A Shadow Fanfic

Subject: A Shadow Fanfic Sat Feb 20, 2010 3:47 pm

The night was calm and peaceful. Daytime creatures slept, and nocturnal ones went about their business in the dark wood, beneath a moonlit sky. A slight breath of wind stirred the undergrowth. One star in the night sky shone brighter than the rest. As the night passed, this star got brighter and larger. Animals sensed something amiss. Those with wings took flight, those with feet ran, and those in the stream swam. Even sleeping creatures woke from their hiatus to run. Only the trees were left to bear witness to the meteorite’s impact.

***Two Days Later***

It was just past noon as I made my way through the woods. I was alone, just one hedgehog traveling through the world. Staying away from G.U.N. as usual. I have no real name, but the project that I was created under was codenamed Shadow, so I use that as my name too. Most people have heard of me, because of G.U.N. and especially after the invasion of the Black Arms aliens. I hate those aliens, despite the fact that I owe my existence to Black Doom, their leader. My thoughts continued to wander as I trekked through the trees with a travel bag slung over my shoulder.

The woods seemed peaceful enough, yet as I walked along the ambient sounds of the native animals grew silent. Even the birdsong died away. It was very strange. Curious, I thought to myself. What could have driven away the animals? The farther I went, the more it looked like something had stripped the trees of their leaves. What caused all this? I asked myself again. Up ahead I saw a large hole in the ground, nearly as wide in diameter as I am tall. (I’m 3 feet, 3 inches) Taking a few more steps, I saw it was a crater and that it was deep, so deep the sides would be over my head if I stood at the bottom. I’d guesstimate it was about six feet deep. A few more steps brought me to stand at the edge of the crater.

“A meteorite?” I asked aloud as I stared into the impact site. At the bottom lay a large space rock, which had split in half to reveal the center. In the middle, glimmering in the harsh sunlight that filtered through the leafless trees, sat what looked to me like a black gem.

Curious, I slid down the crater wall to get a closer look. The gem looked like a black Chaos Emerald. Cautiously, I picked up a handful of dirt and tossed at the gem to see if it would produce a reaction. I have good reason to be wary of objects from space, given my history with the Black Arms. When the gem did nothing other than lay still and sparkle in the sun, I carefully reached out and picked it up. It looks a LOT like a Chaos Emerald…. I thought to myself as I climbed out of the crater. But it can’t be one…can it?

I have a type of sixth sense when it comes to energies, especially Chaos energies. I can feel them around me, and in the Emeralds. Tapping into these energies is what allows me to use my Chaos abilities. I don’t have to have an Emerald directly in my hand to use my abilities, but it does make it easier. Intrigued by the black space gem, I reached out towards it with my sixth sense as I walked. The gem remained dark to me, devoid of the radiant energy I see in my mind whenever I reached out to a true Chaos Emerald. But I did feel…traces of something in the gem…something faint, and different…. A strange type of energy that seemed…. Well, I didn’t know what it seemed like. It was something I’d never felt before.

I continued walking, pondering the gem. Before I had traveled more than several steps from the crater, an overwhelming rush of energy slammed into me. It hit with such force that I felt it as a physical blow in my chest, head, back, and stomach. It takes a lot to make me cry out in pain, but I sure did cry out now. My voice ringing in my ears, I dropped the space gem and fell to the ground. I could feel my face contorted in an expression of agony. My eyes closed, I sank into the darkness of unconsciousness where the pain couldn’t reach me.

Subject: Re: A Shadow Fanfic Sat Feb 20, 2010 3:48 pm

Some time later, I returned to consciousness. Ugh…ow…. My body was one big ache. It also seemed to be hyper sensitive…the ground felt unusually rough underneath me. As I lay there I felt something soft brush against my cheek, but I didn’t want to get up just yet. I reached up and brushed it aside. For some reason, my gloves seemed to be tighter than normal…. I shivered as a slight breeze blew through the undergrowth, chilling me. That was strange, as my fur usually kept me warm. Actually, my dark black fur usually was too warm in the sunlight, and I could certainly feel the hot sun beating down on me. Something soft flopped into my face again. Annoyed, I reached up and tried to yank it away, only to experience a sudden pain in my head.

