspiciously. The other hedgehog sighed before speaking, his voice tinged with annoyance.

        “No, of course not. Why would you think that?” Sonic huffed and rolled over so he could scowl at his rival face to face.

        “Well you're not exactly the cuddly type, Shadow! Can you blame me for feeling a little guilty about making you do all this? I mean you even made me tea!” He exclaimed in irritation. Shadow glared right back at him.

        “What? Hedgehog, use your brain. I wouldn’t be helping you if I didn’t want to. You’re not making me do anything.” The agent argued back.

        “You expect me to believe you did all this just.. Cause you wanted to?” He asked disbelievingly, and crossed his arms to make his skepticism clear.

        “Yes!” Shadow responded immediately, exasperation clear in his voice.

        “Why would you want that!? We’re like, arch rivals and stuff!” He reasoned, feeling like the only logical hedgehog in the room. Shadow huffed and averted his eyes to glare at the sheets of the bed. His voice was uncharacteristically quiet when he replied.

        “..Because you’re important to me.”

        “What?” The admission had easily done away with the cobalt’s irritation, how could he be mad with a face like that?

        “You heard me, hedgehog, I will not repeat myself.” The agent snapped, nervousness very quickly giving way to anger, but only getting a chuckle in response to his bad attitude.

        “Sorry dude, just kinda, caught me off guard..” Sonic gave him a sly grin. “Soo I’m important to ya, huh?” His rival glared at him but at least gave an honest answer. “..Yes. I would even consider you a friend.”

        “Ooh! I get to be friends with the ultimate lifeform himself.” The blue blur placed a dramatic hand over his chest, “I’m honored.” The ultimate lifeform in question rolled his eyes at his rival’s dramatics.

        “Now is not the time to discuss this, faker. You need sleep.”

        “Mm yeah, I guess so.” He brought his hands up to rest his head on while he gave his rival a curious look. “On the topic of sleep, you said earlier that ‘this’ is part of how you were planning to help me get some shut eye.” The hero batted his eyes flirtatiously, “What kind of plan involves getting into bed with me?” He had meant it jokingly, of course, and the abject horror and embarrassment that crossed his rival’s face was priceless. The warm blush that somehow managed to reach all the way up to the poor agent’s ears didn’t hurt either. Sonic couldn't help but burst out laughing. The edgehog quickly schooled his expression back to its usual cool seriousness, though some of the flush still remained.

        “Don't be so vulgar, hedgehog.” He chided without much heat to his words, it was late after all.

        “Just jokin’ dude. But seriously, what did you have in mind?”

        “Only if you’re comfortable with it, of course, but I think you’d benefit from some skin to skin contact, it often relieves stress and anxiety. Not to mention the uh.. Incident from earlier, in which you seemed to be.. Checking up on me.” Clearly Shadow was not used to trying to phrase things delicately, but Sonic appreciated the effort. He was also very amused with the way the agent seemed to be dancing around the word ‘cuddling’ but, hey, it would probably sound weird coming out of the edgehog’s mouth anyways.

        Not that it mattered much to the blue blur, he was a pretty affectionate guy in general anyways, although it was a little strange coming from his rival. Usually he only got to touch Shadow when they were in the middle of a race, or just outright beating the crap out of each other. ‘Ah, good times.’ Regardless, he spread his arms in his usual over the top teasing manner.

        “Bring it in, pal!” Shadow rolled his eyes, and Sonic half expected him to get out of bed, but instead he reached forward, grasped him by his sides and tenderly drew the blue blur closer. Sonic blinked in surprise but let his hands rest easily on his rival’s shoulders as the agent guided his spiky head down to chest fluff and- 'Oh. My. Chaos.'

        “Shadow your fur is so soft.” He blurted into the soft silk fur currently pressed against his face.

        “Hmph, of course it is, I am the ultimate lifeform after all.” The agent responded smugly, his voice taking on a softer tone as he added, “Maria always said it was like a cloud.” Sonic hummed in response, not really sure what to say to that, but considering the look on the other’s face at the moment, almost as soft as his fur, nothing really needed to be said.

(If you're having trouble picturing the positioning, because I know I was o_o.. There should be a sketch of how I imagined the scene in the next chapter, I didn't put it here because I didn't want to break up the text too much :))

        Still though, he felt proud that Shadow was comfortable talking about Maria around him. The hero sighed contentedly into the cloud-like fur, and felt the tenseness in his muscles relax, maybe the tea was finally catching up to him, or maybe it was the scent of lavender that emanated from Shadow’s bed, or maybe even Shadow himself, who smelled like lavender, fresh air, and a hint of gunpowder.

        Sonic turned his head so that his cheek and ear rested on the agent’s chest, instead of his nose, and forehead, which had begun to get uncomfortable. Alongside the impossibly soft fur against his face, he could hear the steady reassuring beat of his rival’s heart. The hero hummed, and felt his eyes droop with drowsiness, finally feeling sleep tug at his consciousness. Belatedly he felt gentle fingers combing through his quills and petting his free ear.

        Somewhere in the back of his mind it occurred to him that by now he not only had a sleep inducing tea in his veins, probably beginning to take effect, but he was also smothered in the scent of lavender, a sleep inducing smell, pressed against a warm, fluffy, body, and in the darkest side of the room, where the light from the curtains wouldn't bother him. It was a perfect storm and the considerate bastard had probably planned it out this way, too. A groggy, but genuine smile broke out across the blue blur’s face at this thought, and he snuggled closer to the other hedgehog. The agent hummed in response and adjusted his hold on the hero, while his free hand continued to alternate between gently tugging at the tangles in his blue quills, and petting his fluffy ear. The world faded into the background as sleep overcame him.

Chapter Text

Let me know if you can see this, because I still don't fully understand how I'm supposed to put images in here? I'm pretty sure it should be here though.

Edit: Thanks for letting me know! It absolutely did not work 🫠 Try this instead, again let me know if you can see it 

https://sleepiestsocks.tumblr.com/private/777610427309998080/tumblr_JXUA0prRLi2YLWfTA

Chapter Text

Golden sunlight shone from the window and pierced the mellow atmosphere of the hotel room, waking up one of the two slumbering hedgehogs. Shadow roused much slower than he normally would, sleep still weighed on his mind. Everything felt just right, he was warm, and well-rested, but he didn’t feel too keen to get up just yet.

 He was surprised to find himself still in his own bed, arms wrapped securely around his rival. The blue blur’s muzzle was tucked snugly into the crook of his neck, and he clung to him with all four limbs. Apparently he had moved while they slept, likely a result of their proximity and the hero’s naturally affectionate and touchy personality. 

Even knowing that their current arrangement was probably unintentional on Sonic’s part, he still felt.. Jittery. It was difficult to entirely understand it, as he hadn’t felt anything like it until Sonic, but according to Rouge it was a ‘crush’. 

‘ Damn it’. He had intended to get out of bed as soon as the other fell asleep, but it seemed he had underestimated the power of laying in a bed of lavender at 3 am when it came to inducing sleep.

And maybe Sonic's presence helped too.

He couldn’t see the hero’s face, but from the slow sound of his breathing he could tell he was still dead asleep. Shadow huffed, and started to pull away. ‘ Better late than never.’ He was forced to stop though, when Sonic clung to him even tighter, face scrunching in annoyance even in sleep. 

The agent froze. It felt wrong to stay in bed like this. Especially considering his own feelings. Like he was taking advantage of the vulnerability that he had been shown last night. Suddenly the agent became acutely aware of where his hands rested on his friend, he hardly had the right to hold him like this. This whole situation was edging dangerously close to romantic territory.

Faced with the incessant sleepy tugging from a less than half awake Sonic, Shadow slowly laid back down but made sure to keep his hands to himself this time, crossing them over his chest. Pleased, the cobalt hummed and the agent watched in silence while the other pulled away from the crook of his neck, and moved one hand from his waist to his spiky black and red quils, which, for the moment, were relaxed and not too pokey. The hand accidentally bumped his nose on the way, but he could hardly find it in himself to care.

 Not when this new angle gave him a clear view of his rival’s face. The eyes that he had seen stare down any enemy, including himself, with confidence now softened in sleep. The signature cocky grin now a faint serene smile. Quills that somehow seemed to be constantly windswept now stuck out in awkward angles in what Sonic might refer to as a ‘bed head’.

 Before he could catch himself, he was reaching up to gently brush his quills back into place. He smiled fondly to himself, the hedgehog sprinted from place to place, always in a hurry. He never could slow down long enough to straighten his quills. Despite Shadow’s near constant reminders (which are mostly insults made mid-spar, but whatever). 

He nearly choked on his breath when his brain finally caught up to his body. He immediately withdrew his hand, as if burned. What right did he have to see the hero of mobius like this?  He rolled over with a huff to glare at the wall instead of his rival’s lovable annoying face. 

Shadow took a deep breath that turned into a sigh. It was only sunrise, roughly 7:00. He figured he could let Sonic sleep in until around noon, and still have more than enough time to accomplish their mission. Then they would head over to the Doctor’s old base. There could be anything at that base, but their main target was any data relating to Robotnik’s new ‘projects’. Despite his admittedly impressive intelligence, the egg shaped fool never remembered to wipe his machines of sensitive information-

The agent’s mind blanked at the sudden and unexpected sensation of an arm being wrapped around his waist, quickly followed by the other peach furred hand being buried in his chest fluff. He immediately felt an unseemly blush creep up his neck and make its way all the way up to his ears. His heart beat way too quickly for comfort, as if he was actively in battle. 

