Frostbitten

Chapter 1 - On Thin Ice

It was a picturesque winter morning and Sonic had gathered all his friends to go ice skating in the park. Amy, Tails, Knuckles, Rouge, Shadow, Blaze, and Sonic laced up their skates and headed out onto the frozen lake glistening under the sun.

Sonic immediately took off, attempting to impress them all with his speed skating skills. "Can't catch me!" he yelled back at Knuckles. Never one to back down from a challenge, Knuckles raced after the blur of blue, both of them slipping and sliding haphazardly across the ice.

Amy clung nervously pressed ahead, still very wobbly in her pink skates. "Sonic, wait for me!" she called out, but he was long gone. Rouge laughed as she effortlessly glided by Amy, jumping and spinning gracefully. "Don't worry dear, you'll get the hang of it," she said with a twirl.

Shadow preferred to keep to himself, avoiding the childish antics of the others. He peacefully carved his own solitary path around the glistening ice, lost in contemplation. As he rounded a turn he noticed Blaze up ahead. She was valiantly yet unsteadily trying to stay upright on her skates, arms waving comically in circles as she repeatedly lost her balance.

"Just let me help you, Blaze," Sonic said, skating over next to her with his hand held out.

"No thanks, I've got this handled," Blaze replied indignantly, her pride preventing her from accepting assistance. Sonic just shrugged and sped away as Blaze wobbled dangerously once again. Out of frustration she ignited a small flame, promptly falling hard on her backside.

Shadow watched her persistence with curiosity. Despite her obvious struggle, Blaze climbed carefully back to her feet and kept trying with fiery determination. Though he never really gave her a second thought, seeing her this way made him curious.

Making a decision quite out of character for the normally brooding hedgehog, Shadow skated over silently to where Blaze was tottering unstably. "Take my hand," he said in his deep monotone voice.

Blaze looked up in surprise but something in his intense eyes made her instinctively trust him. She slowly placed her hand in his strong gloved grip. Immediately she felt steady and secure. Together they began gliding smoothly around the lake at a comfortable pace.

At first Blaze felt a bit silly needing Shadow's help to simply stay upright. But as they skated in sync, with his sturdy arm supporting her, she started forgetting her insecurities. Shadow's piercing gaze was focused solely on her, making Blaze's heart inexplicably flutter. They drew closer together as they skated, though neither seemed to notice.

Soon nothing else existed for them except the sound of skates softly gliding across the ice. Shadow's usually hard expression had softened when he gazed down at Blaze, giving her a barely perceptible smile that made her knees weak. Blaze was blushing beneath her fur, hoping Shadow didn't notice the flames that seemed to be dancing around them as her emotions swirled.

"Aww, look at you two lovebirds out there!" Amy's gleeful shout abruptly snapped Shadow and Blaze back to reality. They jerked away from each other, suddenly aware their friends were all watching them with delight.

"Ooh la la!" Rouge said with a wink. Knuckles made kissing noises while Sonic pretended to be the minister at their wedding. "You may kiss the bride!" he proclaimed as they all burst out laughing.

Shadow and Blaze looked away, embarrassed that their intimate moment had been so publicly on display. But despite their friends' joking, the connection they'd felt couldn't be denied. Shadow reached out and decisively took Blaze's hand in his once again. Blaze met his eyes, surprised yet also relieved. Together they continued skating, hands intertwined, no longer caring who saw.

After a while, their friends got distracted back into their own antics. Sonic and Knuckles began racing again, spinning wildly across the ice. Amy tentatively started to improve and glide more smoothly.

Shadow and Blaze relaxed as the attention shifted away from them. They smiled shyly at each other, both knowing something between them had changed but not quite sure what to do next.

"So..." Blaze started awkwardly.

"Would you like to get some hot chocolate when we're done?" Shadow asked sincerely.

Blaze grinned. "I'd love that."

They held hands all the way to the edge of the lake. As Shadow helped Blaze back onto solid ground, Amy zoomed over.

"You two are just the cutest!" she exclaimed. "Come on, tell me all the romantic details!"

But Shadow just gave Blaze a secret glance as he led them away from the lake, leaving Amy's pleas for gossip behind. This was the start of their own personal adventure together.