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"Shadow—!”
Shadow huffs in response, lifting an arm to shield himself from the stinging torrent of snow. He doesn't know why he's agreed to this damn mission, in Holoska of all places, but the snowstorm has made all their plans entirely irrelevant. He glances back, barely able to make out Sonic’s hulking silhouette in his werehog form... or whatever he calls it, between the growing storm and the already dark night of the arctic.
"Storm’s only getting worse, we need cover" Sonic tries again, needing to yell in order to be heard over the howling winds. He finally gets close enough for Shadow to see him through the flurry, emerald eyes cutting through the fog and latching onto Shadow’s like a lifeline. They seem to glow faintly in the dark. "I think I saw a cave up ahead, we can wait there until it blows over."
Shadow nearly growls. They were so close to making it back to the village, having gone out in search of the key fragments Sonic explained that he and his new companion, Chip, had been looking for before. Just a few more minutes, and they’d have been there.
However one look into the sky and the increasing howl of the winds tell him theres no way they'll make it back safely. Rouge would kill him if he let either of them get lost, or worse, in the snowstorm due to his own stubbornness.
"Lead the way," he relents.
Sonic immediately turns and hurries toward a towering dark shape ahead, an area that Shadow can scarcely make out through the snow that seems to determinately be aiming for his eyes. Sonic keeps looking back as if to ensure Shadow is still within view, and soon the two slip into a small cave nestled into the crook of the nearby cliff.
The ground is slippery with ice, but the relief is immediate. Shadow sighs, grateful for the break from the increasingly aggressive winds and proceeds to brush his hands through his quills, shaking off the snow that clings to him.
He’s the Ultimate Lifeform, he shouldn’t get cold. Realistically, he knows he won’t freeze—but that doesn’t make the cold any less miserable. He hates the way it sinks into his skin, freezing his insides in a way that only happens in the Arctic or…
A flash of gold. A hand reaching toward him.
Cold.
Best not to think of that.
He turns in time to catch Sonic shaking himself off like a dog, throwing snow everywhere and getting some caught in Shadows quills. That he just cleaned.
“Watch it,” he snaps, frustration flaring as Sonic shoots him a sheepish grin.
Now’s not the time to get angry. He tries to take a steadying breath. In. Out. Once the storm blows over they can head back to the village, he can report what he learned to GUN and be out of here. Simple. Easy.
“How’re you holding up?” Shadow looks back over to see the Werehog closer than before. Even on all fours, Sonic was still taller than Shadow.
Sonic stares at Shadow expectantly, and under the scrutiny of those emerald eyes he almost forgets to answer.
And suddenly Shadow is made aware of how much more… peaceful Sonic is in this form. Physically slower due to to the fact this form lacks his usual speed, but also more calm. Patient. Quiet. Theres still that friendliness, the teasing, and the constant glint of competitiveness, but the usual high energy Sonic carries is replaced by a deep, rumbling calm.
He noticed it in Spagonia, briefly, but refused to think about it. To name it. Not when he had bigger things to worry about.
It unsettles him.
“What do you mean?” He manages, eloquent as ever. He’d kick himself later for that.
Sonic, uncharacteristically patient, entertains Shadow. “It’s freezing out and you’re shivering. Honestly, I’m surprised you didn’t call it quits earlier.”
Shivering? He hadn’t even noticed. A glance down confirms it—yes, he’s shaking, and badly.
“You’re not cold?” He asks in way of an excuse, crossing his arms over his chest to try and bring at least a modicum of warmth. It’s not enough, but its better than nothing. Once he asks though, he looks over Sonic, noticing a substantial lack of shivers from the blue menace.
“A little,” Sonic admits, looking outside the cave at the storm, “but it’s nothing serious. This form has pretty thick fur, I usually feel like I’m a step away from overheating.”
Thinking about it, Sonics fur does look rather dense. In fact, Shadow notices that there isn’t any snow clinging to Sonics fur, the flakes sliding off at the slightest movement. It looks, to put lightly, incredibly warm.
And now that he’s started looking, he can’t seem to stop. He keeps expecting to look back and see Sonic back in his normal shining and charismatic blue self.
Stop it, Shadow. Focus.