He struggled out of the gentle grip his rival had on him, as well as the comfortable blankets, nearly toppling over in his haste to escape. Stumbling out of the bed, the flush remained stubbornly on his face, even as he speedwalked to the door. He heard shuffling sheets behind him as the cobalt hedgehog woke. So much for letting him sleep in. Shadow made it to the door, and racked his brain for an excuse to be leaving the room, he could already hear his friend’s curious, and groggy mumbles.

“Hmmn? Shads..? what’s goin’ on?” 

“ Breakfast. I’m getting breakfast.” He assured him, a little too quickly, but the hero didn’t seem awake enough to notice. When the other didn’t immediately respond, he risked a quick glance over his shoulder, to find that Sonic’s eyes had already fallen shut again. Maybe he’d get some extra sleep after all. 

He tugged on his shoes, and opened the door as quietly as he could, and slipped out of the room. Once he was safely outside he dragged a hand over his face. This whole situation with these gross feelings was beginning to get out of hand. 

He wanted to curl up into a ball, or burn off some of his stress, but it would look suspicious if he didn’t actually get breakfast. Besides he usually sparred with Sonic when he needed to blow off steam and obviously that wasn't an option for the moment. With that in mind he set off towards the hotel’s exit, to find something to eat. 

He stepped out of the hotel, and into the city, where the sun had just barely risen. The chill of the night still hung in the air, but the city was already coming back to life. The cool morning air quelled the flush on his face, and the quiet sounds of the city calmed his swirling mind. Most shops were just opening, or just about to open. 

In particular there were a couple promising looking coffee shops that emanated the smell of coffee and baked goods. Sonic always ate those awful chili dogs, it would do him some good to eat real food. Even if that food was breakfast food. Do muffins count as healthy? 

An hour later, Shadow had attained the ultimate breakfast. The door to their shared hotel room creaked as he opened it. He got a brief glimpse of Sonic lying still in bed, and looking sternly at the ceiling, apparently deep in thought. But the creaking door offered him no stealth. The moment was gone before he could even fully process it, which was a shame because over the years he’s known Sonic, one of the many things he’s been interested in, was learning what the hero thinks about. Because it's always been obvious, at least to him, that there's more going on under the surface than some might assume. His rival immediately perked up at the sound of the door and gave him his typical friendly grin.

“Heya Shads! I almost forgot you were getting food, that smells great!” Shadow only hummed in response, closing the door behind him with his foot, both bags were immediately yanked from his hands in a blur of blue light, soon followed by the unmistakable sound of a hedgehog rifling through the bags.

“That's not all for you-” Sonic quickly cut him off.

“Oh my chaos! You can't be serious!” The agent looked over at him in bewilderment, the hero returned the look, he had discovered Shadow’s coffee beans and was dangling them in the air. “You seriously eat coffee beans?”

“..Yes? They're rich in flavor, and make for a pleasant crunch. Not to mention, they provide a more concentrated dose of caffeine than your average bean water, better known as coffee.” His rival stared at him in disbelief that faded into a small smile. 

He made the same kind of soft chuckle as he had the night before, when he smelled the lavender oil on the bed. Fondly amused, is probably the best definition. It made his heart flutter, a little. As far as he was concerned there was nothing special about his love of coffee beans, but Sonic apparently thought it was endearing. 

“I thought Rouge was pulling my leg,” he huffed. Shadow wasn't sure how to feel about that comment, but it didn’t surprise him that Rouge gossiped about him. Probably harmless. 

Sonic tossed him the bag and started sorting through the second bag. He caught the coffee beans. The hero’s eyes lit up at the sight of what he’d gotten for him. “How’d you know I liked blueberries?” He asked as he pulled a blueberry muffin from the bag. Shadow couldn't help his smug grin, he always loved to exceed his rival’s expectations, he figured it was the competitive streak in him.

“It's not that hard, I need only pay attention to determine your food preferences. Although I see how that could seem daunting to you..”

“Hey, hey! I’m super good at paying attention!” He argued back around a mouthful of muffin and blueberries. The agent grimaced.

“Ugh, at least chew with your mouth closed, you’re not a wild animal,” he chidded. The cobalt hedgie only shrugged and continued digging into his muffin, he had already finished it by the time Shadow had started snacking on his coffee beans. Sonic tossed the muffin wrapper into the trash can, and looked back at him. 

Shadow got the impression that he wanted to say something, but surprisingly, wasn’t saying it, for whatever reason. If he didn’t know any better, he might even consider the look on his rival’s face as bashful. Which would be weird coming from Sonic. It made something bubbly and nervous flutter in his stomach, so he quickly broke eye contact to look at his coffee beans instead. Eventually Sonic cleared his throat, breaking the silence.

“I.. Uh..” He laughed stiltedly and rubbed his nose. “Sorry, I’m just not used to this.” The agent raised an eyebrow and cocked his head to the side. His rival was acting very unusually. “I just wanted to say thanks. For y’know.. Last night.” Shadow winced at the immediate guilt that the reminder brought up, and then winced again when Sonic immediately took it the wrong way and turned away, tight in the shoulders.

“Sorry dude. I wasn’t really myself, bad dream or something. Y’know how it is.. Won’t happen again! Promise.” Sonic always spoke so quickly when he was nervous or excited. It was even a little difficult for Shadow to understand him, he couldn't imagine how hard it would be for someone who didn’t have the same experience with speed that he had. Huffing at his rival’s rambling, he quickly grabbed him by the shoulder and spun him back around to face him.

“That’s not what I meant. You did nothing wrong.” Sonic blinked and crossed his arms over his chest, easily yanking himself out of the agent’s grasp.

“Then why’d you make a face?”

“I…” Well now he was in a bit of a bind. How was he supposed to explain his guilt over sharing a bed without revealing his embarrassing, useless feelings? He didn’t want to outright lie. Recalling what he’d learnt from Rouge, he quickly whipped up a story, half truths would have to do. “..I had meant to move to the other bed after you fell asleep, but I accidentally fell asleep, and ended up spending the night with you. I just felt guilty for.. Encroaching on your personal space.”

“Oh…” Sonic stared at him quizzically, and he could practically see the gears turning in the other’s head as he waited to see if he would believe the answer, or press for more. Mercifully, the hero smiled sympathetically, “you should know by now, I don’t mind being close with my friends! I’m sorry it bothered you though.”

“It didn’t bother me.” He corrected before he could catch himself. “I haven't slept that well in-” Shadow cleared his throat, cutting himself off. He was taken aback by his own unexpected transparency. After all he was usually very tight lipped about that kind of thing, but something about his rival always loosened his tongue. He crossed his arms and glared at the floor to avoid looking at the blue blur.

“Oh! Cool! Cool, cool, coooolll…” Sonic trailed off, even without looking at him, Shadow could hear the nervousness in his voice. Odd, he was pretty sure he was supposed to be the self-conscious one right now, and yet for some reason- “I uh, I liked it too.” Ruby eyes snapped up to their emerald counterparts in surprise, his own embarrassment momentarily forgotten, as he caught a quick glimpse of his rival with a muzzle flushed a warm pink. Unfortunately for him, the admittedly enchanting sight was short lived.

Before he could even begin to think of a response, the room was swept up in a blur of blue as the hero made quick work of cleaning it up. 

“Sonic-” Shadow began, not sure what he was going to say, but sure that he had to say something. The blue blur came to a skidding halt in front of him, talking quickly again, but this time the agent was just barely able to catch his words and make sense of them. He must be very nervous to be talking that fast.

“OK! We should probably get going! Y’know on that super important mission? We don’t have all day!” Nevermind the fact that they were the two fastest creatures in the known world, and they still had plenty of time to finish the mission. “Race you there?” He opened his mouth to respond but was immediately cut off yet again. “Cool! I’ll check us out of the room,” Sonic was out the door before he had even fully processed what had happened, the hero, already halfway down the hallway, shouted over his shoulder, his voice faint with the distance. “See ya there!”

Shadow blinked, momentarily stunned. That was weird as hell. He brought a hand to his head and tried to process the last couple of seconds.

“Ridiculous hedgehog,” he muttered to himself. His rival had been acting extremely strangely. The flighty attitude, flushed muzzle, and.. ‘I liked it too’. The admission and its implications brought a warm flush to the agent’s own cheeks. Could that really mean what it seemed to imply? On any other person the signs would be undeniable, but anything even approaching romance with Sonic was something Shadow had already ruled out a long time ago, for a multitude of reasons. Even if it pained his heart, he had to be logical.

He knew that as the ‘hero of mobius’ he must have many fans, some of whom harbour feelings for the hedgehog. In fact, one of these fans has even become one of his closest friends. 

The pink hedgehog, Amy Rose. That hedgehog was by all accounts a lovely person, and would likely make for a fine partner. In the early years of the two hedgehog’s friendship she threw herself at Sonic every chance she got, and yet every one of her advances was declined. Of course, now the two are close, but it’s entirely platonic. 

