Cold Blooming

A Talk in the Garden

It's been months since the wedding and the two still haven't so much as spoken to each other. Everyone can feel that the tension was so thick that you can cut it with a knife. Prince Knuckles took any opportunity to avoid his mate as much as possible while Shadow would just wonder the halls by himself as he managed to slip away from the palace servants which wasn't hard and he did it out of boredom.

While normally the prince's mate will attend meetings and other royal duties through out the day. Yet the prince never bring him to those meetings and actually will leave before the sun fully rises not even attempting to wake him for those meetings. Shadow knows this because he usually sleeps long (five hours tops) and would just lay there till he hear his husband move around the room to get ready then leave. Now Shadow would be happy to have quiet time and wasn't usually a social person. Not that there was anyone to really talk to in Black Doom kingdom as many are just there to live and serve Black Doom.

The Doom kingdom always felt like a dead void unlike the coldness he felt here from the people he met in Emerald kingdom. 'This must be how the world is just cold and empty...' Shadow mentally sighed as he continues to wonder not really paying attention to his surroundings as he wonder into a garden. While blinked in surprise az his nose picked up a scent of many flowers and trimmed grass around him.

'This place feels....warm' as he began to walk towards a bush filled with roses and gently touched them. He never seen plants like these so bright and the garden it self feels inviting. A image of King Enerjak pops into his head as he now wonder deeper into the garden. This place has a warm feeling like the king. It's like a blanket that covers and protects you from the cold. That's when he sees the king sitting in the middle of the garden. The sun is high bringing a nice summer glow to the open area. The King had his helmet off reveling a older echidna with a scar over his right eye that is a milky white most likely he is blind in that eye. His fur color is a darker shade of red then that of his son's. The one remaining eye he has is a dark amethyst that was quite alluring and seem to have deep wisdom in them.

He was about to quietly exit not wanting to disturb the king's peace and continue to wonder elsewhere. "Leaving so soon? It's a good day to enjoy the sun and not be stuck in the palace." A strong and gentle voice said and it stopped Shadow in his tracks. He turned around and looked back at the king before walking over and sitting down on the extra chair opposite of the echidna king.

"I didn't want to intrude..." Shadow didn't know what else to say for a month hardly ever talk to him and it wasn't like he was very social back in Doom's kingdom so he didn't know the rules here. He had no training schedule, no duties, and no one really say anything to him! He never felt so out of his element before! He never felt so lost before and is having a hard time understanding his purpose here.

His face must've shown his discomfort since the king spoke again. "I remember my time when I had to step up once my father passed and the kingdom needed a king. It was difficult especially since I was quite young and short tempered. I was pretty reckless even battle which cost me a eye. I put my whole console through so much strife that they decided I needed someone to set me straight." He took a sip of some tea before continuing having Shadow complete attention. "My marriage was also a surprise and I didn't take it well. I was training or off in the city just to avoid some woman I didn't care to know anything about. It went on for months till one day she had enough and corner me in hall." The King smiled at the memory. "She demanded that I stop acting childish and face her with respect instead of running away like a coward. As you can probably can guess I didn't like that very much and I told her that if she wants my respect she have to beat me in a duel for it." Shadow blinked in surprise at that. The echidna king he sees now seems calm, wise, and even gentle aura around him.

"What happened next?" He honestly wanted to know. This woman sounded interesting for challenging a king like so. If someone was to do that in Doom's kingdom they would have been executed on the spot and dumped somewhere to be forgotten or worst be sent to the many labs to be experimented on for the rest of their lives. The King gave him a smirk. "She kicked my ass is what happened."

The face the hedgehog made must've been hilarious as the King laughed before calming down to continue. "Indeed she put me in my place not holding back what's on her mind. She told me that I wasn't the only one who wasn't thrilled to be in this marriage but she was willing to do what best for the future of kingdom and will not be treated like some eye sore. After a bit more tongue lashing she then told me to pick myself up and to clean up and to be ready to do my duties as ruler of this kingdom. From there on I started getting my act together and began seeing the strength my mate has. It took a while but we managed to get along better than before and short while later my son was born." The King set his now empty cup of tea down as finished his tale.

Shadow was amazed by the story. He could tell that every word he spoke was filled with tenderness and care. He then picked a lavender flower from a bush and holds it gently between his fingers. "I'm sure if Aurora was still here she would give the same tongue lashing at Knuckles behavior. She'll even scold you."

Shadow raised a eyebrow at that. "Aurora would tell you to be more assertive. Avoiding each other is not gonna solve the problem." He then stood up and Shadow followed suit as they begin to walk out of the garden. "Time is fleeting Shadow and one day you are gonna have to make a choice that will effect the future of this kingdom." They made their way from the arbor where they can now see Shadow's servants frantically looking for him. Enerjak then turn to Shadow and held the flower towards him. "Weather now or later there's one question you must ask yourself Shadow." As Shadow took the flower he then looked up at the King in silent question.

As the servants got closer Enerjak lower his voice to a whisper. "Who is Shadow the hedgehog?" With that the king left while the servants bowed leaving Shadow to ponder the kings words.