Laughter was heard coming from multiple sources and Shadow could see a flickering light just around the front of the master emerald shrine. The hedgehog was slightly apprehensive of how his sudden appearance might be received, but he hoped the guardian wouldn’t mind allowing his presence there. To make better sure of it he had landed his small air craft far on the other side of the island, as to not disturb or annoy the red brawler he knew very well had a short temper. Perhaps this was a good time at least, he got to thinking as he neared closer to the shrine. The laughter and flickering light was a clear indication the guardian had his team over. Sure enough he saw them upon slowly making his way around the stone structure that the massive gem glowed from at the top. Shadow spotted Knuckles sitting with his back to him and the rest of the Chaotix team circled around a warm bonfire, bantering with each other and laughing about exploits and adventures the hedgehog was unaware of.

Still despite the fact a good time was being had, Shadow remained somewhat apprehensive considering he just simply showed up to this sacred place only few were permitted to visit. Heck, he didn’t even know the guardian past the status of just barely an acquaintance. Having that in mind, the hedgehog only wanted to be as respectful as possible concerning these circumstances. He edged his way around the stone shrine, trying to keep out of sight as he took stock of what everyone there was doing. Vector was roasting at least six marshmallows on a skewer and offering one to Espio who politely declined the big croc’s offer  by putting up his hand. Mighty the armadillo was chatting with Knuckles and popped the echidna in a friendly manner on the arm, which the red mammal returned in kind with a grin. Meanwhile Charmy was buzzing around chirping like the hyperactive little runt he was, goofing off and sticking multiple marshmallows in his mouth to simulate a giant toothed grin as he laughed with glee and succeeded in entertaining Vector.

Shadow took this all in and thought maybe he should go and leave the group to have their good time. The hedgehog also found himself thinking that perhaps it wasn’t such a good idea to intrude upon this place at night like he was. He told himself maybe he should come back tomorrow and turned to begin taking his leave. However he jolted when a shrill voice screamed out among the quieter banter, also causing him to cringe. “GUYS LOOK! IT’S SHADOW!” The chirpy voice of the small bee exclaimed as he spat out all his marshmallows in excitement, pointing at the dark hedgehog who froze in his tracks.

Instantly everyone’s voice died out and Shadow sheepishly turned around to see the Chaotix all looking at each other before turning their sights in his general direction, all of their eyes curious and the guardian’s looking confused. “Shadow?” Knuckles raised an eye ridge at the surprising sight of the late night visitor. The echidna then stood up and tilted his head. His first inclination of the hedgehog’s arrival felt foreboding because the other looked quite uncomfortable. “Did something happen?” He asked curiously, not moving from the spot where he stood. “What brings you all the way up here?”

Well there was no leaving at this moment for Shadow, not after he was discovered and everyone’s eyes were glued to him awaiting the answer as to why he happened to be there so suddenly. No, never one to back down or run away from anything, he had no choice now but to try his luck with gaining favor with the guardian of the majestic floating island. Preparing his voice he cleared his throat before stepping a few paces forward. “Worry not, I didn’t come to bare you any bad news. I didn’t really mean to interrupt you either.” Shadow went on to start explaining his arrival. “I uhm… Well” The hedgehog paused if only because he didn’t quite like how everyone was staring at him like some kind of alien. Even if it was known he was part alien, it still didn’t sit right with him and made him feel like an unwelcomed outsider among what were essentially strangers. “I actually…” He turned his eyes only on Knuckles who looked more curious than anything. “Would it be alright if you and I had a word… in private?”

Knuckles blinked after hearing the request. He’d never really talked to Shadow at length about anything, but it was surprising to him to hear the usually stern hedgehog ask him something so politely. “Oh uhm, yeah I guess that would be okay” The echidna obliged him and walked over in his direction, passing him and gesturing the hedgehog to follow him behind the shrine where they could talk in peace.

Shadow followed and thought about what to say to the guardian as they left the view and earshot of the Chaotix back at the fire, whom seemed to resume their banter among each other. The hedgehog knew what his request was, but he just didn’t rightly know how he should word it to the red one. At least the echidna didn’t seem upset in any capacity about his unannounced arrival, that was a good sign that made him feel a little hopeful.

“Alright, Shadow. What’s up?” Knuckles asked the other, really curious about his visitation now. It was only especially curious that the crimson streaked one wanted to talk in private.