So then.. He could be gay? While he has had many interactions with men that edge into flirting territory, he didn’t seem particularly aware of that fact, or at the very least it seemed to be part of his generaly teasing personality. The hedgehog certainly didn’t give off that impression, and beyond that he couldn't recall him ever being in a relationship with another man. 

Plus, now that he thought of it, at least according to Rouge, Sonic once dated a woman. Shadow often zoned out during Rouge’s many so called ‘gossip sesh’s’, but he was fairly certain he recalled her mentioning a relatively serious relationship between Sonic and a.. Squirrel, yes that's right, Sammy..? No. Sally, Sally Acorn. Despite this, he could still turn out to be bi, or pan, but maybe that was just wishful thinking.

Of course, this is all trivial in the face of the real reason he had ruled out any possible romance with the blue blur. Sonic never showed any interest. But maybe that’s changing?

 He hadn’t ever seen him act that way around his other friends, but he would have to make sure. Shadow didn’t want to make any unwanted advances, the idea of misreading the signs so horribly, and making the wrong move sounded like just about the worst possible situation.

The agent finally left the hotel room, taking his time in making his way down the hall and then stairwell, he used this time to form a plan. He decided he would wait, just to be sure that it wasn't the unusual circumstances causing the strange behavior in his rival. After all, spending the night in the arms of someone you would usually be trading blows with may be throwing him off. 

If the behavior continued then.. He’d cross that bridge when he got to it. His heart fluttered at the thought, but he pushed the feeling down for now. He had to be sure first. 

As soon as he left the hotel, he was met with the grinning face of his rival, who had apparently collected himself enough to don his usual cocky attitude. 

“There you are! Took ya long enough, slowpoke. I thought we were gonna race!” Sonic teased immediately upon noticing him. Shadow was a little bit sad to see the blush go, but it was hard to be too disappointed when his only worthy rival was grinning at him, ready to race. It felt cathartic to fall back into their usual dynamic. Even if the possible romance was new and exciting, he never wanted to lose this easy banter with the only person who could truly push his limits. 

“I’m not surprised you want to rush through this mission in such a childish way. Meanwhile I have taken my time and will ensure the assignment is completed effectively.”

“HA! Shadow the Hedgehog, the day you take your time will be the same day I stop eating chilli dogs.” Without another word, he took off into the city, presumably headed for the old base, and fully trusting that Shadow would follow. Of course, he did, skating after that blue blur just as fast. They ducked and weaved through city streets, startling passerbys. 

It was a race, but he could already tell he wasn’t going to win this one. Even if he’d get teased about it later, he simply couldn't care at the moment. He was high on the feelings still swirling pleasantly in his chest. It was sort of dizzying to remember the lean strong muscles of his rival, currently carrying him faster than the speed of sound, had been pliant, cradled in his arms just a couple hours ago.

He took it as a moment to reflect on the bizarre morning he’d had. Sonic was certainly right about him rushing through things. He had made the decision that he didn’t have a chance with his rival almost as soon as he’d realized his feelings for the other. Never once did he question his decision, but in less than 24 hours he wasn’t so sure anymore. In spite of his inclination to get things done quickly, he was more than willing to take his time for this one thing. For Sonic. He had to be sure he wasn’t misreading this.

The hedgehog in question looked over his shoulder, probably to see if he was close to catching up, upon noticing the lingering stare of his rival, Shadow could have sworn he saw another pink flush on his cheeks, but maybe that was just his imagination.

Chapter Text

        Sonic weaved around thick tree trunks and ducked under winding branches. The last rays of the evening sun shone through the canopy, leaving the forest floor dappled in golden light. The perfect end to the perfect day. He was headed home after a semi successful mission with Shadow. Even though they had a late start, the two hedgehogs were still able to get to the egghead’s old base in record time! Sonic had wanted to race to the base, but Shadow didn’t even try to keep up.

        A little part of him worried that Shadow thought of him differently after seeing him so nervous, but he hoped the grump was just tired after staying up so late. After all the two hedgehogs had been awake in the early hours of the morning. Plus Shadow had gotten up way earlier than he had, if his blurry half-asleep memories were trustworthy, then the agent had left sometime just after dawn. That would explain why he gave up that race so easily. Hopefully the edgehog would give him more of a challenge next time.

        Despite himself, the memories from last night brought a warm flush to his face. Sonic was extremely embarrassed about the whole thing. He was embarrassed that he’d let his anxiety get to him so badly. Usually it didn’t get too bad, but the stars must have aligned last night, between missing Tails, the nightmare, and the little bird flying into the window, his thoughts had quickly spiraled to a darker place.

        Surprisingly, Shadow ended up being more than capable of bringing back the light. He got him to sleep so easily and systematically that it made Sonic worry about how often Shadow himself was restless at night. Or maybe he was just used to helping others get to sleep? Rouge didn’t really seem like the type to need or accept that kind of help, but you never know. Obviously Omega doesn't sleep. Then maybe.. Maria.?

        Sonic sighed, and tried to draw himself out of his thoughts. He caught sight of the bright blue ocean and knew he must've drifted off course during his inner monologue. With a cursory glance at his surroundings he quickly switched directions and headed off towards Tails’ house. He had run through this forest, and studied the trails enough times that he didn’t need to look at a map to know where he was going, but he did have to at least pay attention. 

        The blue blur stepped out of the thick forest and was greeted with the sight of Green Hills bathed in the warm light of the setting sun. He slowed down a little just to take it all in. The wind swept through his thin fur and long quills, Sonic relished in the feeling, and looked out across the loop de loops. 

        The funniest thought occurred to him then; that Shadow had never gotten the chance to run at Green Hills, which was a real shame. Ever since they joined forces for the first time, Sonic wanted to get closer to Shadow, but he had always seemed so prickly. Especially towards Sonic who he constantly challenged to races, spars, and any other type of competition. Not that Sonic minded, he enjoyed a good challenge. Not to mention he was often the one who goaded Shadow into doing it! There was a nice rhythm to their rivalry, Sonic pushed, Shadow pushed back, sometimes the other way around, and they got to see who came out on top.

        However, last night was different. Rouge often told him that he needed to wear down Shadow’s prickliness with kindness, and he’d get the same kindness in return. Sonic had always assumed Rouge was just being nice, and never expected anything but competition to come out of his relationship with Shadow. That didn’t mean he was unkind to the agent, of course, he extended to him the same respect that he gave to anyone, be it friend or foe. Despite their near constant contests, Sonic would never push too far, and maybe Shadow was more aware of that than he knew.

        Last night he full heartedly expected more of the edgehog’s sharp words in response to Sonic’s restlessness, but instead he completely switched gears. The hero hadn’t ever seen him act that way. Up until that night he could barely believe he acted like that at all, even to his closest friends, which did not include Sonic. Or at least, he had thought that didn’t include him.

        The blue blur sped up again in order to make it through the loop de loop, and as the world spun around him, he couldn’t help but think about what it might feel like to run these loop de loops with Shadow. Of course, he was no stranger to rivalries turned friendships, but Shadow had never seemed like a viable option for that. He supposed he should’ve seen it coming, despite his harsh exterior, Shadow’s always trying to do the right thing. 

        Sonic just assumed that the agent’s goodwill wouldn't ever apply to him. As usual, he’d been too hasty, too quick to draw that conclusion, because last night Shadow had proved him wrong.

        By the time Sonic came to a skidding halt in front of Tail’s lab he had made up his mind. He planned to spend more time with Shadow, and maybe they’d become friends. Of course he knew they’d never fully drop the rivalry, but they could at least have a friendlier version of it! Rouge would be thrilled, but all that could wait. Right now, his dearest friend, and little buddy was about to get home.

        Sonic flung the door open, and was surprised, but delighted when he saw Tails already there. The sound of the door was the only warning the poor fox had, before he was swept into a bear hug. 

        “Hey bud! How’ve you been?” Sonic asked eagerly, only receiving a muffled grumble in response from the squished fox. “Oops, sorry pal.” He quickly released the little fox, who sighed and began to sort out his tousled hair.

        “That’s alright Sonic. I’ve been good! I gathered some crucial, and very promising data for my project!” 

        “That's great kiddo! You’ve been working so hard on that project of yours recently, anything I should know about?” Sonic asked the excited inventor. Tails patted his hair down one more time when he was happy with it, leaving three adorable little tufts of fur atop his head.

        “Ah, nothing too important, but you should come by my workshop sometime and I’ll tell you about it! Anyways, what about you? Didn’t you volunteer to help Rouge with a mission?”

        “Aw, yeah, Rouge ducked out, so I went with Shadow! We basically raided one of the egghead’s old bases.”

        “Well you must’ve been having a good time if I beat you home,” the fox teased with a chuckle, placing his hands on his hips.

        “Don’t get too cocky! You only beat me cause I slept in,” Sonic responded with a grin, flicking the cute little wisps of fur on the top of his little buddy’s head. Tails batted his hand away, smiling playfully.

        “ You slept in? Sonic, you wake up at five am every morning, you’re going to have to come up with a better excuse than that,” Tails crossed his arms and gave him a disbelieving look. Sonic chuckled at the sass, he’d missed the little inventor, although he wasn’t really that little anymore.