He remembers running into Sonic in Spagonia — the bafflement and shock still fresh in his mind. He’d stared then, too.
The shape of his quills remain, though softened into fur. Shadow’s gaze drifts upward—from the pale claws tipping the blue skin of Sonic’s hands and feet, to the silvery tufts of fur at his wrists and ankles, up to that deep, dark midnight coat. A hue that blends seamlessly with the storm-dark sky and makes him near invisible in the night. The only thing unchanged are his eyes. bright emeralds, warm and kind, and currently fixed squarely on Shadow’s own.
Shadow turns his face away, the heat to his face at being caught staring hardly a respite from the cold. It only worsens when his ears catch onto a faint chuckle.
“You can stare,” Sonic says softly, his already deep voice lowering even more, “I know its.. well, its a lot.”
Sonic goes to sit down, long tail curling up around him. Like a dog, Shadow can’t help but think as Sonic continues talking.
“It definitely was to me at least, and for Tails once he found out.”
“You didn’t immediately tell him?”
Sonic seems surprised to hear Shadow talking, as if he didn’t expect Shadow to entertain any conversation given his usual prickly demeanor.
“Well, no, not really.” Sonic rubs the back of his head, looking off to the side in an act thats so reminiscent of his usual behavior. Still the same. “Kinda hard to, y’know, with the whole world splitting apart thing. Plus my communicator got destroyed at some point when I fell to Apotos. I know I should have, but he found me anyway, so it was all fine!”
“It was not all fine. You could have seriously worried him,” Shadow snaps, surprising even himself with how sharp it comes out.
Sonic is quick to cover his own surprise, “aww, don’t tell me I worried you too, Shads. Are you finally warming up to me?”
Shadow would never admit it outloud, but… he was.
He’s unsure how Sonic had gotten a hold of his contact information, but for the last year Sonic would sporadically text Shadow. A picture here. A joke there. Often times it was an invitation to race. Shadow would entertain his attention for a moment or two. Eventually he got comfortable enough to text first. Sometimes. Whenever he did so, Sonic would always reply back quick.
So when the planet broke apart and Shadow was informed by GUN what had happened, that they had tracked a battle between Sonic and Eggman in space and caught readings of Sonic going super, of course he had sent a text.
And when a day had gone by with no answer, maybe he sent another.
By the time GUN officially ordered him to track down Sonic, he had already been packing up to find the hedgehog himself. He wouldn’t admit to being nervous, definitely wouldn’t call it worry, but Rouge had definitely noticed the pacing.
Logically, he knew Sonic was fine. His faker had an uncanny ability to bounce back from anything. Another fight with Dr. Eggman was nothing to sweat over.
And yet he couldn’t help it.
Sonic seems to notice the conflicted emotions in Shadows eyes and proceeds to back off. “Look I’m… I’m sorry if I did. Really. I was so caught up in everything that it slipped my mind, and I kind of figured GUN would have you to busy to care anyway—”
“Its fine.” Shadow holds up a hand to stop Sonic. “It’s… There are more important things to worry about now.”
Like the damn cold, Shadow notices glumly, glancing at his still-shivering arms. Really, since when was he so sensitive?
Sonic seems to pick up on Shadows thoughts too, a curious expression crossing his face before he sits back and motions for Shadow to come closer. Shadow just stares.
“What are you doing.” It sounds more like an order than a proper question, and Sonic only rolls his eyes.
“What does it look like, genius?”
Before Shadow can come up with a response, he’s yanked over by Sonics large claws and straight into a chest of thick fur. Sonic mumbles a quick ‘oops’, clearly a bit more forceful than he anticipated, but otherwise doesn’t move.
Its much softer than he expected it to be but just as dense. Shadow sinks so far into the fur that it seems to envelope him completely. And Chaos is it warm. He can feel the numbness he didn’t even realize he had seep away from his limbs, his core warming and his muscles finally relaxing.
Sonic chuckles again, and this time Shadow can feel the vibrations from where his face is buried in Sonic’s chest.
And its that thought that makes him jerk away, heat once again flushing to his face.
“That was unnecessary,” Shadow forces out.
Sonic blinks, still half-smiling. “You’re freezing,” he replies simply, tail twitching behind him, “Ultimate Lifeform or not, I can still see that you’re cold.”
