"Heeeere we are!" Rouge chirps, throwing the door open to reveal a rather small, homey apartment. Clicking the light on with one hand, she places her keys in a bowl resting on a long cabinet system by the door; at the end of the hallway, I see a room, painted a cheery lavender with dark furniture. It's relatively bare, in a minimalist sense, and the floors are hardwood. There are two doorways, one leading to the kitchen and another leading to a dark hallway. Her windows are glowing with sunlight, the curtains pulled aside to let light stream in, but as it approaches sundown the light wanes and fades. On the wall adjacent to the windows sits a television with a squat cabinet system beneath it, and a shelving unit is nestled in the corner, bearing poorly organized and slightly dusty books. I doubt she has much time to read. Ahead of me, my cyan-eyed bat friend turns to face me, looking excited, her hands folded behind her back as she leans forward a bit such that our eyes rest on the same level. "What do you think?"

"It's nice," I answer politely, feeling slightly awkward. Compared to the dirty alleyways I've been staying in, this place is a paradise. "Very, uh, clean." Except that bookshelf.

"Yep!" She beams, looking proud. "I try to keep everything neat and tidy. Makes life easier." Walking towards the hallway, she beckons for me to follow. "Here, lemme show you what'll be your room!" Bouncing off cheerfully, she chatters on and on about how much fun this is going to be. I find myself smiling--her enthusiasm is contagious, and I, too, look forward to our partnership, but I'm not sure how to feel about us living under the same roof. I've never shared an apartment with someone before. The closest thing I've experienced to this sort of situation was when Team Dark was given its own quarters. Sadness drifts across my mind like a cold fog; the memories are painful, reminding me of times when my life was easier to comprehend.

"Hey, Shadow, hurry up!" Rouge peers around the corner, and I jolt back to reality. "Whaddaya doin' just standin' there? C'mere!" She grins at me, and I throw her a fake smirk, trotting over to her.

"Sorry, I was a bit distracted," I answer calmly, pacing after her as she flutters down the corridor. Her gait is so odd--half-flying, half-walking, with her wings flapping every now and then to lift her.

"No big deal," she chirps, opening a door at the end of the hall; glancing over at me, she smirks behind her shoulder. "Just don't do that on a mission, okay?" She giggles, stepping back a bit to let me pass her. I return her expression, chuckling, as she winks at me and says, "I'm gonna let you get settled in, hun. Dinner's at six, so be done by then."

"You make it sound like I have tons of things to unpack," I snort, stepping into the room.

She laughs, pulling the door half-closed behind me. "Yeah, I know, but since you're gonna be staying here, you should familiarize yourself with the room. Get used to it, y'know?" Turning around, she flaps her hand dismissively, folding her wings and resorting to her feet only. "Anyways, whatever you do, don't make a mess." Vanishing around the corner, she ducks into what I assume is her own room.

"What could I make a mess with?" I raise an eyebrow, looking around. The room bears simply a bed, a nightstand and a lamp. The walls are the same light lavender as the rest of the apartment, and a window spans the wall next to the--no, my---bed. I smirk to myself, looking down at the plain white sheets. I haven't had my own bed in over a year... It's unusual that something which most people see as a basic possession seems to be a luxury for me. Scanning the room, I note a closet door across from the bed, and I walk towards it as quietly as possible. My shoes clack against the hardwood loudly, and I wince, pausing to take them off and set them down next to my bed. Gently placing my sock-clad feet on the floor, I flex my toes. How long has it been since I've had my own room? I look up at the ceiling, furrowing my brows. The last time I had my own room was when I was supposedly eight...and now... I'm apparently ten or eleven. My eyes widen. So, it's been two or three years. Sitting down on my bed, I feel a depressive sadness wash over me, and my chin falls to my chest. Three years, and I'm still no closer to finding out what I really am, or why Robotnik wanted me. My hands clench and my teeth grind together. Why did he do all those things to me? A shudder runs up my spine as memories flood my mind, all the things I wish had never happened, everything I hate myself for playing like a bad movie behind my eyelids. The needles, the agony, every single time he knocked me down, every time he screamed at me, every hit I took for him, for nothing, sacrificing my sanity in an attempt to appease him, to maybe feel loved for once...