        “No, really! I slept in!” He exclaimed, scoffing when Tails only eyed him dubiously. “I’m hurt, do you really think I can’t relax every once in awhile?”

        “Oh please,” the fox giggled, and Sonic couldn't help but smile at him, such a ray of sunshine.  

        “What, you can’t tell? Don’t I look so well rested?” He said, gesturing at himself.

        “I guess so,” he huffed, “well I could always ask Shadow, get a second opinion on your deceit,” Tails quipped, the hedgehog’s ears perked up a little at that.

        “Oh? I didn’t know you had a way to get ahold of him?” He questioned the little fox. The inventor blinked, a little taken off guard.

        “Oh uh, I don’t, I was just joking,” Tails clarified abashedly, “sorry.”

        “No need to apologize buddy! You haven't done anything wrong,” Sonic chuckled, and gave the fox a friendly pat on the shoulder. Realizing they’d yet to even unpack anything, he scooped some clothes out of Tails’ suitcase, leaving the more complicated, and fragile mechanical things to his clever pal. 

        “Dirty or clean?” he asked, although he knew they must be clean otherwise he wouldn’t have packed them with his gadgets.

        “ Clean,” Tails confirmed, also gathering some clothes and following Sonic upstairs to Tails’ bedroom. “Sooo… Why’d you want to get ahold of Shadow?” He asked as they made their way up the creaky stairs. Sonic shrugged and hummed noncommittally.

        “Well, I was just thinking recently, that I don’t really know the guy, so I figured the best way to get to know him would be getting his number or something like that,” he paused as he got to the top of the stairs, “If he even has a phone, isn’t he from the fifties or something?”

        “Yeah, I think so,” Tails answered with a snicker. As the two turned into the hallway and began making their way toward Tails’ room, Sonic posed another question.

        “Does that mean that Shadow is technically a 50 year old man?” he wasn’t sure why exactly, but the idea made somthing uncomrotable twist in his gut. Tails hummed thoughtfully.

        “I don't think so. While he was technically created 50 years ago, when he was put into stasis, he wasn’t aware of anything, and his body didn’t age, so he’s both mentally and physically.. Somewhere around your age I’d guess, whatever age he was when he was put into stasis.” Tails nodded, satisfied with his assessment.

       “Oh, good,” Sonic sighed, relieved although he didn’t really know why. 

       “Why do you ask?” The little fox inquired curiously, peeking over his shoulder to look at his face.

       “Well.. I guess it’d just be weird to be friends with someone so much older than me? I dunno man,” he wasn’t really sure what to say, it just felt important for some reason.

        “Ha! I guess we’ll have to tell Chip he’s too old to be your friend!”

        “Tails!” Sonic laughed, turning to face the fox as they entered his room, “who taught you to be so snarky?” Tails giggled and shoved him lightly.

        “Who do you think?” he asked with a chuckle, the blue blur huffed, but had to concede.

        “Alright, alright, you’ve got me there. Do you want any help putting all this away?”

        “No thanks, I’ve got it from here, but do you think you could grab us some dinner?”

        “Sure thing bud! How about a pizza and movie night?” As soon as the words left his mouth the fox was beaming. Needless to say he was soon on his way to pick up a large pizza, and rent some Star Wars movies.

        The day after their Star Wars marathon, Sonic found himself swamped with tasks, and meeting up with several friends throughout the day, just how he liked it. Since the afternoon had hit, he was at Amy’s place helping her prepare for a big get together she was planning, a friend reunion, or as Sonic liked to call it, a FrenunionTM. He thought it was a tad early to be setting up decorations, but she was nothing if not prepared.

        While he zoomed around the house setting up streamers, and splaying out table cloths, she paced around checking, and double checking her list to make sure everyone would be comfortable. After he had laid down the last of the silverware he zipped over to Amy, who was currently re-arranging the pillows and blankets on the couch.

        “Sonic, would you bring the armchair downstairs from the attic, please?” She asked without looking up from her notes, clearly in her element. Sonic darted upstairs and looked around the room, the cleanest attic he’d ever seen, he quickly found the flowery armchair and hoisted it up. Sonic was back in a flas with the furniture.

        “Where do you want this thing?” He asked her, looking over her shoulder to check out her scrawled notes.

        “Just over there, please,”  she told him, pointing out a spot next to the couch. Sonic placed the cushy armchair in its place and collapsed into it to relax for a moment. She smiled at the way the room was coming together, and began to fuss with the pillows again. To him it looked pretty perfect, but he appreciated the care she put into the whole party thing. 

        When she was finally happy with the arrangement she sank into the couch with a sigh. “I can’t thank you enough for helping me out with this, Sonic, things go so much faster with you around!”

        “It's no problem! Who’ve you got coming to this FrenuinionTM so far?”

        “Right now we’ve got you, Knuckles, Tails, Cream, Vanilla, Rouge, and Omega. I'm trying to get team Chaotix, and Shadow over here too, but they’re a little hard to contact..” She groaned and brought a hand up to her head.

        “Ames, don’t stress too much about it, the fact that you’re planning this whole thing is amazing! Even if they don’t come, this it’ll still be a great party,” he reassured her. Amy smiled into the palm of her hand, and looked over at him.

        “You’re right, this’ll be fun no matter what, but I’d still like to get more people to come over if we can..” She replied, expression becoming more contemplative. Sonic tipped his head to the side to think.

        “Hmm, well I’m not sure how to find the Chaotix, but Vanilla and Vector always seemed friendly in the past, so maybe start there? Plus Rouge can probably get Shadow onboard.” He suggested. Amy nodded, and turned to face him fully.

        “That’s a good idea, I hadn’t thought of asking Vanilla, but I definitely will,” she frowned, “but I’ve already asked Rouge, she said he didn’t want to come, and she wouldn’t give me Shadow’s number,” she said dejectedly.

        “We can’t exactly make him come?” Sonic responded quizzically.

        “I know, I know, I don't want to make him come, but I think he might really have a good time if he did! He knows everyone who’s attending, and I’m sure they would love to get to know him better!” She reasoned, clearly passionate about her friends getting along.

        “Hmm, ok, tell you what, you give me Rouge’s number, I’ll see if I can’t talk her into giving me Shadow’s, that way you don’t have to worry about it anymore, and you can see about getting Team Chaotix to come. Sounds good?” He proposed the plan with genuine intentions of helping her, but he had to admit he did have a small ulterior motive. Sonic didn’t really know how to find any of Team Dark. He usually only saw them because they sought him out specifically for a mission of some sort, or he met up with them at parties that Amy had planned, so he figured getting their numbers would be the easiest way to befriend Shadow. Amy shrugged helplessly, and smiled faintly.

        “You can give it a shot, but I wouldn’t get your hopes up. Rouge was pretty much a brick wall when I asked,” she replied with a sigh. Sonic wasn’t surprised, Rouge, Shadow, and Omega were all very protective of each other, it was honestly pretty sweet.

        “Thanks, I’ll do my best, keep me posted on the Chaotix, yeah?” 

        “Of course,” she agreed.

        A few hours later Sonic lay in bed, he had added Rouge’s number to his phone, and was wondering what to say. He had definitely procrastinated a little, ok, a lot. But it was dinner time by the time he got home, and he knew his pal would be so absorbed in his work that he’d probably forget to eat, so of course he had to bring dinner home, and take it to Tails’ work room. Then he just had to clean the house because the state it was in was utterly atrocious even by his standards…Except it wasn’t really that bad, but the dishes needed cleaning! The dust needed dusting.. You get it.

        Besides, Rouge was more active at night anyways. The dim light of his lamp and the illumination of his phone were the only sources of light in the small guest bedroom, which was basically just Sonic’s bedroom at this point, but whatever. He was cozy in bed, covered by cozy blankets, with his phone held just above the blankets. Expecting some major push-back, and wanting to start off not too demanding, he sent the opening text.

 Hey! It’s Sonic, Amy gave me ur number, hope u don’t mind :) :Sonic

Rouge: Well, hey there, blue! Trying to make a move? 😏

Sonic scoffed affectionately, he could almost hear her teasing through the screen.

 maybe ;) :Sonic

but fr, I’m trying to help Amy get Shadow 

to the big party in a couple days :Sonic 

He frowned when she took a moment longer to respond, the jumping dots appearing, and disappearing next to her name multiple times. With some hesitation he added.

 She said u didn’t want to give her his number?

 We think he’d really enjoy it if he came :Sonic

After a few more tense seconds she finally responded.

Rouge: Look, Blue, I already asked him about the party,

 and I said the same thing! But he’s being really hard 

headed about it, and honestly I don’t feel like trying to talk 

him into it right now, and he’d prolly be mad if I gave u or

 rosie his number

         Sonic groaned, and rolled over to glare at the ceiling. Rouge was being very reasonable, but the whole situation was still frustrating. He supposed he could understand Shadow’s hesitance to give out his personal number so easily, but how else was he supposed to get into contact with him? Funny, he'd never noticed how many walls Shadow had built up between himself, and the world until he tried to get through them. After a few seconds of a one sided staring contest with the ceiling, he decided to try a different approach.