“Well I’m fine now”
“Yeah? You look like an icicle with anger issues.”
Shadow glares at Sonic and manages to take another step back, crossing his arms in front of him as if that’ll help stave off the cold. Once again Sonic's expression softens.
“Look, I'm not telling you to hold my hand or be buddy-buddy with me, just, I don't know, sit closer to me? Anything to stay warm. I just want to help.”
“I don’t need help.” Shadow snaps, and Sonic finally goes quiet.
Shadow tries to focus on anything else. The dripping water near the back of the cave. The faint echo of the storm. The constant flickering of Sonic’s tail. Anything that isn’t the faint warmth that still lingers on Shadow’s fur where he’d been pulled in moments ago.
Sonic takes a look outside the cave and goes to lay down, midnight fur and thick muscle rolling in waves at the moment. For a moment, Shadow can’t tear his gaze away.
He tells himself it’s only because Sonic’s presence is… distracting. Unfamiliar. It’s a tactical observation — nothing more. He repeats that until it almost sounds convincing.
Minutes pass. The storm outside refuses to weaken. His body starts to ache from the cold again, muscles tightening despite his best efforts. He hates this. The helplessness. The vulnerability. The gnawing realization that Sonic was right.
Sonic shuffles where he lays, eyes never having quite left Shadow, as much as Shadow pretends not to notice. “Still fine, huh?”
Shadow glares at him, jaw tight. “You’re insufferable.”
Sonic grins, fangs flashing. “And warm.”
He pats the space beside him like an invitation. The gall. The absolute nerve.
Shadow holds his ground for all of thirty seconds before another deep shiver wracks through him, forcing his pride to give way to pragmatism. With a sharp sigh that sounds more like a growl, he walks over and sits where Sonic motioned.
“Happy?” he mutters.
Sonic’s grin only softens, and the Werehog leans closer. The heat radiating off him is instant, heavy, alive. Shadow can feel it seeping into him through the close proximity. He exhales slowly, tension easing just a fraction. Maybe this isn’t so bad.
Then Sonic shifts again—subtle, unthinking—and before Shadow realizes it, Sonic’s tail curls lazily over his lap like a heavy blanket. The fur brushes his arm. Soft. Much softer than it has any right to be. And warm.
Shadow stills. He feels as if his brain short-circuits at the contact and his hands hover uselessly, unsure where to go. Where they can go.
“Go on, I won’t bite,” Sonic teases, watching as always. Shadow glances up in time to catch a glimpse of sharp fangs hidden by Sonics easy grin. He briefly wonders if Sonic ever has bitten someone in this form.
After an agonizing second, he gently places them on Sonic’s tail. Just like with the fur on his chest, Shadow’s hands sink in until they’re almost entirely covered. He feels like he could melt into the heat buried beneath and manages to keep himself upright through sheer force of will and a touch of pride.
Sonic’s grin widens a touch and the Werehog goes to lay his head down, looking very much like a peaceful, giant wolf instead of the shining energetic hero. Shadow expects more teasing to come, maybe Sonic trying to push his luck by moving even closer, but nothing of the sort happens. Instead, Sonic lays there, near motionless except for the steady rise and fall of his chest, and Shadow listens for the sounds of Sonic’s breathing easing into sleep.
Shadow shakes his head. Once the storm blows over, they’ll make their way back to the village Tails and Chip are at. He’d like to see these supposed temples they described to him, but he’s also had rather enough of Holoska for the time being, and the information he’s collected will be more than enough to satisfy GUN. After that he can go on his merry way and let Sonic clean up after his own mess.
He should pull away. He knew that. Pride demanded it. Protocol demanded it. Any second now, he’ll move.
But as he lies there, next to this ridiculous, infuriating, warm idiot, he realizes how at ease he finally feels. He’s been running himself ragged since the planet shattered; anxious, restless, always one step behind catastrophe. Outside, the storm screams against the cliff, but Shadow feels none of it. Only the warmth of Sonic pressed against his side. Steady. Alive. The tension wound tight in his chest begins to unravel, thread by thread.
Shadow would deny it later, of course. Deny everything. But for now—Chaos help him—he leaned in just a little closer.