I Am...All of Me

Not My Reflection (Part 2)

A/N: I know that the first part was predominantly Shadow, but this one is a little bit more from Mephiles's POV. I hope you enjoy it, and let me know if anybody is OOC. Thx for reading!
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"Shadow," Rouge knocked, "everything okay in there?"

"Uh, yeah, ahem, everything's fine," he replied a little too quickly. He couldn't help but stare at his, no, Mephiles's reflection. What on the Ark happened? Shadow quickly shook his head and walked out of the bathroom, only to bump straight into Rouge.

"Woah, easy, honey. Watch where you're going. Come on, let's get you back to bed," she said with a small smirk and took his arm.

"I'm not a child," he retorted.

"Then stop acting like one and come on," she stated cheekily, her gloved hand gently brushing over his inhibitor ring.

Shadow froze as he felt a buzz shoot up his arm from the touch.

Hm? What was that? Mephiles thought as a strange energy pulsed around him. The strands of chaotic power flickered, and the next thing he knew, he was staring at a white bat that was vaguely familiar.

"Oh dear, you really are out of it," she told him, and Mephiles vaguely felt himself being pulled with her, "Come on, handsome, a bed, some soup, and a movie marathon is just what the doctor ordered."

What was going on? Where was he? Who was this woman? He could vaguely remember her being next to Shadow. In fact, in almost every memory he had of Shadow, she was somewhere close by. That meant she was his ally, and any friend of Shadow's was an enemy of his.

"Do not touch me," he commanded and pulled his arm out of her grip, internally wondering why his voice sounded off. The albino whirled around, her once gentle features hardened in a much more familiar glare.

"Excuse me?!" she shrieked, and Mephiles had the unfortunate pleasure of experiencing her echolocation for the first time, rattling his ears and penetrating his already confused thoughts. The white bat fanned her wings, hovering off the ground slightly so that she towered over him. She leaned down to his eye level, and not-so-professionally poked his nose.

"Just who on earth do you think you are? You better be glad I know you're not feeling well, because otherwise I would slap you into next week!"

"How is that physically possible?" he retorted and felt himself frown. Wait. He didn't have a mouth, so how could he express such a facial gesture? Ignoring the angered female before him, Mephiles looked down at his arm. His own rings, which should have been a faded copper, were a pristine gold, and his normally stormy blue stripes were a vibrant red. Even his midnight colored fur had turned black. This wasn't his body, he realized. It was Shadow's.

"Don't you play smart with me, mister," the flustered bat hmphed and snatched his hand as she landed. Mephiles, in too much of a mental stupor, allowed himself to be dragged down the hall. He had bound his power to the inhibitor rings, not Shadow himself. So why was he in his body? It didn't make sense. But that didn't mean he couldn't use his situation to his advantage. A devilish smirk made its way on his now tan muzzle, a new feeling he greatly enjoyed.

Shadow groaned and opened his eyes, expecting to see Rouge, not a web of colorful energy. He was getting tired of knocking out and waking up somewhere new every half hour.

The mass of tangled colors fizzled and cracked with power, each strand a different color. He reached out to touch one, and it sparked in acknowledgement. This energy felt familiar. Chaos. Controlled chaos. An oxymoron of itself, but that was the only way he could describe it. There were very few places that could contain raw chaos energy, but the only one he could remember being near before his black out were his inhibitor rings. Was it possible that was where he was?

Shadow grabbed a blue string and held it tightly. Blue chaos energy was used for travel, more specifically teleportation or chaos control.

Mephiles grunted as a dull ache throbbed in his wrists and ankles. Were Shadow's joints always this sore? It was a good thing Rouge had convinced him to lie down on Shadow's surprisingly comfortable bed, while she turned on some sort of murder mystery series. Typical.

The white bat sent an amiable smile before disappearing out the door, mumbling something about soup. Mephiles looked down at the shimmering gold bands around his wrists, mulling over whether or not he should adjust them to help with the ache. He lightly traced a gloved finger over the ring and went ridged, as a tingling sensation shot up his arm.

"Huh? What?" Shadow groaned and sat up, surprised to be back in bed and that his plan actually worked. At least, as far as he knew. He rubbed a hand over his face and stared blankly at the small flat screen currently playing some of his favorite mystery reruns.

"Hey, handsome. Cool off yet?" Rouge asked with a small smirk as she brought in a tray with a bowl of soup and some juice. Shadow quirked an eyebrow in confusion. Rouge's smile grew at his obliviousness. "You've been in a bad mood for the last hour."

"Oh, sorry," he replied out of reflex, even though he had no clue what she was talking about. Rouge gingerly set the tray down on his bed close enough for him to reach it and sat down beside him.

"I don't need you to--"

"Hush. Yes, you do. I promised I was going to stick by you until you get feeling better, and that's what I'm going to do."

The longer he thought about it, the more Shadow believed that it wasn't a sickness that was causing his "foul mood" and sudden black out, but he decided to keep that part to himself until he got to the bottom of it. The last thing he wanted his friend to know was that it might not be a normal sickness affecting him. Out of control of powers would be a greater cause to panic. But until he got the chance to test it out on his own, he might as well take advantage of the extra time to rest.