“AH! What the?!” I said aloud. Wrenching my eyes open, I had to blink a few moments as my vision adjusted to the bright sunlight. Something dark fell across my field of view. I grabbed at it and held it out so that I could see what it was. It appeared to be long fur…or hair. Puzzled, I stared at it. My fur is soft, yes, but it’s also much shorter than whatever was in my hand. And my fur lies flat. (Well, all except the white tuft on my chest. That only lays flat if I get it soaking wet. It always gets really poofy when it dries though, so I don’t try to smooth it down very often.) It was then that my eyes traveled down to where my glove ended on my wrist. The fur was gone from my arm.

Shocked I dropped the lock of long fur and held both my arms out in front of my face to get a better look at them. They were furless, not a trace of black fur, nor red stripes to be seen. All that was left was just bare skin that was a healthy tan color. It wasn’t too dark a tan, just a shade lighter than the tan fur of my muzzle. Glancing down at the rest of my body, I saw that the rest of my fur had vanished as well. What’s going on here?! I thought as I ran a hand over the top spine of my head. That’s a habit of mine when I’m feeling exasperated. My hand was met with a mop of long soft fur. I thought it was strange that I now only had fur on the top of my head. At least it explained why I felt a chill. And my spines seemed short, almost nonexistent. More perplexed, I moved my hand to scratch my ear but it was seemed to be missing. Feeling around the side of my head, I found that my ears were much lower than they should have been, and round instead of pointed. Now completely bewildered, I staggered to my feet. Either I was losing my mind or the world had gotten smaller. I took a step and nearly fell down again as I discovered my legs were longer. The world hadn’t shrunk, somehow I had gotten taller. With shaky steps, I made my way to a nearby stream and bent over it. I had to see what had happened to me.

It was a stranger’s face that stared back at me. The reflection was of a young adult human male, with tan skin, deep black eyes, and a messy mop of shoulder length black hair. The man’s eyebrows were drawn together in confusion, in the exact same expression I felt my own face wearing. “What?” I asked out loud, mystified. As I spoke, the reflection’s mouth moved. I reached out to touch the reflection, and a human arm with my glove on the hand reached back at me. Goosebumps erupted all over my flesh. I stumbled back, trying to get away from the reflection in the water. A sense of realization came crashing down on me, along with an icy feeling of dread that ran down my back and settled in my stomach. I realized what it all meant. Somehow…something has turned me into one of the ones who hunt me…I’ve become a human!

Subject: Re: A Shadow Fanfic Sat Feb 20, 2010 3:49 pm

I stood still for a while, numb with horror and something like disbelief. Then my brain finally kicked into gear. Panicking won’t help…. I thought with a shake of my head. I saw the gem and my travel bag lying on the ground near by and walked over towards them. There must have been something that caused this, I thought. Something like a trigger or a switch…and there’s probably a way to turn back…there’s got to be! I pulled open the drawstring on my travel bag and turned to pick up the space gem. I still wasn’t sure what it was, but it was probably better to take it with me instead of leaving it where it could find its way into Eggman’s hands. He’d probably find some use for it that isn’t good…given that I felt some kind of faint energy from it….

I stood there with the gem in my hand for a while, thinking about what had just happened. I didn’t WANT to be a human. Even though I had been created as the ‘Ultimate Lifeform’ I’d been created as a hedgehog. I had sometimes wondered why, as I had heard that some of the more religious humans believed that human kind was made “in God’s image.” Humans often tended to view themselves as superior beings, which I thought funny. They weren’t perfect at all. Humans were slow, their muscles were weak, and their furless bodies looked awkward. I would rather be myself any day than be a human. Besides, humans were the main members of G.U.N., the ones who hunted me. As I reached into my travel bag to place the gem inside, I felt a faint surge of energy leave the gem and travel up my arm.