Squeezing my eyes shut, I press my palms to the side of my head, trying to will the nightmarish visions away, and a tear threatens to slip down my cheek. Never again, I swear to myself. Never again will I so completely and utterly surrender myself to someone else's will. Fire burns in my chest as I lift my head, glaring down at my feet; the tear evaporates, my sadness burnt away by anger. I am free. I work for no one, and I bow to no desires but my own. Standing up, I shake myself off, padding over to the closet and opening it. I need to take my mind off of all of that. The closet walls are a plain white, and a few clothes-hangers dangle from a bar stretched across its interior. Calmly, I pull my jacket off my shoulder--it had been hanging there since I got in--and fit it to a hanger, placing it in my closet. Stepping back, I smirk slightly. I've never had a closet before... Too bad I don't really have anything to put in it. Crossing my arms, I trot over to my window. Next, let's see if I have a decent view. Pulling the curtains aside carefully, I squint slightly as sunlight streams in, dazzling my sensitive eyes. I growl reflexively, flicking an ear in annoyance. Ugh, that's too bright! Shaking my head, I turn my attention back to the window.

"Oh, wow..." A gasp escapes me. Before me, I see the sun streaming across the city rooftops, glowing with soft orange and pink light. Windows glow with artificial, yellow-tinted light, and the sunlight glares from those not lit. My mouth falls open a bit as I stare in wonder at the glimmering beauty before me. From this height, I can see the city sprawling beneath us; it's a massive thing, with tall skyscrapers stretching up in the distance. The residential district is mostly two- to three-story buildings, much smaller than the rest of the city. Most apartments, like this one, rest above their owner's businesses--Rouge, apparently, owns a rather exclusive nightclub of sorts, and her apartment lies just above it. She herself doesn't run it, but leaves that to her employees, who she says are very trustworthy. To me, this seems an unusual setup, but who am I to question the way she lives? I am, after all, only a guest here. Turning back around, I sigh contentedly, looking about at my room. It's so quiet and peaceful here... I smile, trotting over to the bed and easing myself down onto it. Rolling onto my back, I stare at the ceiling, thinking to myself. Peace and quiet--two things I've hardly ever had in my life. This is all so new, I don't know how to react. A roof over my head, a job, friends. If someone told me, years ago, that someday I would have all this, a yawn interrupts my thoughts as I turn, shifting position to lie on my side, hands in front of my face, I probably would have laughed coldly and told them to get stuffed. My eyes drift closed, and as I slowly sink into sleep, I muse, So much can change in such little time...

--------------

"We're almost there, Leaf!" Sky chirps excitedly, kneeling on their cloud. Its light, fluffy material perfectly supports the two hedgehogs' weight as Sky adjusts the bandages wrapped around his chest.

"I know," her second-cousin answers, smiling widely to reveal sharklike teeth as she shakes her head. All six of her long, emerald-streaked spines cascade down her shoulders, and she absently brushes the front ones back behind her shoulderblades. Her neon-green chest-fluff often gets in the way of her hair, and she tries to keep the two separate. Sharp malachite eyes glint as she looks back, cheerful. "I can hardly wait--it's been so long since we've seen little Shadow."

"I know!" The airy hedgehog squeals. "I'm so excited I could pee!"

"Please don't," Leaf grimaces.

"Wh--Of course I won't!" The sky-blue-striped hedgehog laughs. "It's just an expression, silly!" Standing up, the hedgehog directs their cloud, aiming for a rooftop with two dark shapes standing on it. "Besides, that wouldn't be very becoming of a gentleman like me!"

The other hedgehog smiles, lifting one ear. "So, today's a guy day, huh?"

"Yep!" Sky sings, then pauses, looking pensive. "Well, right now it is."

"Good enough for me." Leaf shrugs, preparing to jump off. "I can make the glide from here, right?" She prompts her cousin.

"I'll give you a good tailwind," Sky answers, and the lime-streaked hedgehog leaps forward, hands spread. Beneath her, the trees rustle, as if blown by a gale of wind; leaves rip from their branches, shooting right for the falling hedgehog. Sky lifts one arm, sweeping across his body, and a strong gust aids the leaves in their ascent as they wrap around his cousin. Leaf twirls in the storm of greenery, shooting across the sky in an elegant green arc. She lands on her feet flawlessly, leaves swirling around her in a tornado.