 Well then maybe u could arrange 

for us to meet somehow? :Sonic

Me & Shadow I mean, so I could 

ask him in person :Sonic

Rouge:You want to arrange an in-person meeting

just to invite him to a party? Is that srsly the 

only reason or are you fishing for smth else? 

Sonic fiddled with the sheets of his bed, as he thought of the right thing to say. Rouge was always so good at sussing out people’s real motivations, apparently even when she couldn’t see them face to face. It would probably be better just to tell her the truth, he couldn’t imagine she’d have a problem with him getting closer to Shadow.

U figured me out that easy huh? lmao :Sonic

Rouge: Call it a 6th sense honey 😉

Tbh I was sorta hoping I could hang out with shads more :Sonic

Feels like I don’t see him much:Sonic

Rouge: oh reallyyyy?

         Sonic grinned coyly and rolled his eyes affectionately. Rouge had wanted the two of them to get closer for a long time, always giving them little nudges, it was pretty funny, and sometimes gave him good opportunities to rile Shadow up for a spar.  However he never really understood why exactly she wanted them to be friends, he hadn't thought they were very compatible beyond rivalry. Although Shadow had definitely shown a different side of himself at the apartment, so maybe she could see something he couldn’t.

Yes reallyyy :Sonic

Whaddya think? :Sonic

Rouge: 232-853-1422

Whats that??:Sonic

Rouge: Shadows number 😉😉😉😉

Srsly?:Sonic

Rouge: 👍

I thought u said he’d get mad :Sonic

Rouge: Tough luck, he stole my eyeliner yesterday

Tysm!!:Sonic

Rouge: go get em! 😉

Thx? :Sonic

Rouge: 😂

        Sonic turned off his phone, leaving himself mostly in the dark. An exciting mix of confusion and excitement stirred in his chest. He hadn’t expected Rouge to fold so easily. Not to mention all the winky faces, but she was probably just teasing. He rolled over in bed, practically kicking his feet, unable to fight a giddy smile. 

        Tomorrow he would text Shadow first thing in the morning, start off slow, maybe ask about the party first, and then move on to the hanging out more thing, since he knew that would be the thing Shadow would be the most hesitant about. Sonic turned the lamp off, and slumped into his bed.

        He could hear the faint yet comforting sounds of Tails getting ready for bed downstairs. The soft hum of his machines, and the clunking sounds as he powered them off for the night. The room was perfectly dark aside from the light coming from under the door, and even that went dark when Tails started turning off lights.

        “Night Sonic!” He yelled from the base of the stairs, probably about to head up to bed.

        “Night bud!” He called back to the little fox. Sonic listened to the stairs creak as his pal made his way up to his room, and felt the weightlessness of sleep start to creep up on him. He wondered if Shadow would be willing to run through green hills with him sometime, he was sure he’d enjoy it.. It’s a great track..

        The next morning Sonic pulled his shoes on, and tried not to wake up his brother as he left the house through the front door. He had been planning on texting Shadow first thing, but then.. He typed out a few messages, stared at his screen, and immediately backspaced the entire thing. He just couldn’t find the right words. So of course, he decided to go for a run.

        He sped through the fresh morning air, the misty fog not yet disturbed by the morning sun. He stretched out his fingers to touch the sunflowers, the dew wetting his gloves and freezing his fingers in the best way possible. The ground was sturdy and constant against his feet. Green Hill really was one of his favorite places to run. Sonic came to a stop at the end of Hedgehog’s Pass. He made a futile effort to pat his damp quills into place and sat down among the flowers.

        Rejuvenated by his run, Sonic began to think of how he should start the conversation with Shadow, Amy would probably type out a paragraph explaining the party, and how he’d like to hang out more, Knuckles would probably be blunt and straightforward, Tails would probably be polite and straightforward, Shadow.. Shadow would use perfect grammar, and convey the information as quickly as possible. But then again, Sonic wasn’t his friends, so it would probably be best to just… say what himself would say? Yeah, that made sense.

        He pulled out his phone from his quills and quickly typed out a message before he could overthink it.

Heya Shads! It’s Sonic :) :Sonic

        Surprisingly, he got a response pretty quickly.

Shadow: What? How did you get this number?

        Sonic grinned, although he was a tad nervous, he hoped he hadn’t shot himself in the foot by getting his number from a third party, and making the edgehog upset.

Rouge gave it 2 me :/ :Sonic

Shadow: Typical.

Sry? :Sonic

Shadow: It’s fine, I’m not upset with you.

Kk :Sonic

   Its just that ur kinda hard to find y’know? :Sonic

Shadow: I know. Most people aren't worth my time.

        He chuckled a little, although his amusement was lessened when it occurred to him that that meant the walls Shadow built up were there on purpose. He couldn’t imagine a life without all his friends.

Is that why ur not gonna go to Amys party??:Sonic

Shadow: Too many people.

Ya but u kno all of them :Sonic

         Sonic watched the jumping dots next to Shadow’s name for what felt like forever, his brows furrowed.

Shadow: I’m not wanted there.

        He was a little startled by that response, he knew Shadow could be a little cold, and often considered himself to be against the world, but he hadn’t realized he thought Sonic’s friends actively disliked him.

 If they don’t like u then why would they invite u? :Sonic

Shadow: Because it’s the polite thing to do.

Shadow: Is this the only reason you’re texting me?

        Sonic sighed, and fidgeted with the buckle of his shoe, he could tell he was quickly losing Shadow’s interest. It was now or never.

tbh i was kinda hoping we could hang out more?:Sonic

Y’know outside the missions and saving the world stuff :Sonic

        Sonic waited in tense silence for his rival’s response.

Obvi u dont have 2 if u dont want 2:Sonic

Shadow: No, I would like to. 

What do you usually do outside of missions?

        Sonic felt a stupid grin spread across his face, and was glad that no one else was around to see it. He got up and began to pace around the grass, now too energetic to sit still.

Idk usually whatever my friends r doing ig :Sonic

 What abt u? :Sonic

Shadow: Reading, training, but sometimes Rouge drags me to parties.

        He cocked his head to the side, thinking about their options as he wore a small path into the ground from his pacing.

Ig we could train together? :Sonic

Shadow: Sure, you certainly need the practice.

        Sonic smirked at what could only be a challenge.

We’ll see who needs the practice lmao :Sonic

What time are you free? :Sonic

Shadow: Missions are slow this week, so pretty much anytime. 

Although I do have a short reconnaissance assignment in Westropolis. 

Possibly one of the Doctor’s new bases, probably a false alarm.

Cool! I’ve got a thing with  :Sonic

Cream and Vannila tmrw evening,

Friday is pretty much booked, 

and I’ve got Amy’s party saturday afternoon.

Shadow: How about tomorrow morning then.

What time do you typically wake up?

Like 5 but we can do it later if u want :Sonic

Shadow: Does 8:00AM work for you?

        He sat down again letting his legs dangle off the edge of the small cliff, and kicking his feet idly.

Yup! Where do u wanna meet? :Sonic

Shadow: The mystic junge would be a nice place to start.

O! Not scared of those giant snakes?:Sonic

Shadow: No, are you?

Nope! C u there! :Sonic

Shadow: Agreed, see you then.

        Sonic sighed and laid back against the grassy ground, smiling warmly at the blue sky. He would get a chance to hang out with Shadow, and simultaneously show that he’s actually very adept at fighting, although Shadow probably already knew that, but still! He had to be sure Shadow wouldn’t start taking it easy on him, just because he found out Sonic got anxious sometimes.

        They could spar, chat, maybe grab some food on the way home. Sonic brought his arms up to cushion his head as he traced the shapes of the clouds with his eyes. Then he’d spend the evening helping Cream and Vanilla bake some cookies for the party. Friday was all over the place in the best way, and Saturday he got to hang out with all his closest friends in one place! Maybe even Shadow, if he’s able to convince him to come during their training sesh. This week was shaping up to be a fun one.

Chapter Text

        Sonic stood idly in the small clearing where he and Shadow had agreed to meet. It was a nice day, the flickys were chirping, the Mystic Jungle was covered in a pleasant cooling mist. Except. The other hedgehog was late. The hero frowned, tapping his foot, and glaring up at the canopy, he hated waiting. It was strange though, Shadow had never been late to anything as far back as he could remember. 

        Then again, he’d never really hung out with the edgehog much outside of saving the world from certain doom. He sighed, expression softening, all this time spent holding each other at arm's length. Could they have been friends sooner? Or did Shadow need that time to get used to him? Rouge had told him several times that the agent needed time and kindness to wear down his prickliness, so maybe this was how it was meant to be.

        Still though, he wished they could've done it a little differently. The other night was the first time Shadow showed him he wanted something more, and it was only because the hero had been anxious. Sonic huffed and crossed his arms. He still felt sour about that particular fact, nobody ever got to see him like that. Except for Amy, and sometimes Tails, and now.. Shadow, apparently. What if Shadow had only helped because he felt sorry for the blue blur? What if Shadow viewed him as.. Weaker now because of it. Maybe he wasn’t even going to show up today. Maybe Sonic wasn’t even worth training with now. Sonic winced at the thought. Amy had talked to him about this. She called it ‘spiraling’.