Surprised, I dropped the gem in the bag and then dropped the bag on the ground. Followed by the energy, a wave of pain hit me all over my body. Unable to stay on my feet, I fell to the ground and curled up in a ball as best I could with this foreign body I was in. The bones in my arms and legs felt enormous pressure, like they were being squeezed in a vise. It made my hips, knees, shoulders, and elbows ache. Two spots on my back, one between my right shoulder blade and my spine, the other between my left shoulder blade and my spine felt like a giant hand had pinched my skin and was pulling it away from my body. It kept stretching further and further. Down towards the spot that humans call the tail bone (which I’ve never understood, as humans don’t have tails) it felt like someone was slowly pulling my spine out, trying to rip it from my body.

But it was my head that hurt the most. Six spots on the back of my head felt like they were being stretched, just like the spots between my shoulder blades. The pulling sensation was stronger on the back of my head. My ears felt like someone had grabbed hold of them and was yanking them upward, trying to stretch them as well. The bones in my face felt like they were being compressed. My eyes, my nose, my jaw…all felt like they were being forced into different shapes that were unnatural. My skin started to itch all over, like a million fire ants had gotten on me. I wanted to tear my skin off to make it stop.

It seemed to last forever, but it was really only a few seconds. As suddenly as it started, it stopped. I lay on the ground with my eyes closed. I was reluctant to see what I had been transformed into now. But I couldn’t lay here forever, nor could I go through the rest of my life afraid to open my eyes and see myself. Slowly, I opened my eyelids and looked at my arms and hands. To my disbelief, they looked normal. I put a hand to my face and felt the shape of my normal hedgehog features. I nearly laughed aloud with relief. I was me again.

I stood and brushed dirt off my fur, then looked at my travel bag, with the space gem inside it. So it was that gem that did it! I thought. The gem and the strange energy I felt in it…. I nudged the bag with my foot, waiting for my body’s form to be altered into something else. I didn’t change. Hesitantly I picked up my bag. I couldn’t just leave it here, it had some food in it as well as a bottle of water. It seemed that as long as I didn’t touch the gem directly, it couldn’t change me. And maybe it was better if it stayed in the bag, as it meant that no one could use its energies against me. With a resigned sigh, I shouldered my bag again, then turned my footsteps towards the city and started to run.

Subject: Re: A Shadow Fanfic Sat Feb 20, 2010 3:55 pm

It was early dusk by the time I reached the city. I can run fast, very fast. But it had taken a while to get here, even by my standards. I didn’t really plan to stop here, but I was low on travel food, and water too. This city was the perfect place to get supplies. I slowed my speed as I entered the city limits. I knew from past experiences that human officials, police officers, didn’t like when I charged down city streets at full speed. I went down a few streets, and turned a corner, and found myself skidding to a halt at the sight before me.

Standing there were several G.U.N. operatives, including that slut Rouge. They appeared to be arguing amongst themselves and hadn’t noticed me yet. Slowly I backed away. As my foot hit the pavement, I saw one of Rouge’s big bat ears swivel in my direction, followed by her head. It felt like the world froze as we locked eyes.

“THERE HE IS!” I heard her cry. Her voice broke my trance, I turned and bolted. Blindly I ran down streets, my heart pounding in my chest, sending oxygen-rich blood to my muscles. I wasn’t keeping track of the turns. I barreled around a left hand turn, only to find myself face to face with G.U.N. military vehicles. I turned around and ran back to the other turn. How did they know I was headed this way!? I thought frantically as I ran. How did they track me to this city?!

Increasing my speed, I put a little distance between me and them, and took a right hand turn down an alley. To my dismay it was a dead end. I stopped and looked around. I could hear G.U.N. forces somewhere in the near distance and they were getting closer. If I backtracked they would catch me, if I did nothing there would be a fight…. Why couldn’t they ever leave me in peace! Glancing about, I looked for some place that I might hide and saw a door, slightly ajar. Without thinking twice, I slipped inside a dark building that looked like the back of some type of store and pulled the door shut behind me.

Subject: Re: A Shadow Fanfic Sat Feb 20, 2010 3:58 pm

I stood in the darkness, something like a table looming before me. I couldn’t see it too clearly. But I guessed it was a cashier’s stand. Alone, I waited for G.U.N. to come bursting in after me. The seconds trickled by and they didn’t. I reflected on my current situation as I paced in the shop. I needed food and water before I could travel onward, but getting it would be difficult. Now that I’d been spotted, there were very few places I could hide. A hedgehog in a city full of humans sticks out like a sore thumb. I sighed and sat down on the floor, my bag sliding off my shoulder to land on the floor beside me. I heard something inside clink.