Shadow looked up from the ground as he was pulled from his muddled thoughts, his eyes drawn to the amethyst ones of the echidna’s that seemed to shine in the moonlight. A strange shiver went through him when he made the contact. How could someone so tough have shimmering eyes like that? It caught him off guard and he stammered a bit while proceeding to answer him. “Well you see… G.U.N. is forcing me to take a break and I didn’t have a clue what to do with myself in my down time… But Rouge gave me an idea and it’s lead me to needing to ask a favor of you.” He explained respectfully. “If you’d be kind enough to hear me out”

Knuckles felt a little skeptical now after that bat’s name was mentioned. That damn spy was always giving him trouble and taunting him about the prospect of stealing his emerald. Now he looked stoic and folded his arms before the slightly taller mobian. “Rouge huh?” He said with a cold tone that made Shadow feel like he probably screwed this whole thing up. But the guardian sighed before continuing “And just what is Rouge’s idea?”

Shadow didn’t like the sound of the red one’s tone. It felt like he was already fixing to tell him to leave his island and never come back. However, the hedgehog was one to stick to his guns and he still felt the desire to gain favor with the guardian so that he could explore this intriguing place known as Angel Island. “I promise you it has nothing to do with the emerald” He began to better explain his reasons for being there. “Rouge helped me figure out what I should do with my time off and in doing so she reminded me that this island was the place that Maria wanted to visit most”

Knuckles’s expression softened up a bit at the mentioning of the blond haired girl he was well aware that thehedgehog had lost some time ago. The echidna could sort of tell where Shadow was heading with this but remained silent in order to allow him to finish.

“We were talking and Rouge suggested that perhaps it would be a good idea for me to experience what Maria never got the chance to see for herself… I thought it was a good idea but I wanted to get your permission first and foremost to be here. I mean no harm to this island or disrespect to it’s guardian. I know we never really had any words before. But I’d like you to see I recognize what an impotant role you have in protecting this land and the power that keeps it above the rest of the world. It’s a commendable thing for you to guard with your life.”

The echidna’s expression really softened now that he heard all of what Shadow had to say. He even let his arms down and let a small smile appear on his tan muzzle. It was rather rare that his role was ever complimented by anyone, and it was most surprising and welcomed coming from someone like Shadow, who Knuckles considered a brooding hard ass that just existed to kick ass. The guardian couldn’t get full of himself because of the compliment though, as what Shadow told him about Maria put him in a headspace of solidarity with the other and his request. “I appreciate that, Shadow. Sonic doesn’t even say things like that about my job” Though he knew the blue hedgehog did have respect for it despite all the teasing. “Y'know what? I think something can be worked out. But I’m not going to allow you to explore”

Shadow frowned at that. He wondered what he did wrong to be denied an experience upon the island. Did he come off like he was patronizing the guardian or buttering him up to get his way? He opened his mouth to respond, only to be silenced by the echidna giving him a smile and continuing to speak.

“If you go blindly exploring you definitely wont see all the amazing sights up here” Knuckles smiled at the hedgehog. “You can camp out with me and the Chaotix tonight and tomorrow I can take you on a grand tour of the place so we can make sure you get to see nothing but the best things the island has to offer. How does that sound to you?” Asked the echidna, offering his thickly gloved hand to the striped hedgehog.

“Hmph” Shadow had to smirk at how the guardian pulled a fast one over on him like that, making him think for a moment that he was going to have to go back to the surface world tonight. “I didn’t expect you to be the mischievous type, guardian. You had me going for a second, but I would have respected your wishes if you wanted me gone” Still smirking Shadow took the offered hand and they mutually shook on it with a firm grip. “That sounds fine to me. I’ll just have to head back to my air craft to retrieve my nap sack”

Smiling at each other, Knuckles nodded at Shadow. “Cool, you go do that and I’ll let the guys know what the deal is. They can be on guard duty for me tomorrow while I show you around!” The echidna exclaimed enthusiastically while Shadow took his temporary leave, his jet shoes lighting up and propelling him off in the direction he originated from. He couldn’t help actually feeling excited about something for once. The island after all, was a true marvel to behold. He was intrigued at what secrets may lay ahead for him to witness after day break. The guardian also didn’t seem like he’d be bad company to be around.