        Something slammed into his side at breakneck speed. Sonic found himself sprawled out against the forest floor, blinking up at the very hedgehog he’d been waiting on. Shadow’s expression was stern, but there was a slight tilt to his mouth, a tiny, barely noticeable smile. The blue blur couldn't fight his stupid excited grin.

        “Never let your guard down,” the edgehog grunted. Sonic easily hoped back to his feet. “Sorry I’m late, the mission in Westropolis ran a little longer than I thought..” he grumbled, Sonic smiled lazily. Shadow was mostly relaxed, aside from the slight tenseness that never seemed to leave him. His footing was loose. The hero easily swept him off his feet, and leaned over him to offer a teasing grin.

        “Well then I guess you’ve gotta make up for it with some top tier training, huh?” he chuckled at the startled, and slightly flustered look on the other’s face. “Never let your guard down!” He repeated the edgehog’s words in a sing-songy tone, feeling a thrill in his chest when Shadow took the bait. The agent pushed himself back to his feet, using the momentum to try to tackle the hero down, but Sonic swiftly moved out of the way, positioning himself behind Shadow. It hardly mattered though, since Shadow whipped around just as quickly to face him again. The sharp smile on the agent’s face mirrored the blue blur’s own lopsided smirk.

        Shadow made the first move this time, feinting to the left, but darting in at the last minute to drive an elbow into the right side of Sonic’s ribs. The hero grunted as pain bloomed from the area, the thrill of a battle meant nothing if there wasn’t any real danger. Before Shadow could pull away, he grasped him by the shoulders to hold him in place, and to brace himself as he slammed his knee into the edgehog’s stomach. Shadow stumbled away, a visible wave of nausea hitting him. Sonic took this as his opportunity to tackle him to the dirt. He was surprised the edgehog didn’t twist out of the way, but a win is a win.

        He pinned the agent down, holding his arms in place by the wrists, and using his leg to keep his torso trapped with his body weight. Shadow strained at the tight grip, but it was ultimately in vain. The hero merely watched as the agent put all his energy into attempting to twist out of his hold. He almost managed an escape, forcing Sonic to press even closer to keep him contained. Shadow finally stopped, taking a moment to stare up at him. His face was flushed a deep red, and his expression was caught between impressed, and frustrated. Now that he thought of it, the hero could feel a slight flush to his own face as well, probably from the exertion of the fight. 

        “You wanna keep struggling down there, or should we call this a pin?” he asked the edgehog, deeply amused by the huff, and averted eyes his teasing tone earned him. 

        “Fine,” he huffed, “Let me up.” Sonic obliged, pulling away from the agent, and offering him a hand to help pull him up. 

        “First point goes to me! Better step up your game Shads!” He waited a couple of seconds for Shadow to brush the dirt out of his quills, he always seemed preoccupied with how they were styled, Sonic couldn’t relate. When the edgehog seemed satisfied with the state of his quills, he offered his challenge. “Best outta three?”  

        “Hmph,” Shadow looked him over, there was a stubborn tilt to the agent’s brow. The hero felt the slight flush return to his cheeks, probably nothing. “How about best out of five?” He finally responded, glancing away. The offer gave Sonic pause, their spars tended to last quite a while, Sonic’s first point had been an outlier. Shadow usually didn’t want to spar for that long unless he was blowing off steam. Had something happened? Maybe in Westroplis? After all, it was unusual for Shadow to be late.

        “Sure,” he agreed easily, “best outta five.” The agent’s response was a firm nod. Sonic barely got enough time to shift into a more battle ready position before he was immediately swept off his feet. His back slammed into one of the large trees in the surrounding forest. An arm was pressed firmly to his chest, keeping him tucked so tightly against the tree that he could feel his quills stabbing into the bark. The hero grinned defiantly in the face of Shadow’s focused glare.

        His hands instinctively darted to grasp the arm that held him in place as his eyes flicked around for an escape route. The agent was smiling again, eyes sharp, and expression confident. He’s not entirely sure why the sight of it made his cheeks heat up. Suddenly the agent leaned forward, closer to Sonic’s particularly sensitive ear.

        “Should we call this a pin, hedgehog?” His voice was low, and rumbling, similar, and yet somehow entirely different to how he normally talks. For reasons that are beyond him, the words sent a cacophony of conflicting thoughts through his mind, none of which stuck around long enough to help him make sense of anything. The hero’s flush intensified to an embarrassing degree, maybe due to the heat of the battle, maybe due to.. Something else. Almost surely the former. His ear flicked wildy, hitting Shadow’s snout once, and ultimately pinning itself to his head. Despite the weightless feeling in all his limbs he was thankful that the instinctive urge to fight back against the pin cut through the fog. He couldn't lose this early in the game.

        “Hah! And give up so soon?” he managed to grit out, attempting to cover the slight shake of his voice with a teasing tone. He’s got to get out of this.

        The hero let his feet slip out from under himself, a simple yet effective maneuver. The agent’s forearm may have been pressed tightly to his chest, but his single arm was simply not enough to hold the weight of an entire hedgehog. He fell to the ground, barely catching himself with his hands. A couple of the quills that had been embedded in the wood were torn from his back with a sharp stinging sensation, but that was the least of his worries. Shadow stumbled, and nearly fell, but managed to catch himself on the tree he’d previously had Sonic pinned to. 

        The edgehog turned to glare down at him, expression harsh, but he faltered when he noticed the flush on his rival’s muzzle. A series of emotions crossed the agent’s face, surprise, consideration, and a slight blush to his own cheeks at whatever conclusion he drew. Sonic actively avoided thinking about what conclusion that might be, instead he chose to use the brief opening this new positioning gave him to his full advantage. He braced his feet against Shadow’s shins, and gleefully watched his rival tense when he realized what he was trying to do.

        He grinned widely. Using the tree trunk as leverage, and giving the agent no time to react, he kicked Shadow’s legs out from under him, and watched triumphantly as he came tumbling down to join him on the forest floor. Unfortunately he landed on top of Sonic, but thankfully he was disoriented enough that the blue blur was able to flip their positions with relative ease. He pressed him to the dirt by the shoulders. The agent’s hands went to tear himself free, but Sonic shifted more of his body weight onto his hands, driving the other hedgehog further into the ground, and eliciting a satisfying grunt. Unable to pull his hands off, Shadow grasped his wrists bruisingly tight, but it didn't do much more than draw a slight wince from the hero.

        “So,” he asked breathlessly, “what happened in Westropolis?” He was partially trying to draw attention away from the embarrassing blush on his cheeks, and also genuinely asking. After all, he’d decided to bowl Sonic over as a greeting, and asked to spar for no less than 5 rounds. Clearly something’s got him all riled up. The way his expression immediately closed off at the question didn’t help to soothe his worries.

        “Classified,” he dismissed gruffly, not meeting his rival’s eyes. 

        “Oh please,” Sonic scoffed, “If it’s about that egghead I'll know about it sooner or later..” he leaned in closer, trying to get the agent to meet his eyes. “Might as well give me a heads up, yeah?” The hands that grasped his wrists tightened enough to send a sharp jolt of pain through the hero making the fur on his neck stand on end. He grimaced, and opened his mouth to speak, but he was interrupted by the sensation of something hitting him hard in the gut. Ah, he’d forgotten to restrain his legs. The blow sent him reeling, he pulled away from his rival, a wave of nausea and spotty vision left him disoriented as he twisted to lay on his side and clutch his stomach.

        Suddenly there were hands at his back, he couldn't help the surprised laughter that bubbled in his chest as his front was crushed to the forest floor. Shadow’s legs laid overtop his own, firmly holding them down. A hand held his right shoulder to the ground while the other was pressed to the dirt next to Sonic’s head in order to support the agent’s own weight.

        “It’s nothing,” he heard Shadow grumble behind him. Sonic chuckled as he flexed his quills, of course the agent had positioned himself just right so that none of his sharp blue quills could reach him.

        “Sureee, sounds like it's ‘nothing,” he teased lightly. The blue blur wriggled his arms free out from under himself, but Shadow quickly removed his hand from his shoulder in favor of using it to pin his arms to the ground. Another growl from the agent sent a sensation like lightning up his spine, although he couldn’t fathom why. There was a long pause in the conversation as Shadow thought of what to say, and Sonic thought of how to escape. Finally, the agent broke the silence with more vulnerability than the hero had expected to hear from him. 

        “I didn’t find anything suspicious in Westropolis, but something felt off.” The edgehog admitted in a hushed voice. Sonic almost considered waiting to break free, but what's the fun of a spar if somebody’s holding back? Without warning he began to thrash around, kicking out his legs, trying to turn over, anything to throw the agent off balance. His movements forced the hedgehog above him to readjust his weight if he wanted to avoid falling over.

        With the first phase of his plan in motion, Sonic turns to the hand next to his head, the one Shadow’s been using to balance out his own weight. With a rush of excitement he bit into it, not too viciously, but harsh enough that he tasted a bit of blood when he pulled away. As expected the hand was immediately yanked away, and with the edgehog already off balance, Shadow was easily thrown off his back.

        Sonic swiftly flipped himself right side up, and soon he had Shadow pressed closely to the dirt ground, grinning in the face of the agent’s fierce glare. The exertion of the spar left them both flushed and panting. If the slight curl of the other’s lip meant anything, his breath probably still smelled like chilli dogs.