At first I was confused. I didn’t have anything in my bag that was made of glass. Then my thoughts went back to hours ago, when I’d found that gem. It had turned me into a human. Suddenly an idea came to me. It wasn’t one I liked, but that saying about desperate times and desperate measures holds true, and I was desperate. G.U.N. is searching for a hedgehog in a city of humans, I thought as I leapt to my feet. But what if…that hedgehog…was no longer a hedgehog…?

The light was poor. I pulled open my bag and dumped it’s contents on the table. I heard two granola bars fall out, followed by the heavier thunk of a water bottle hitting the table and then rolling onto the floor. Then about a dozen high pitched chinking noises. Confused I ran my hands over the stuff. I didn’t feel the gem. Instead there were several large shards. Somehow it had broken while in my pack. I stood with the shards in my hands. They were dark and dead, even to my sixth sense. And they had been perhaps my only chance of slipping away from G.U.N. Although part of me was relieved I didn’t have to go through it again.

Now that I could reflect on what had happened earlier, I guess I somewhat overreacted. But overreaction or not, I preferred my hedgehog self to a human body any day. Those few minutes as a human had felt so strange, so…wrong. Everything was out of place, especially my facial features and….

Subject: Re: A Shadow Fanfic Sat Feb 20, 2010 3:58 pm

All of the sudden, my thoughts were interrupted by a sudden pain. I dropped the shards as I felt a brief but small spike of energy. I couldn’t identify where it was from, but it wasn’t from the shards. Doubling over, I clutched the edge of the table to remain in a semi-upright position. Again I felt pains in my arms and legs, my back, head and tail. But it seemed to be the opposite of last time. My bones felt like someone was stretching them, making my arms and legs longer. My spines and tail felt like they were shrinking, collapsing in on themselves. And I felt my face being stretched in different directions, and my ears too. My skin burned like it was on fire.

When it stopped, I ran a hand over my face and felt the same human features that I’d had earlier. But the gem! It’s energy is gone! How did I change into a human this time?! It was the main thing on my mind. Again I felt the fear set in that I would be stuck like this for the rest of my life. Much to my surprise, another wave of pain hit me. No, I thought frantically, What is this, a revolving door of changes? I just want it to STOP!

As I thought the word “stop” the pain ceased. It stopped before any transformation to my body could occur. I was still a human. But this time I had sensed where the energy had spiked from. It had come from within myself. I almost couldn’t believe it, but my sixth sense was never wrong. Somehow the energy from the space gem had been absorbed into my body. Whether it was because the gem broke, or if the gem broke after loosing its energy, I didn’t know. And it also seemed that…I could control these transformations, by focusing on whichever form I wanted to be in….

I took a deep breath to calm my nerves. Right now, this human body was the one that would best suit my needs. I picked up the water bottle and granola bars and tossed them back in my bag. Turning, I was about to head for the door when I saw a movement in the corner of my eye.

Subject: Re: A Shadow Fanfic Sat Feb 20, 2010 3:58 pm

I froze. Slowly I turned, expecting some sort of light source to flip on any second. None did. The only light in the room was from the windows, the street light shining in from outside. It was just enough for me to make out a mirror, and my silhouette in the glass. Running into G.U.N. had made me skittish. Curious to get a better look at this human shape, I walked over to the mirror. My steps were awkward, as I still wasn’t used to having long legs. The closer I got, the more detail I could make out in the dim lighting.

The body I was in had some muscle to it. Fairly defined muscle at that, but it wasn’t overly bulging out like on those humans called “body builders.” I don’t know why humans want to make themselves look like that. Hulking muscles just make humans look uglier, in my opinion. My human body didn’t look anything like that. If anything, it looked like the muscles of a very active athlete. I suppose, in a way, I am an athlete of sorts…so that made some sense.