He returned to the fire rather speedily and set his nap sack down. The Chaotix all looked at him again but with more of a welcoming heir about them as the guardian scooted aside and pat the ground next to him. The hedgehog nodded and took the cue to sit down. “Thank you for letting me join your bonfire. I’m never really one for company, but I appreciate the acceptance”

“Hey no prob, man!” Mighty spoke up out of the bunch and grabbed the bag of marshmallows from vector to shove in Shadow’s direction. “Care for a mallow? Nothing more welcoming than a toasted treat of gooey goodness!”

The hedgehog’s initial thought was a big no thanks to that offer. But he heard Rouge in his head scolding him for being so closed minded to new experiences. He was on this island because he was supposed to be trying new things during his time off. If he turned down a marshmallow, just what else would follow suit? “Uh… Sure, thanks” He replied while everyone else looked rather surprised to witness the dark hedgehog reluctantly reach into the bag to pick out one of the puffy treats. Then he eyeballed it and squished it a bit between his fingers before sniffing it. Stunningly it smelled kind of pleasant if he was honest.

Mighty then handed him a skewer “Sweet, now impale that sucker and toast it my man!” The armadillo sure seemed excited to teach Shadow, exampling his own process to the hedgehog. “Just hold it above the flame and twirl it slowly like this, y'don’t wanna burn it but give it a nice dark color all around”

“Alright then…” This concept was clearly alien to Shadow who never indulged in treats. But he did as Mighty showed and instructed. “I’ve never eaten a marshmallow before. Does toasting it change the flavor?” He asked, pulling his now well toasted mallow from the flame and sniffing it again.

“Sort of” Vector answered and shrugged his shoulders. “Overall it gives the surface a nice crisp crunch and makes the insides all gooey. But why don’t ya try one toasted and another untoasted afterwards to compare flavor?”

“I suppose I could try that” Shadow replied and blew on his hot treat to cool it off. He may have been inexperienced at this but new better than to cram something in his mouth right away after removing it from a fire.

Charmy seemed to be thrilled with the rare phenomenon that about to be Shadow the freaking headgehog trying such a treat. “WOW! SHADOW’S REALLY GONNA EAT A MARSHMALLOW!” The bee shouted and did loops in the air!

The hedgehog cringed a bit at the shrill yelling but did actually have to chuckle a little at the kid’s excitement. He did feel kind of silly though because everyone seemed to be watching him. “Heh alright, here it goes I guess” He opened his mouth and went in for a bite… “Oh wow” His eyes lit up a bit at the sugary sweetness coating and melting on his tongue, surprising him in how good it tasted and how quickly it dissolved. “It’s actually not bad” The hedgehog went in for another bite, but was dismayed when the rest of the marshmallow fell off of the skewer and plopped right into his fluffy chest fur. “Oh no” He hoped he could just pick it off and there wouldn’t be any residue. But unfortunately when he picked it off it left quite a gooey mess matting and clumping the fluff together. His cheeks reddened as it was quite embarrassing, and to make it worse his glove was super messy and melted marshmallow strands stuck webbed between his fingers. The hedgehog’s ears flattened and he was ready for everyone to start laughing at him.

However the guys simply cringed and felt bad Shadow’s first experience with the campfire treat was botched in such a way. Charmy the bee even gasped and clasped his hands over his mouth, his eyes wide in shock at what a mess Shadow suddenly was.

“Oh geeze” Knuckles spoke up and stood up from the ground. “You can’t spend the rest of the night covered in that sticky stuff. Come on, I’ll show you where there’s a warm spring you can clean up in” The echidna told him and gestured the hedgehog to follow him.

Shadow sighed, feeling that he didn’t really have a choice and got up to follow the guardian. “Thanks… I feel like I just made a fool out of myself. Even the bee kid doesn’t make such a mess with those things” He lamented, muzzle still hot with embarrassment.

Knuckles felt bad that Shadow was mortified by what happened. He was seeing a different side to the stoic hedgehog and didn’t want this little incident to weigh so heavily. “Hey don’t be so glum about it, it was your first time with a really messy snack and I don’t think we warned you adequitely enough. In part it’s kind of our fault” The echidna told him and looked back with a smile while leading him through a thick of tall trees.

