#correct me if im wrong/missing details btw guys I'd love to know more if anyone's got a better understanding of canon Rouge and Shadow lol

[sticks-stones-sonic-insanity]

Going insane abt this again!!

Yes, I totally agree with everyone that Rouge bribing Shadow into coming to Sonic's birthday party with her is hilarious, and is her way of getting him to socialise/see Sonic/wingman her while she flirts with Knuckles, all that jazz.

BUT.

I was thinking about it a little more, and it hit me.

Is it also possible that this was Rouge's way of inviting Shadow out so that _they_ could spend time together?

Shadow doesn't work for G.U.N as far as we know of from these shorts, and while it's fair to say they Rouge was surprised to see Shadow out since she was on a mission somewhere so specific, it's also possible that she was just surprised to see him in general. What I know of the canon vs the fanon made me take a second to consider it, since I'm a big fan of the idea that Rouge and Shadow hang out quite often. In a series like Sonic where the current lore can be unclear, in tandem witht he fact that i'm a relatively new fan, can you blame me lol.

From what I know canonically, they don't hang out a lot or go out of their way to see each other. They may trust each other and consider themselves friends, but not actually spend time together often.

I wonder if this offer is Rouge getting herself a chance to see her friend again. To find out more about how he's doing, under the guise that it's just because she wants him to be at Sonic's birthday party with her. To use this outing as a catalyst to open up their communication again, so she can drag him shopping, or on a mission, or wherever else they could go to hang out together. Something just shy of "sneaky spy tactics" like that.

Just my observation. What do you think?