As I looked over the reflection, one thing became swiftly apparent. This body was as naked as my hedgehog form. Running around in only shoes and gloves may be acceptable as a hedgehog, but it wasn’t ok for humans. This was going to be a problem. Then I looked around at the shop I was in and realized that it was some type of second hand clothing store. I set about looking for something that would fit this human body, smiling as I did because this was the first stroke of good luck I’d had in a very long time.

Subject: Re: A Shadow Fanfic Sat Feb 20, 2010 3:58 pm

Browsing through the dimly light store wasn’t easy. I had a hard time seeing what was what, but I didn’t dare search for a light to turn on. I could see almost as well as I could before I’d transformed into this human body, so that meant I’d retained some of my hedgehog abilities. My eyesight is keener than that of a human. Now that I thought about it, I wasn’t entirely sure if my vision was so sharp because I was a hedgehog, or if it had been enhanced because I was created as the ultimate life form.

I picked up various pieces of clothes, holding them up against this human body to see if they might fit. I put several items back before I picked up something wrapped in plastic. Squinting, I was able to make out the label that read Hanes men’s boxers.

Boxers? I wondered. Why do humans wear something called boxers? I assumed it probably wouldn’t be sold in such a small shop if it wasn’t something fairly common, so I stood there trying to figure out why in the world humans would have such a strange article of clothing. Vaguely, I recalled something from over fifty years ago, on the ARK. A snippet of conversation that no one knew I could hear…Maria saying something about ‘underwear.’ Looking at the picture on the package, I could just tell that the model was wearing the boxers and nothing else. I figured boxers must be a type of underwear. Underwear for men, apparently. But I couldn’t figure out why human males would wear these boxers. Then I considered the term ‘underwear.’ In typical human fashion, the function was in the name.

Apparently humans wear these under their clothes…perhaps so they remain decent if their pants should fall off or something? I didn’t know why, but it seemed like underwear was important, so I tore open the package. Five boxers fell out, apparently they sold them in sets. I picked one off the floor and pulled it on. The cloth felt strange against my bare skin, but by some stroke of luck it was the right size. I turned and picked up the other boxers that had fallen out. Should I take these? Is clean underwear important to humans? I wondered. I decided that, at the very least, I should take them so that come morning no one would find them and know I’d been here. I pulled open my travel bag and shoved the boxers inside.

Subject: Re: A Shadow Fanfic Sat Feb 20, 2010 3:59 pm

I felt pins and needles in my hands, like they were falling asleep. Flexing them, I could feel that my gloves were stretched tight. Too tight for my liking. As a human, my hands were clearly too big for my gloves. It felt like the circulation was being cut off. Pulling on each finger of my left hand glove, I slid it under my inhibitor band and off of my hand. I did the same on my right. Tossing the gloves in my bag with the boxers, my hands still tingled. It’s my inhibitor bands, I realized. They were too tight on my wrists. I sighed. I didn’t like leaving them off for extended periods of time. It always gave me a headache if I wasn’t using the increased power I gained from removing the bands. But I didn’t want my hands numb either. One by one, I unclipped them and dropped them on top of my gloves.

Like everything else I’d expected would happen tonight, the rush of increased power I was expecting didn’t come. Flexing my hands in front of my eyes, they now felt much better. I wondered what this meant. It seemed like this human body couldn’t tolerate some of my hedgehog abilities. I thought about the muscles I’d seen in the mirror and wondered how strong this body was, how fast it was.

Moving on, I searched through pairs of pants and shorts until I found some dark denim jeans that looked about the right size when I held them up to my waist. It was the first good size match I’d found, so I stepped into one leg, then the other. Pulling them up and fastening them, the jeans fit nicely. They had gotten caught slightly on my shoe, but I wiggled my foot and the jeans came loose. I paused for a moment, wondering why my shoes weren’t tight like my gloves had been. Hedgehog feet were either bigger than or the same size as human feet, at least that’s all I could come up with.

In another isle of clothes, I searched for a shirt I could wear. After a few tries, I found a white button-down shirt that looked about right. The sleeves had little cuffs folded back. Pulling it on I found that it fit, but the sleeves ended at the elbows. I thought I’d put it back until I realized that the sleeves were supposed to be that way. I buttoned up the shirt, the fabric was light and soft against my bare skin and I was going to keep it.