        “Well..” he drawled, trying to control his breathing, “you should always trust your gut.” The edgehog quirked an unimpressed eyebrow, but didn’t try to escape just yet.

        “What does my gut know? My brain’s supposed to do the thinking.” Sharp teeth caught the light as Shadow bared them in his frustration, “I don’t understand why I’m so hung up on this. There wasn’t anything there.” Sonic hummed in response and tipped his head to the side, trying to pick apart Shadow’s constantly guarded expression. Oddly, the agent’s blush deepended at the action, Shadow turned his head away and suddenly the edgehog couldn’t seem to make eye contact with him.

        “..Tell you what,” he said after a moment. Shadow glanced up at him from the corner of his eye, it was enough to show that he’s listening even if his head remained facing away from him. He smiled smugly, he couldn't help his competitiveness, luckily Shadow could always keep up. “If you win then I’ll go with you to Westroplis, and we can give it another look, four eyes are better than two y’know!” 

        “Alright,” The edgehog replied hesitantly, turning to look at him fully. “And if you win?”

        Sonic tightened his grip on the pinned hedgehog, and grinned conspiratorially.

        “If I win, you have to come to Amy’s Frenuinion this Saturday,” the challenge was clear in his voice, to refuse would be to admit defeat, to admit that Sonic could very well win this little bet of theirs. Sonic would handle it with grace, of course, he was no sore winner, but he knew that the same competitive spirit that ran through his own veins was in Shadow as well. The agent matched the hero’s smirk with his own sharp grin. He wasn’t one to back down from a challenge.

        “You’ve got yourself a deal, hedgehog.” Sonic barely had time to feel the little thrill in his chest before he was reeling from an unexpected headbut rattling his skull. Shadow was already up in his face again, trying to force his arms behind his back. The blue blur grinned wildly.

        “Oh it is so on!”

        Some time later the two hedgehogs were meandering back through the forest headed nowhere in particular. Sonic’s muscles ached in the best way, and the exhaustion of an evenly matched fight weighed comfortably on his body. The breeze rustled through the trees and cooled his sweat slicked fur. He sighed contentedly, and glanced over at Shadow, expecting a similar expression, but instead of relaxed, his companion seemed tense. 

        “Uhh..” He sidled up to the agent’s side, a mix of concern and confusion writ on his face. “You good, my guy?” The edgehog glanced at him, visibly frustrated.

        “We’re going in circles, this jungle is a maze,” he answered, gesturing to the dense trees that surrounded them. Sonic blinked.

        “We were goin’ somewhere?” he asked blankly. Maybe it was endorphins from the spars muddling his brain but he truly had no idea what the agent was talking about. Shadow looked at him incredulously.

        “Yes? I said ‘you should get going to Vanilla's house, our training lasted longer than I expected, and it’s getting late’, then you agreed and asked me to walk you there. Remember?” Sonic shrugged, chuckling when the motion drew another irritated huff from the edgehog. He’d almost forgotten about his arrangements with Cream and her mother, but he figured he still had plenty of time. He could probably get there in ten seconds flat anyways.

        “Not really, but hey, if you're walking me to Vanilla’s then we’re headed the wrong way.” Shadow slowly narrowed his eyes.

        “You mean to tell me, that you let us wander this jungle for a whole thirty minutes and didn’t think to tell me that you know the way?” The agent demanded, he looked like he was ready for another spar. The hero grinned and tipped his head to the side.

        “Uhh yeah? My bad man..” His apology was half hearted at best, he’d enjoyed spending time with him in the forest. No stakes, no badniks, just the two of them surrounded by trees and chirping flickys. Shadow didn’t seem to share the sentiment. He barely dodged in time as the agent lunged for him. The blue blur giggled as he twisted out of the way. “Race ya there?” He asked, not waiting for a response as he pivoted and took off in the opposite direction. The hero heard Shadow pursuing him, and felt a familiar rush of adrenaline, pushing him to run faster, if only to see whether or not his grumpy agent could catch him.

        Sonic gently lowered Cream to the ground as soon as she'd gotten ahold of the bowl she’d been struggling to reach. He watched her hand the empty bowl to her mother in exchange for the bowl of buttercream she’d been mixing. Cream went to put the bowl full of sugary goodness into the refrigerator while Vanilla went about making another bowl of it. The hero followed after the litter rabbit, and reached into the fridge to snatch the milk before she closed it. He was pretty sure he remembered mixing milk into the first batch of frosting somewhere along the way. Either way the buttercream would be the perfect topping to the cupcakes they were baking for Amy’s party. Vanilla had already made most of the snacks, although Amy insisted on making at least some of the snacks herself, Vanilla still planned to arrive early with baskets full of good food.

        Vanilla nodded her thanks, and poured two delicate teaspoons of the milk into the bowl. Sonic had no idea how she managed not to accidentally pour too much, but he supposed she must just be very experienced, a master chef, really. It’s a skill he admired. He didn’t have much skill in the kitchen, but he would love to cook good food for his friends if he could. He heard the fridge close, and looked over to see Cream smiling sweetly. The only thing giving her away was a dab of buttercream on her cheek. Sonic chuckled and silently gestured to the sweet icing. She jumped and quickly wiped it away. The two of them shared brief conspiratorial grins until Vanilla turned around again.

        The quiet sounds of the mechanical mixer, apparently a gift from Vector, filled the kitchen as Vanilla smoothed down the front of her dress.

        “Ah, I’m just so excited for this little get together! I’m sure everyone will have a wonderful time.” She sighed happily. Cream nodded excitedly.

        “Yeah! I’m gonna see Charmy, and Tails there!”

        “Yup!” Sonic agreed, smiling brightly, “Everyone’ll be there!” Even Shadow. His heart warmed at the thought. They chatted for a while longer, Cream mainly spoke about class, she had just started middle school, and her grades had never been better! He caught Vanilla’s glowing expression from the corner of his eye, the picture of a proud mother. She also talked about Charmy, who she’d apparently been spending a lot of time with lately. Vanilla chimed in several times to mention Vector and Espio, but mostly Vector. Sonic couldn’t help the amused smile working itself onto his face. He'd been around Amy long enough to know a love story when he saw one.

        When the sun had begun to set, and it was time for Cream to head to bed, Vanilla walked Sonic to the door. They exchanged their goodbyes, and Sonic watched Cream drag her feet on her way to her bedroom.

        “So.. Vector, huh?” He asked curiously, when the little rabbit was out of earshot. Romance wasn’t something he’d have expected from those two, but now that he thought about it they did get along well enough. She giggled airily, covering her mouth with her hand.

        “Ah ha.. It’s that obvious, huh?” She sighed, mind obviously elsewhere. “He’s just.. He’s so sweet! Have you ever seen him talk about his music? Not to mention how good he is with Cream, and Charmy!” She tittered, Sonic smiled lopsidedly at her gushing, it’s sweet, he was glad they've found each other. “Not to mention his strength,” she paused abruptly, a light flush dusting her cheeks.

        “Oh my! I’m sorry, I just get swept up in my thoughts whenever he comes up, don’t I?” She sighed apologetically. He shook his head with an amused chuckle.

        “Hey, no worries! I think it’s great you two are happy! Have you told him yet?” Vanilla shrugged vaguely and glanced away.

        “I’m.. Not sure. It’s been a while since I've pursued anyone romantically,” she winced, “What if we go out together, and I mess something up?”

        “Eh, knowing Vector, I don’t think it’d be too big of a deal, and besides! It doesn’t matter if you ‘do it right’ just so long as you guys are having fun and getting to know each other.” She blinked.

        “That’s.. actually some very good advice! Thank you,” she smiled gratefully.

        “Learned it from Ames, she’s the expert on the touchy feely stuff,” the blue blur replied easily. Vanilla chuckled, and nodded in agreement.

        “Well, I suppose I’ll be seeing you Saturday!”

        “Looking forward to it!” He replied, waving goodbye as she closed the door. The night air was cool on his fur, and he soon found himself running in order to warm himself up, and to burn off some energy. While his feet wandered, so did his mind. He was glad to see that Vanilla had found someone, she hadn’t really talked about her past husband, but he got the sense that the two of them just lost their spark. Thankfully, she likely wouldn't have that kind of problem with Vector, he chuckled at the thought. A sweet, if unlikely pairing, Amy would approve. 

         Amy had an eye for good matches, both in fashion, and in love. In fact, she had once thought Sonic to be her own perfect match. ‘Fated’, as she liked to call it. To this day, Sonic found the idea of being fated to find a specific partner deeply uncomfortable. What if he, like Vanilla, lost the spark? He couldn’t imagine being tied to someone against his will, it’s not like anyone could keep up with him anyways. Wel.. except.. Ah, but Shadow hardly counted. He swerved to slip into the forest, unconsciously returning to the Mystic Jungle as his thoughts drift to their spar session from this morning.