It was really quite pitch black among those trees but Shadow trusted the guardian knew his way around the entire island blindfolded. He felt a funny little rush inside himself, like the feeling of falling when he caught the echidna smiling back at him after consoling him for his dillemna. “N-no, I really should have known better, to be more careful. Don’t blame yourself. It’s all on me” He replied, walking through the pitch blackness with the other.

“Heh, well if it makes you feel any better. There’s a similar reason why you didn’t see me toasting marshmallows tonight too” The echidna said with a bit of a chuckle. “You think you made a mess of yourself? You should have seen my first time with those things. I was covered! And the guys? Man did they have a laugh riot at my expense! Well, all except Espio since he’s the most mature of them. Heck, he actually scolded everyone, which really only made it even more embarrassing for me”

Shadow was shocked the guardian would tell him a story like that, but he was thankful nonetheless that the echidna seemed to genuinely want his time on the island to be an enjoyable experience. There was no mockery, no judgement or hostility from anyone so far now that he thought about it. “Yeesh, that does sound a lot worse. I’m sorry that happened to you”

“Oh don’t worry about it” Knuckles waved his hand in dismissal. “I’m over it and the guys are more respectful now over witnessing such blunders thanks to Espio. You’ll see once we get back, they’ll make no mention of it, I’m sure. As they continued forward the sound of watter could be heard getting closer.

The hedgehog looked at his sticky hand and down at his chest fur. The gooey mess was aired out by now and hardened to more of a thick crusty substance, but what the echidna told him did make him feel better about the situation. He wouldn’t say it aloud, but he wasn’t expecting to find how kind and polite the guardian was to him. He had originally arrived here expecting him to be a hothead, but he guessed maybe there was just no reason for the echidna’s short fuse to ignite so far tonight. After all, he was enjoying the company of his closest friends. It seemed the only moment he could pinpoint any threat of anger was when he first mentioned Rouge’s name.

"And we’re here” Knuckles announced while parting some bushes with his hands revealing the sight of what he promised Shadow, a natrual hot spring with steam wafting from the top and big enough for at least ten. The small body of heated water was in the middle of a clearing where firefleies fluttered around, the area illuminated by the moon that also reflected off the water’s surface. “It should be warm enough to loosen up that nasty gunk stuck in your fur” The echidna informed the other while he started to unbuckle his own gloves and proceeded to step out of his shoes. “It’s pretty chilly out here away from the fire, so I hope you don’t mind if I join you”

Shadow nodded as he removed his own shoes and socks, yet kept his gloves on since they needed to be freed from the sticky marshmallow substance like his chest fur. “I don’t see why it would be a problem” He replied and looked over at the guardian, unable to help but notice some interesting qualities. “I didn’t think your hands had actual spikes” He remarked, but tried not to stare when he thought maybe that was an insensitive thing to gawk at.

Knuckles simply laughed while he tied his long locks back, leaving just two of them free on either side of his face. “Oh yeah, the chaos energy imbued in me before I hatched caused these mutations. I don’t mind if you look at them, they’re my most useful quality so I’m pretty proud to have them”

“Chaos energy can do amazing things” Shadow said back, though he wasn’t looking at the guardian’s hands. Instead his eyes seemed to want to linger up and down his form for some reason. Then it occurred to the hedgehog just how unique the red echidna really was. His body was rather lithe and somewhat curved, no prominent muscle tone despite the immense thrength he harbored, which seemed the core of which came from his chest that was always puffed out. Any stranger would assume he was weak, but in actuality he was a powerhouse in a compact package. Pint sized yet able to shatter boulders with a single blow.

“Uh, Shadow?” Knuckles blinked at the hedgehog, the echidna leaning back with a hand on his hip in somewhat of a sassy looking manner, especially with his quills tied up. “You okay? You can get in at any time, you don’t have to wait for me” He told the other who appeared to be lost in his thoughts.

Shadow shook his head and blushed a bit, feeling silly for staring so long that the echidna had to snap him out of it. Good thing it was still too dark to see his blushing muzzle, but he turned his head quickly away anyhow and proceeded to step into the naturally heated water. “Oh right. I was just realizing I might actually be pretty tired” He quickly lied, not even sure why his eyes lingered on the guardian like that.

Knuckles chuckled and stepped forth into the spring as well from the right side of it. “Yeah, you did look a little dazed and lost there for a moment” He replied, sinking himself in the water upt to his shoulders. He let out a relaxed sigh as the warmth of the water embraced him and soothed his cold and tense muscles.