Next to a wall, a large shape caught my eye. When I got close to it, I saw it was some sort of rag bin, marked ‘To throw out.’ Apparently things in here weren’t good enough to be sold. Curiosity made me dig through it a little bit. Most of the things in the bin were torn. One thing in particular did catch my eye. It was a pair of torn off sleeves, that looked like they’d been smoothly ripped away at the seams.

Just underneath them was a dark trench coat. I pulled it out and tried it on, just for the heck of it. The leather coat hung to just below my knees, and other than the ripped off sleeves, seemed to be just fine. I knew that because humans didn’t have fur they wore coats to keep warm. This one probably wouldn’t be very warm but…I just liked something about the look. They were going to throw it out anyway. I made sure the sales tags were removed from all the clothes I had on and tightened the drawstring on my bag. G.U.N. will have a hard time recognizing me now, I thought as I headed towards the back door.

Subject: Re: A Shadow Fanfic Sat Feb 20, 2010 3:59 pm

I didn’t jump out the door right away. For all I knew, there could be one or two G.U.N. agents lingering in that alley. Nudging the door open just a crack, I looked out into the night, trying to see the ones who were looking for me. There were none. I slipped out of the store and into the cool air, pulling the door shut behind me. Turning, I made sure my travel bag was secure and walked out of the alley.

As I stood looking down the street to the right and left, I realized I didn’t know where I was. I had lost track of my position when I was running, a foolish mistake as human cities often seem like giant mazes to me. Ahead I could see brighter lights of a main road. Good, I thought, quickening my pace, Maybe now I can get my bearings. I stepped around the corner, and slammed right into something hard. Startled I landed flat on my butt.

“Ow! Why don’t you watch where you’re going you jerk!” The voice was female, and decidedly angry.

My muscles tensed as a reflex. I swiftly glanced up to see just who I’d collided with. She was a young human woman, wearing blue jeans and a black jacket, and the contents of several bags she’d been carrying was scattered on the ground around us. Her long brown hair was clearly not military cut. I relaxed slightly, knowing she wasn’t a G.U.N. soldier.

Subject: Re: A Shadow Fanfic Sat Feb 20, 2010 4:00 pm

“Ugh, people these days, so rude…. Run you down without so much as a sorry….” She continued to mumble to herself as she started to pick up the contents of her bags, many of which seemed to be books.

It was clear she didn’t really care that I was still there, I could have been on my way and forgotten all about her, but something made me hesitate. …G.U.N. knows my profile…they know my behavioral patterns too…. If I want to hide…really hide from them…. I clenched my teeth knowing what I had to do. I have to act in ways they would never expect. I can’t act like myself. Sighing to myself, I started picking up the books scattered on the sidewalk around us. She continued to pay no attention to me until she made to grab a book I already had my hand on.

She blinked in surprise then glared at me. “What are you doing?!” Her tone made it clear she thought I was going to steal her stuff.

I quickly suppressed my urge to yell back at her. “I’m helping you pick up your books,” I replied with forced calmness.

She stared at me. Clearly that had been the last thing she expected to hear. “What?”

“I said, I’m helping you. You…were right. I was a jerk. I should have been paying attention to where I was going.” The last part I said was true, but the first part I had to force out.

She blinked, clearly perplexed by my actions. “Wow…a considerate person…. That’s a rare find these days. Most people are so selfish anymore.”

Subject: Re: A Shadow Fanfic Sat Feb 20, 2010 4:00 pm

“I guess I’m just part of a…dying breed,” I replied guardedly. Getting to my feet, I reached down to help her up when I heard a voice behind me, one I recognized and the last one I wanted to hear right now.

“What’s going on over here? Is everything ok?” It was the saucy voice of Rouge the bat.

I glanced over my shoulder with what I hoped was a surprised expression, not sure what to say as I pulled the human girl to her feet. Lucky she wasn’t quite so tongue-tied.

