Colour My Shadow

Chapter Three - Storm

Omigoodness

Rosaxx

Well, duh. Took you long enough.

I could have screamed - I seriously could have.

"Oh my goodness!" I whispered instead, choosing not to attract Aiden's attention... again. "How did I not think of this?"

I smacked my forehead, covering my eyes, then peeked excitedly up at the lounging Shadow, who was giving me a superior smirk, but his excitement was there too, underneath.

The Shadow shrugged, smiling. Oh, I dunno. Humans are slow.

I glared at him, mock hurt, although I was singing inside. He met my eyes with another shrug. "Be nice. I'm proud of myself."

We've been waiting for you to figure this out forever.

I snorted. "I said, be nice. Could you not have told me? And who's 'we'?"

Us... 'Shadows', as you call us.

"Why?"

We want to talk to you too.

I brightened, beaming at the Shadow. "Oh, good. I love being appreciated!" The Shadow laughed, and I no longer felt a pang at not hearing him.

"And you? Do you want to speak to me?" He seemed slightly confused at my question - not surprising, it was a confusing question. "I mean, you speak of 'we', but do you want to speak to me?"

He looked horrified. Of course! What do you mistake me for, a servant delivering messages? And besides, I like you, you're funny.

I shook my head. "Thanks. I'm funny. No, I've just always wanted to speak to you, too."

You as in me, or you as in us?  He gave me a wry smile.

"... you as in us, before, but not so much as you as in you, since when I saw you. You made me really want to speak to you, as in us." I paused. "This is confusing."

You don't say. But I'm sure everything's confusing to you humans.

"Hey! Stop calling humans stupid! We're proud of ourselves!"

He winked at me. What for, I don't know.

"Oh. No. You did not just insult my species again. You're being species-ist. Besides, I have too much to ask you about to let you insult me this much. Where do you come from?"

Ah. Secret. I glared at him. Naah, joking. We actually are Shadows of a sort, you were right to call us that, you see, but we're not from here. You could say we're from a parallel univese. I looked up at him, slightly shocked, then noticed his mocking expression.

"Nice, trick the dumb human." I pouted, and he smiled, in a sort of... not condecending, but patient and weary manner, like he didn't know what to think anymore. "Hey. More questions?"

He nodded, his face clearing, and I sighed slightly. I don't like awkward situations, and this was fast developing into one.

Okay. I'll guess what you want to know, and then you can ask me anything else. He yawned, and I nodded, turning my gaze to the paper. I'm a Shadow. We're called Shadows, like you called us, and I don't know why.

I don't have a name, not in the sense of the human word, anyway; we're just not called anything. I freaked out earlier with the mirror because another thing I don't have is a reflection. I don't know what I look like - whether I'm cute or ugly, strange or normal.