Shadow wasn’t too focused on relishing in the warmth of the spring like Knuckles was. He was instantly more concerned with submerging his marshmallow covered glove and chest fur to begin cleaning the sugary white gunk off of himself.  

Knuckles waded and watched the hedgehog as he was occupied with getting the hot spring water to loosen up the crusted marshmallow in his fur and on his glove. It was a few minutes before he saw the stuff finally coming off in clumps and melting away completely.

“Oh thank chaos” Shadow sighed in relief once he was getting rid of the stuff from his luscious chest fluff. “I almost thought I’d have to shave off my chest fur” The hedgehog commented, drawing a chuckle from the guardian floating across from him.

“Oh man, that would be a travesty” The echidna said in jest, but was also serious to a degree. “I mean, it looks like you really make an effort to take care of it. I think that’s why everyone was so shocked when your marshmallow got stuck in it”

“Hmph” Shadow found himself scoffing, but in more of a playful manner as he eased back and finally allowed himself to enjoy the warm spring. “Is it really that obvious I condition it and brush it 200 times both ways every single day?”

Knuckles cracked a smile “heh, it wouldn’t surprise me at all if that were true. I bet Rouge really appreciates the effort you put into it”

Shadow chuckled at what the guardian said. “Rouge and I are just good friends, that’s all” The hedgehog replied, leaning back against the wall of the spring and resting his arms spread out on the ledge.

“Really? That’s a surprise, I thought you and her were together” The echidna remarked sincerely and rested himself on the opposite edge of the spring like the hedgehog was doing. “Well what ever girl you’re doing that maintenance for must really appreciate it”

The hedgehog chuckled again, although this time it was more of a bashful kind of chuckle that escaped him as he sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. “Actually… there isn’t a girl? I do it for myself. Is that weird? I never had a girlfriend and I wouldn’t know what to do with one anyway, or how to make time for one” Actually Shadow was always so occupied with work that he never even thought about girls. “I can’t even fathom a girl putting up with me since I’m always on missions and I’m difficult to be around anyway”

Knuckles tilted his head at the hedgehog’s admittance. “I don’t think it’s weird if you do it for yourself, if it makes you happy then all the power to ya.” He commented with a smile at the other. “And I don’t think you’re difficult to be around. You’ve been a pretty great guest in my eyes and I appreciate that. It’s pretty cool you wanted to come check out my slice of paradise”

In his eyes? Shadow’s own were drawn to the echidna’s again, this time he blushed for some reason when he noticed how the violet hue practically glowed under the intensity of the moonlight cast upon them. Why did his heart also speed up in that moment? The hedgehog hadn’t felt these odd sensations before, not even with a friend as close as Rouge. But could it just be because the guardian was practically a stranger handing him compliments? That’s what he would decide to chalk it up to at least. “Thank you, you’re a gracious host and I’m enjoying my time up here… I’m glad I came, It really is quite majestic”

The echidna was happy to hear that from the hedgehog. Shadow was nothing but respectful and well mannered ever since he arrived on his island. He really couldn’t ask for a better guest than him. “Trust me in this, Shadow. If you think it’s majestic so far, you haven’t seen anything yet. Just wait until day break and I’ll show you things that you can’t even imagine”

Shadow returned the smile. “And trust me, I can’t wait to see these new sights you boast on about.”

“Then I can’t wait to show you” Knuckles replied in kind, the two still smiling at each other until an awkward silence ensued and they both looked away in a mutual shyness. 

In the silence Shadow could hear the chirping of crickets and and other sounds of wildlife around the area. But also in the silence he had to think about how odd this situation actually was. The day started out with him being let go from work until further notice. Never in a million years would he imagine he’d be sitting across from the guardian in a hot spring and the both of them enjoying each others company. The silence persisted and it felt almost criminal not to talk about something, so the hedgehog dug around in his head for something to say to break the awkward quiet spell. “So… Do the Chaotix come here often?” He asked out of the blue, prompting Knuckles to tilt his head down from looking up at the starry night sky. “Everyone seems to assume you’re up here alone and being antisocial 24/7.” He then mused about applying that to himself. “I know people say that about me as well, but in my case I admit it has more accuracy to it”

The echidna looked amused. He knew Shadow wasn’t the hang out with people type and he liked how the hedgehog owned it like he did. It actually made Knuckles feel sort of special that Shadow was making an exception for him and genuinely wanting to talk with him. “Heh, truthfully I’m not all that much of a people person myself. But I’ve been tight with the Chaotix since I was twelve and I enjoy their visits. We have a bonfire basically every week , a longstanding tradition. Sure sometimes can get tiring if they stay longer than a few days, but I’ve never had beef with any of them and they usually know when I prefer to be left alone” He explained to Shadow.

