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expresso-bean · 1 month ago

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

Pairing: Shadow the Hedgehog x Amy Rose

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

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

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

Warnings: None

Word Count: 3k

POV: Shadow the Hedgehog

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

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

Friends.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

'Ensuring her safety means protecting the others,'

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

'That is something I can live with.'

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

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

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

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

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

"What's that suppose to mean?"

"Nothing for you to worry about, Rose."

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

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

Tails stood beside him, nodding.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

'Did they reconcile that quickly?'

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

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

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

It was real. I know it was.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

"Good night!"

"Bye!"

"See you tomorrow."

"See ya!"

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

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

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

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

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

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

"W-what is it?"

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

"You seem tired."

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

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

"I..."

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

"I recover quickly."

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

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

Rose nodded, sighing a bit.

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

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

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

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

"Rose?"

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

"Hm, That does sound appealing,"

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

"Let me treat you this time."

"Shadow! You can cook?"

'Cook?'

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

She looked unconvinced.

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

"What even is you're favorite food?"

"Salt."

"Salt?"

'Salt?'

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

'Perfect salvage if I ever saw one.'

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

'Maybe I could...'

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

I perked up at the sound of her voice.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

"Be careful, Rose."

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

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

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

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

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

'This is going to be a long night.'

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