The Ruby Eyes of Affection

Utopia: Not everything is as it seems

  Tail's strolled out of Shadow's small yet sleek house with pride as he assumed he'd gotten the black hedgehog out of the equation. All he wanted was for Sonic to be safe and if he had to use unorthodox tactics, he would.

Walking through the forest to the kitsune's lab, the ebony hedgehog's body felt slightly weaker than usual. The nightmare must have sapped all his energy away, or maybe it was the fact that he would never hear the cobalt hedgehog apologies for the day before. If Tails was being completely serious, that event would be the last time Sonic would ever care for him. It annoyed Shadow greatly, the fact that he felt so heartbroken and disjointed.

As they paced through the large green woodland and into town, Tail's felt an odd vibe emanating from the slow moving hedgehog. He looked almost as miserable as Sonic sounded that morning and took this as a bad sign.

(They both feel the same that is not good... At all. I need to take care of this before it gets out of hand.) He thought as he walked past a few buildings of the cute city.

It looked just like a tiny rural town. Everything was a little behind the times and everybody seemed to know everyone. There were only a few places to go, but it looked to have what all the folks needed. Mothers were gently holding there children's hands as they strolled from one place to another and everything seemed peaceful and quaint. Shadow liked it a lot and wished he could live in one of the cute cottages in the housing district. But no one wanted a 'villain' staining the Mobian reputation. There was almost no crime since Sonic and the police force were constantly watching the town's people. It was so serene, almost like a hidden Utopia. That was until people started noticing the black hedgehog's presence. Individuals were avoiding him and no one dared to look at him for more than a split second. Children quickly hid behind their mothers and all side conversations instantly stopped as he passed.

(They don't know me. Why the heck are they judging me? I never did anything wrong besides beat up their hero a few times. Well I guess that's all the reason they need to start a Shadow the Hedgehog hate club.) He thought with his ears bent downward in slight embarrassment as he began to imagine how cute the immature blue hedgehog would look if he was the only one trying to convince people that Shadow wasn't really that bad.

The kitsune and hedgehog walked passed the final building before arriving at the housing district. The cottages were small and somewhat fragile, but Shadows inner girl got the best of him as he just had to admire how darn cute they were. Asking Tails all different kinds of questions about architecture and costs. He responded annoyingly and gave quick undescriptive replies attempting to force the ebony hedgehog to shut up as soon as possible. When they walked past the little houses they started to get to the more expensive ones. This is where most of the high officials in government, military, medical and police would live. After that was the celebrity district filled with exotic and luxurious mansions. Finally, they arrived at the lab, pretty average looking with a hint of class, and right next door was the largest and most beautiful house in the town. The architecture was very classic, it was around 3 stories and covered with beautiful arches, stone statues and a gorgeous garden in the back. Shadow assumed it was owned by the president of the town or something, but was surprised when he felt a strange sense of déjà vu.


"Make yourself at home, Sonics house is right next door. I can talk to him right now, if you want. Unless you have some final words." The kitsune queried with an almost evil tone making Shadow feel slightly uncomfortable.


"Wait! That giant mansion is where Sonic lives? I thought it was like the leader's house!" The ebony hedgehog replied curiously as he remembered that's where Sonic brought him when the entire glass situation happened.


(Man, if I knew he lived in such a breathtaking home, I would have taken a better look around when I left. I was so angry that I never really noticed. The entire time I was staring right at the ground trying to keep myself from destroying everything in my wake.) Shadow thought as Tails waved his hand in front of his face as the kitsune noticed he was staring off into space and completely oblivious to him trying to explain the situation.


"Hay listen up! He is the main protector of the town so the government gives him pretty much anything he wants. I don't really think he lets it get to him, though. He always finds a way to make things more challenging." Tails replied in a matter-of-fact tone like it was common knowledge.


Shadow knew that but the biggest best mansion in the whole city? That seemed slightly shifty. Sonic always seemed a bit off compared to the rest of the Mobians and people respected him very carefully. Even children were incredibly polite to him. Shadow felt a strange shiver run up his spine.

(Are people secretly afraid of him?) He thought as he felt his body stiffen a little in slight fear.


"It is a bit strange isn't it? I guess I didn't get the memo because I have no idea why the town acts the way they do. I wish people would talk about it but every time I bring it up the person freezes and turns around. I suppose we'll both have to learn eventually." He gave Shadow a quick nod before walking out of the lab on his way to the azure hedgehog's Victorian style manor, leaving the ebony hedgehog to rummage through his thoughts and feelings.

As Shadow continued to wonder about how the stupid innocent kid could possibly frighten a whole town an image of his crying face started to torture his mind. He lied his head on his hand before letting out a single whimper before catching himself from crying.

(I need to keep calm, soon this will all be over and I can go back to doing what I want, when I want without a stupid kid questioning my life decisions.) He assumed as he sat on the couch, looking at all the crazy gadgets lined up on tables in front of him.

They all seemed to be filled with so much passion. Tails really loved Sonic that much? After all, these gadgets were designed to help him protect his best friend.

(It must be nice having someone care for you unconditionally like that.) The ebony hedgehog thought as his eyes widened with shock.

He was expecting to start thinking about Maria, but instead his mind was filled with the kindness of someone else. His face flushed as it felt very different. He loved Maria with every fiber of his being, however he never really desired anything more than the thought of her. Was it the same with the person in his head? Sonic had practically taken over his mind without much effort. It didn't really matter how he felt anyway. He made his decision and was going to stick with it.

No matter... how much it hurt.

The wind blew through the open windows of the lab, bringing fresh air to Shadow as he tried to hold back the tears. Tails would be back any moment and knew if he started crying, stopping could take hours. He decided to distract himself by walking over and examining the many books the kitsune had lying around. The majority of them were on chemistry, inventing or simple science, but there was one that stood out.

The title read "Psychology Journal Issue #5: How to help mentally traumatized victims forgive the past and look towards the future."

The words pierced Shadow in a place he couldn't really explain. It was almost like the book was seeing straight into him. He quickly asked himself what power existed in these words that caused such a violent reaction. He immediately thought back to his rivalry/friendship with Sonic. The fear, the inability to open up and the incredibly ferocious anger. Was it all because he had no way of confronting his past? He knew Maria died because of him. If he could find a way to remember, maybe it would be easier to confront. The azure hedgehog wanted to help him recover from the event, but the ebony hedgehog wasn't crying out for help, right? He didn't purposely try and make people feel sorry for him or maybe that wasn't the point. Perhaps something that wasn't obvious to Shadow might be apparent to another. The cobalt hedgehog reaching out could be a response to his own slight signs of affection and weakness. He recognized that those feelings weren't a lie. They were very real, but if he turned it off completely, every feeling that is, maybe Sonic wouldn't be so inclined to mess with his mind... and heart.

How could he keep Sonic as safe and happy as possible without destroying himself and their 'friendship' in the process?

His heart felt weak and yet his mind was still willing to fight. Fight to push away anything that might hurt him or penetrate his feeble soul. He would rather be completely alone then give anyone a chance to misuse him and yet somehow the thought of Sonic holding and protecting him never seemed more comforting as he tried to keep his mind from wandering any further.