The hedgehog nodded. “That’s understandable. I think it’s pretty common for a lot of people to get tired of even their best friends if they’re around each other too often. It’s good that they can respect when you’re in more of a solitary mood.”

“Yeah, unlike Sonic who literally comes up here just to push my buttons.” The red one shook his head with a slight roll of his eyes. “I swear that hedgehog likes it when I hit him”

Shadow chuckled at that, especially the image of a pissed off Knuckles clobbering the blue annoyance. “I have respect for his bravery as a hero, but he really does seem to ask for it at times.” He deadpanned.

“Hahah, oh yeah! I almost forgot you have the same relationship with him don’t you?” Knuckles laughed, finding it more amusing how Shadow and him could relate on the topic of Sonic. “He’s a great guy sure, but man does he need to give the ball busting a rest. I mean I’m all game for his stupid shenanigans, but only to a certain point because he really likes to push the envelope too far”

The striped mobian was also quite amused at the echidna sitting across from him. “Really now? Hah! I don’t doubt it, but I’m curious to know what made you punch him last time.

“Oh geeze” The red one chortled and scratched his forehead. “So it was two weeks ago and on a day where I was trying to meditate and I just wasn’t in the mood to be trifled with by any means. Sonic came by and started his usual teasing and name calling, telling me I should get my quills cut because I was starting to look like a girl and he almost hit on me. But I wasn’t having any of it and ignored him, which gets under his skin far more than actually retorting or quipping back. Eventually he zoomed off and I thought I won in the debacle. Big mistake there” Knuckles shook his head. “About fifteen minutes later something was thrown at me and exploded with a splash against my forehead, a foul odorous liquid cascaded over me and soaked into my fur… Three week old pickle juice he left out in the sun I heard him say. And needless to say I pounded his face in”

“Ugh, that’s really disgusting to think about” Shadow shuddered at the thought of being soaked in nasty old pickle juice heated by the sun. “But it’s hard to imagine Sonic would stand still to be punched in the face when he had to have known what was coming.” Remarked Shadow before asking curiously “How did you ever manage to catch him?”

“Oh he split the second I opened my eyes to see his smug blue face, took off like a bat out of Hell. But I thought quick and used a warp ring to open a portal in his direct path, which I launched myself through at him fists first” Knuckles laughed recalling the shocked look on Sonic face when the hedgehog realized he was running full speed into both of his fists.

Shadow laughed as well as he imagined the scenario play out in his head. “Hahahahah! Oh my god that’s too good!” The hedgehog held his gut, nearly in hysterics as he hadn’t heard something so funny in ages. “I already respected you, but now I must admit you’re quite admirable hahahahah!”

Knuckles felt sheepish and chuckled while he rubbed the back of his head. He just really made the ultimate life form bust a gut. Had anyone ever heard Shadow laugh so genuinely? He was astonished and honestly kind of proud to witness the striped bad ass wipe away a tear.

“Eheheheh, oh man I wish I could have seen that. I bet he was seeing stars for days”

“Hahah, yeah I clobbered him pretty good that time” Knuckles agreed. “How about you though? What does Sonic do to get on your nerves and what’s the best way so far you’ve retaliated?”

The hedgehog calmed his laughter down and thought about the question Knuckles asked him. There were a lot of instances to sift through, but he quickly pulled one from his memory banks he thought the echidna would get a kick out of. “He tried to force feed me a chili dog once and just smashed the entire thing all over my face and muzzle.” He grimaced at the memory of that, but soon smirked when he went on to tell the guardian how he repaid Sonic. “I was so pissed I don’t quite recall how it happened, but he ended up pinned to the floor under my foot and I threatened to scorch his face off with my jet shoe” He started to crack up a bit at his own memory “I wasn’t really going to do it, but you should have heard him squeal and beg for mercy. It was priceless, the look of total fear on his face.I’m sure he was a small margin away from wetting himself too”

Now it was Knuckles’s turn to start laughing, and laugh he did at Shadow’s story, quite hard. “Oh man! Hahahahahahah! I can just see how it went down” The echidna went into mocking the blue hedgehog’s voice “No! Shadow please don’t burn my pretty face!” 