         The agent had matched him blow for blow, as per usual. It was always thrilling to compete with Shadow, he got his blood pumping in a way that no one else really could. Strangely, today the agent had got his blood rushing straight to his face, in a ridiculous tomato red blush. He supposed it was almost surely the figurative heat of the battle, or the literal heat of the sun overhead.. But something about it nagged at the back of his mind. Not to mention Shadow’s face had held a similar tint of color ever since Sonic had first slammed him into the dirt. It almost reminded him of Vanilla’s embarrassed blush when she spoke of Vector. Almost. Obviously they were blushing for very different reasons.

         The unexpected dewy mist of the jungle brought him from his thoughts. Sonic glanced up to discover that he’s deep in the Mystic Forest. Not a bad place to be, all things considered. There should be an outlook further ahead, it would look beautiful if the sky were clear. Putting aside his thoughts on Shadow for now, the hero swerved past a particularly large tree, and began to navigate to the little outlook. It would be a nice place to spend some time, although it would’ve been nicer to be there with someone. His thoughts always seemed to wander when he was alone, sometimes to places he’d rather not think about. In fact, they had been doing just that at the hotel a couple nights ago, until, thankfully, Shadow had interrupted their little spiral.

         The blue blur burst free from the forest and came to a skidding halt before he could go flying off the edge of the outlook. Chuckling a bit at the close call, he turned to glance around the area, only to come face to face with two bright red pinpricks of light.

        “Shadow!?” The hero yelped, startled at the entirely unexpected sight of the agent casually sitting at the outlook next to him.

        “Sonic!” The agent responded, also jumping in surprise, and glancing around like he might dart away at any moment. The blue blur’s surprise quickly turns into delight as he flops down next to his rival? Friend?

        “You didn’t tell me you were gonna hang out around here!” He exclaimed joyfully, leaning forward to get a better look at him in the relative darkness of the night. The agent shrugged slightly and looked away. Sonic found himself captivated by the contrast of those bright ruby eyes and the gloomy jungle.

       “I.. Wasn’t exactly planning on it. I just kind of, ended up here, I suppose.”

        “Same,” Sonic sighed in agreement, tearing his gaze away to peer up at the night sky. “It’s pretty isn't it?” Shadow murmured something under his breath, but the hero couldn’t quite make out the words of it. “What’s that?” He asked, looking over at his companion again.

       “Nothing,” the agent replied a bit too quickly. There was a grimace on his face, but somehow Sonic didn’t think it was directed at himself.

        “M’kayy..” He chuckled, and turned to look at the swirling night sky again. “Well whatever, it’s nice to hang out with you again.” Shadow grunted his quiet agreement, and they devolved into a comfortable quiet. Surprisingly, Sonic didn’t feel too compelled to break the silence, it’s just too nice. He was surprised, but not upset when he felt hands begin to pull lightly at his tangled quills.

        “I don’t understand how you can let them get this bad.” The agent murmured as explanation, before he shifted closer to sort out the mess. He felt his fluffy chest brushing against the relaxed points on his back, as Shadow settled into place behind him. The hero huffed a slight laugh, and resigned himself to the gentle fingers carding through his tangled quills. 

        They’re close enough that Sonic could smell the faint scent of lavender and gunpowder that followed the agent wherever he went. It reminded him of being pressed to the fluffy fur in the hotel room, limbs tangled together in a loose embrace. The thought of it brings a slight warmth to his cheeks, he’s glad for the dim light.. Although considering the glow of Shadow’s eyes, the agent might be able to see Sonic’s face despite the darkness. By the time his quills had been thoroughly detangled, Sonic’s eyes already felt heavy.

        “There, finally well groomed, no thanks to you.” One of those hands left his quills in order to lightly flick his ear. The cobalt hedgie laughed and pulled the hand away from his sensitive ears, he almost released the hand, but something that he couldn’t name made him hesitate. He hesitated a moment too long.

        “..Sonic?” The agent murmured after a second. The hero immediately let go, and chuckled awkwardly. Why did he do that?

        “Sorry! Ahah..” 

        “No! It’s.. I mean- I don’t mind,” Shadow fumbled, uncharacteristically unsure of himself. There was a brief pause before the agent’s hands slowly came to rest around his waist. Sonic cleared his throat, and tried to fight the flush that the action brought to his cheeks. Chaos, this blushing thing is starting to get out of hand. Staunchly ignoring the fluttering in his stomach he leaned back against Shadow, and glanced up at the sky again. The moon was climbing higher in the sky, Tails should get to bed soon, but knowing him he was probably still up working on his machines. Really he should’ve gotten back to the house and got him to sleep but.. He was getting older, surely he’d get to bed at a semi reasonable hour? Yeah, that’s what he was going to tell himself.

         He pulled his phone from his quills and shot off a quick text to his little buddy, just to let him know he wouldn’t be home tonight. Only a couple seconds, and he saw Tails return with a little thumbs up. Ah, so still awake then, and given the short response, almost certainly still working. The hero sighed, that fox worried him sometimes. As he returned his phone to his quills, Shadow reached up to point at the sky.

         “You can see the Big Dipper from here.” The agent said quietly, just loud enough for Sonic to hear. He turned to look, and sure enough, gleaming clearly in the night, was the Big Dipper.

        “Did you know you can find the North Star if you follow the edge of the bowl?” The hero responded, equally as quiet. Shadow hummed in agreement, and leaned forward to rest his head on Sonic’s shoulder.

       “..You know about constellations?” The agent asked after a moment, voice surprisingly soft.

        “Yep,” the hero affirmed, “I mostly use them to orient myself if I get lost.”

       “Hmm. It’s impressive, I don’t think I’ve ever once seen you get lost.” He must’ve seen the smug smirk growing on the hedgehog’s lips because he quickly tacked on, “Despite your scatterbrained tendencies.” Sonic chuckled and leaned further into the agent’s chest in retaliation, forcing him to lay down in the grass. Shadow grumbled as his well groomed quills splayed on the ground, and the hero had to bite his tongue to avoid openly laughing. “You seem to enjoy pushing me into the dirt..” Shadow huffed reproachfully, although there was an undercurrent of something that has Sonic lightly flicking his snout to shut him up.

         “Psh, you’re one to talk, how many times have you pinned me to a tree, huh?” The edgehog huffed, breath tickling the fur around his ear, but relented, letting his hands rest against the cobalt hedgie’s stomach again. The blue blur sighed contentedly and looked up to the sky again. It’s funny, this kind of thing is exactly what Amy always talked his ear off about when they first met. A romantic night spent under the stars, hand holding, ..cuddling. Sonic relaxed into the safety of the moment, appreciating the calming scent of lavender accompanied by the intriguing edge of gunpowder. For some reason he could feel the flush on his face deepen.

        These strange fluttery feelings, and reactions were.. A bit obnoxious, he’ll admit, but it was worth it to get to spend time with Shadow. He’d always found the agent intriguing, and exciting, ever since he first laid eyes upon him. Ever since the edgehog managed to catch up to the fastest thing alive. Now that he had seen this other side of him, the softer, sweeter side, he was only more interested. He wanted to listen to him talk about constellations, and chaos energy, and his GUN missions. Not to mention his strength and.. Wait a minute.

       Isn’t that exactly how Vanilla had been talking about Vector earlier?

       He glanced over his shoulder to look at the edgehog he’d been laying on. He’s met with an utterly enchanting sight, a soft blush dusted tan cheeks, starlight reflected brilliantly in glowing crimson red eyes, and the softest look he’s ever seen graced his rival’s face.. He was suddenly hyper aware of the hands around his body, and the warmth at his back.

         Sonic sucked in a breath, his guts flipping.

        Oh. 

        Sonic had always been an impulsive hedgehog, and certainly never a patient one either. The stars glinted off Shadow's eyes. The moonlight illuminated every sharp point of his spines. Sonic leaned in closer. Shadow gave him a questioning look, the flush on his face deepening.

        Their lips met clumsily, and they both immediately pulled away. Sonic blinked, shocked at his own audacity. He opened his mouth, an apology already forming on his lips, but he was cut off by Shadow moving in to steal another kiss. The agent's arms come to rest comfortably at the hero's waist when they pull away again.

        "So... Whadya think?" He asked hesitantly. Shadow blinks blankly at him.

        "...I think you lied to me about quiting chilli dogs." He responded, before immediately slapping a hand over his muzzle. "Wait- That's not what I-”

         "Too late!" Sonic replied easily, warm laughter bubbling in his chest. "Those are the first words you said after we kissed, forever and ever! I'll tell our grandkids this story." He teased, grinning widely. Shadow huffed and buried his face into Sonic's shoulder.

        "You're insufferable, hedgehog."

        "Yeahh.. But that's why you love me.”

        "...and you?"

        "Huh?"

        "Do you feel the same?*

        "Yeah" he sighed simply.

        “Good, I’m glad to hear that,” the agent paused, “really glad, actually.”

        Shadow grinned, his smile warm and genuine, although he quickly hid it in Sonic’s chest again. The blue hedgie grinned widely, taking the edgehog’s shyness as a challenge. He tugged ruthlessly at his manicured quills, and shoved at his shoulders, trying to reveal his cute, blushing face. Of course, this shoving was quickly returned tenfold, and their date night quickly turned into a scuffle.. Although in their eyes perhaps that was the same thing. Either way, Sonic didn’t last long, easily lulled to a peaceful sleep in the cradle of sweet lavender.