“Everything’s fine, just two pedestrians not watching where they’re going,” the human girl said. “No problems or anything Miss…?”

Rouge smiled her sweet, false smile. “I’m Rouge the bat, an operative of G.U.N. and I’m out on patrol looking for a fugitive. I saw you were having some trouble and decided to check it out.”

“Well…uh, Rouge,” I said hesitantly, trying to act like I’d never seen her before, “There’s no trouble here.”

Instantly Rouge focused her attention on me. “Do I know you…?” she asked “You seem familiar….”

With great self-control I kept my expression blank. “I don’t know you,” I lied. “I’m pretty sure I’d remember meeting a bat girl like you before.”

Rouge wasn’t easily deterred. “Hm, maybe you just remind me of someone I know…?” she wondered. “What’s your name?”

Subject: Re: A Shadow Fanfic Sat Feb 20, 2010 4:01 pm

“Sha- uh, Shawn.” I had almost said ‘Shadow’ as a reflex, but caught myself in time. Glancing around, a bookstore sign caught my eye and gave me an idea for a last name. “Shawn Hasting.”

“Hm,” Rouge sighed. “No, I don’t know anyone by that name…. Sorry, my mistake. I guess I thought you were someone else. But anyway, have either of you two seen a black and red hedgehog in this area?”

I raised my eyebrows in an expression of mild surprise. “A black hedgehog? I didn’t even know there were hedgehogs in this city.”

The human girl shook her head. “I haven’t seen one either. Is that the fugitive you’re looking for?”

Rouge’s attention shifted from me to the girl. “Yeah, he’s been known to have hostile behavior in the past so we’re trying to catch him before he hurts anyone this time. If you do see him, you should consider him dangerous and possibly armed.” She handed us both a small business card. “If you see him, call me on that number, mkay?”

I took the card and nodded, knowing I'd actually drop it in the first trash can I could find. Hoping to throw Rouge off my trail, I turned to the human girl.

“I could carry those bags for you….if you wanted….” It was really taking a lot of self control to force out these things I’d never dream of saying if I was acting like myself. Normally, I’d already be gone.

She blinked again, surprised. “Oh…okay.”

Subject: Re: A Shadow Fanfic Sat Feb 20, 2010 4:01 pm

Rouge also looked a bit surprised. She gave the human girl a wink. “Oh, this one’s a real, old fashioned gentleman. Don’t let him get away too soon.”

I kept my face neutral at Rouge’s comment and took the bags for the girl. They were weighty, but light enough (at least to me) that I could carry them easily. “Where to?”

“My apartment is this way.” She began walking down the street and I followed, easily keeping pace with her steps. I could have probably gone faster, have easily outrun her if I wanted to, but I didn’t know the way. “It’s only about a mile this way,” she informed me.
“You wouldn’t happen to know a place I could stay the night around here would you?” I figured it’d be better to spend the night behind a closed door. Humans sleeping in the open tended to draw attention, as far as I knew.

“You don’t have a place of your own?” she asked.

I shook my head. “I’ve been traveling for a while….” I said honestly enough. “It’s…pretty much been my way of life. It’s all I knew when my father was alive, and I’ve kinda continued it even though he’s gone. I just…travel where the wind takes me, a drifter.” The father I imagined when talking was nothing like my biological father, just a nameless featureless human male.

“That sounds like an interesting lifestyle,” she said, walking up to a tall building. “This is it.” I followed her up the elevator to an apartment at the end of the hall on the second floor. As I stood holding her bags, she dug a key out of her purse and opened the door.

She flung her coat in a corner behind the door as I followed her inside. The room was neat, but a bit messy, with some papers, empty soda cans, and dirty laundry scattered here and there. “Any place you want me to put these bags?”

“Just dump them on the sofa,” she called from the kitchen, which was right beside the door. “Since you carried those for me, the least I can do to repay you is offer you dinner, although I’m not the best cook.”

I chuckled. “Been awhile since my last meal, and I’m not that good either. Just good enough to scrape by really.” I watched her, having taken a seat in a chair in the living room/dining room combo that could see into the kitchen over the half-wall that separated them. She was preparing some sort of instant food on the stovetop.