“He actually did say that!” Shadow laughed harder than before because of Knuckles’s accuracy of knowing Sonic so well. The laughter was infectious between them, they couldn’t stop until it was all just out of their systems and their sides hurt from it all. Afterwards they went on to chat about various things and even found more in common with each other besides being plagued by Sonic. As it turned out they both had quite a fruit centered diet and both enjoyed the marvels of ancient ruins.

“You can read hieroglyphics?” Shadow asked astounded at the guardian’s ability. If this was true and he often meditated to keep the master emerald and his chaos energy stable, it made no sense to the hedgehog why anyone would say the echidna was stupid or not worth spending time around. Rouge herself seemed to have a rather narrow opinion of him, often referring to him as an angry dunderhead.

“Actually, I can read runes, hieroglyphs and multiple tribal languages of ancient times” Knuckles added for more accuracy. “I can even read Babylonian.

“That’s pretty amazing” Shadow gaped as he took in the information given to him. “How did you learn all these languages?”

The temptation to keep that a secret was strong to the guardian. But the hedgehog and him were getting along so well he felt like it would be unfair of him to keep Shadow in the dark in that regard. 

“Well truthfully? I learned it all through my connection with the master emerald.” He started his explanation to the very intrigued hedgehog across from him. “It wasn’t just transferred knowledge like installing a computer program, I had to meditate and travel deep into the core of the emerald… I mean, it’s kind of hard to explain, but the master emerald is like a living time capsule. Inside it contains memories of the past and through deep meditation I can tap into it and learn about my heritage, see vibrant visions of history and fine tune myself to be one with the energy. I’ve learned so much through it and I continue to learn even more. Heh, I hope I explained that well enough. I know it sounds kind of crazy” 

“Guardian, I was created in a test tube with hedgehog and alien DNA. I’m hard pressed to find much of anything crazy. Besides, I know first hand how powerful and enigmatic chaos energy is” Shadow replied to the echidna, smirking a bit. Hell, he had to hand it to the other now. “You know, you’re far more interesting than I ever would have thought”

This seemed to catch Knuckles off guard. “Heh, yeah… A lot of people seem to assume I’m some kind of idiot with a bad temper. I can kind of see where they’re coming from with that idea though” There was a hint of sadness in the guardian’s tone. He didn’t really like to think about how he seldom got respect from others outside of the Chaotix. It wasn’t like he asked for much, but he often felt he never got credit for all the things he was capable of. He’s watched over the world’s most powerful stone his entire life, bonding himself in spirit and mind with it, protecting it from falling into corrupt hands, but his entire life’s duty was boiled down to a joke by many. He cleared his throat. “Anyway, we’ve been soaking in here for a good while now, I think now’s about time we head back to the fire” Knuckles spoke to Shadow, looking off to the side as he promptly pulled himself out of the water.

Shadow frowned, sensing that maybe the way he phrased his compliment hurt the guardian’s feelings somehow. The hedgehog admittedly wasn’t too good with complimenting others, but he truly didn’t mean for what he said to be taken the wrong way. Sadly another thing he wasn’t good at were apologies, the hedgehog gritting his teeth and getting out of the spring as well. He quickly picked up his shoes and followed behind the red echidna who was already disappearing into the thick of trees from whence they came earlier. The hedgehog caught up but stayed a few feet back, Knuckles seeming to not even acknowledge him as they walked through the woods. This kind of silence was uncomfortable to him, especially after so many laughs and interests with the guardian just moments ago. And now he felt cold to him. There were a thousand things his mind was screaming at him to say, a sorry, an explanation, anything to lighten the other’s mood. But the right words were hard to find.

“Guardian I… didn’t mean it like that” Shadow piped up after a couple minutes into their painfully quiet trip back. However, the echidna still stayed silent while all he did was untie his long locks and let them fall. Great, what could he say to be in the echidna’s good graces again? Shadow mentally slapped himself and thought harder. This was why he wasn’t good with others, even when he wanted to be. Sadly it seemed it became too late for and adequate apology when the echidna and him exited the other side of the woods, the bonfire and Chaotix appearing in sight and the sound of their chatter too.

“It’s fine. Don’t worry about it” Knuckles finally replied to the hedgehog, but Shadow couldn’t rightly buy his tone as it sounded like he forced himself to push those words out of his mouth. There was still of tinge of hurt there that made shadow feel guilty. 

The hedgehog was soon ripped from his thoughts though when the familiar and still shrill as ever voice of Charmy shouted out “HEY LOOK! THEY’RE BACK!”

Vector chuckled with a mouth full of marshmallows “yeah and it looks like Shadow got that  stuff out of his fur! Took ya guys long enough though!” The croc said feigning annoyance at the two’s late arrival.

“That hot spring is too inviting on a cold night” Knuckles simply said as he took his usual seat at the now less intense fire in the middle of the group.

Shadow sat down next to him like before but now felt rather awkward to be so close to the guardian he accidentally put in a bad mood. He was going to try and say something but Espio cut him off when he started to speak. “Welcome back guys.” The purple chameleon nodded at the both of them and then went on to address the hedgehog specifically. “Shadow, I believe you should know that your phone rang a few times while you were away. Charmy was about to go through your nap sack to answer it but I stopped him because I’m sure you don’t want someone going through your things”

“Oh uh, yes that’s right. Thank you for that” The striped mobian replied and reached over to grab his nap sack, beginning to root around in it until he found his phone and pulled it out. Not to his surprise, it was Rouge on the caller ID several times in the last hour. The hedgehog proceeded to return a call to the bat.

“Oh good you’re alive” The sassy voice of Rouge spoke when she answered the phone. “Just where have you been that you’re not answering your phone?”

Shadow sighed. “I was in a hot spring on Angel Island”

“Angel Island?” Rouge sounded surprised about Shadow being at such a place. “Better not let the red idiot find out you’re there” The bat giggled.

Shadow felt rather irked by her to say such a thing and he was sure Knuckles heard it as he saw him looked down dejectedly in the corner of his eye. Shadow decided right here that he wasn’t going to let his partner insult the echidna anymore. “Actually I’ll have you know the guardian is far from being an idiot and I got his approval to be here”

“Ooohh touchy” The voice of the female chuckled “You two couldn’t possibly be getting along, you have to be yanking my chain”

The hedgehog huffed into the phone, annoyed at Rouge. “Look Rouge, I’m serious. The guardian is a fine and admirable mobian and I’m enjoying my time with him. Insult him again and I’m hanging up on you because I’m tired of your callous persistence to put him down. There’s a lot you don’t know about him that makes him one of the most interesting Mobian’s I’ve ever known. Hell, he may very well be at the top of the list”

“Okay okay, I won’t insult him again geeze, you  make it sound like he’s your boyfriend

Shadow felt his muzzle heat up at that. But why? It was a completely ludicrous thing for the bat to say. “We’re becoming good friends. I never blindly agreed with your low opinions of him. The guardian’s work here is important to the entire planet and I simply don’t believe there’s a reason for him or his duty to be mocked”

“Okay, fine, You sound pretty serious so I wont insult him anymore. Does that make you happy?” Rouge asked and Shadow could tell by her tone she was likely rolling her eyes. .

“Good, then we have an understanding Shadow replied “Now I’m going to let you go. We’re having a bonfire with the Chaotix and I don’t want to miss out on the toasted marshmallows”

“Heheh, alright, Shadow. Just be careful not to get any in your precious chest fur” The bat said before hanging up and leaving the hedgehog with quite a dumbfounded expression on his face. Was that a coincidence or was she spying on them?

The hedgehog’s stupor was put to an end as soon as it started when the guardian turned his head to smile softly at him. “Thanks for that, Shadow. You didn’t have to tell your friend off for my account”

“Well it’s just really unfair how you get treated and mocked all the time. I was tired of Rouge constantly badmouthing you every time your name comes up.”

Knuckles smiled at hearing that and it put him back in a better mood to know Shadow was genuine enough about their budding friendship that he would scold an older friend for belittling him. “Are you really going to try another toasted marshmallow?”

Shadow chuckled “Nah, I’m gonna eat an uncooked one this time”