"Nice!" Her 'twin' chirps, applauding. Smoke trails out of his nostrils slightly, and at each word, flames flicker between his teeth. His eyes are glinting with mischief as he continues, "Too bad your little tricks are so very...delicate!" With a maniacal cackle, flames pour from his mouth, incinerating the leaves. His long spines sway with his movement as if they hold no weight, and his permanently-windblown chest fluff quivers with the motion. It resembles his flames, arcing to his left across his chest and curling slightly around his left shoulder.

"Hey!" Leaf whines, avoiding the fire by flipping backwards to land on her feet, pouting. "Why'd you have to go and do that, Inferno?" She sighs annoyedly as he beams at her.

"Burning stuff's fun!" He giggles, playing with a fire at his fingertips. "And since we ventured out in the human world, I haven't had any playtime!" His eyes flash with blazing impulse, but before he can do anything, a massive torrent of water beans him in the side of the head, knocking him to the ground.

"Children, this is no time to mess around," an authoritative female voice sounds from behind Inferno.

"Aw, crap," he grumbles, getting up, steam wafting off his fur. "Sapphire's here."

"Indeed I am!" The azure-streaked hedgehog snaps, the gold rings on her spines clinking. "I was here the whole time, you oaf!" Swinging her scepter, she smacks Inferno upside the head, and he stifles a yelp. Shaking her head, Sapphire snorts. "You ought pay more attention, child." Flicking her sharp gaze to Sky, who has just landed, his cloud disappearing into wispy fog, she continues, "Sky. Tell me how close we are to finding him."

"Yes, ma'am!" Sky salutes cheerfully, bowing slightly in respect. "I've deduced that all we have to do is track the hedgehog named Sonic, and we'll find our Shadow-chan!"

"It'd be Shadow-kun, wouldn't it?" Leaf raises an eyebrow. "Have you even been to Japan?" Crossing her arms, she sighs irritably.

Annoyed, Sapphire clears her throat. "That's not important right now, Leaf." She says sternly as Inferno drags himself to his feet. "Now, Sky. Tell me more about Sonic."

"Hmm, welllll," scratching the side of his fluffy head, Sky frowns, thinking. "He's pretty famous for being the fastest thing alive, and saving the world." He smiles at his great-grandmother. "Does that help?"

"Fastest thing alive, eh?" The regal hedgehog switches her staff from one hand to the other, analyzing. "Alright. Sky, go find Lightning, team up with him and Black for this one. I will find Dark, Pearl and Indigo--from there, we'll proceed to track him." Turning back to Leaf and Inferno, she points her gold spear at them, continuing, "You two will team up with Heart and Soul to find out if Shadow has any residence in this human world. Tell the others to track down people Shadow has recently had contact with--perhaps they can offer some clues. And all of you," straightening up proudly like the queen she is, Sapphire glares out at her younger relatives, "keep in touch. We need to all stay on the same page for this to work."

"Right," Leaf and Inferno growl, nodding.

Sky salutes again, ever cheerful. "はい！" He chirps, and Leaf scowls.

"That's the most butchered pronunciation I've ever heard." She snorts. "It sounds like 'Hy' not 'hoy!' There's no 'o' sound to it at all!" Putting her hands on her hips, she snaps, "You only know Japanese from anime, don't you?"

"Hey, pronunciation varies by dialect!" Sky protests, offended. "And I'll have you know I sometimes listen to JPop too!"

"You're a freakin' weaboo," Leaf sighs, frustrated. "If you'd actually take time to learn the language--"

"Enough!" Sapphire barks, slamming the butt of her staff into the ground, cracking the roof. "All of you, get out of my sight before you annoy me to death!"

"Y-Yes ma'am!" The three stammer, and Sky summons a cloud beneath him, soaring into the sky without a backwards glance. Inferno vanishes in a flash of fire, leaving smoke and brimstone behind, and Leaf pirouettes, pulling burnt leaves along with her, 'borrowing' new ones from plants below. Twirling faster and faster, she spins, until only the leaves are left.

Sapphire sighs deeply, relaxing her posture slightly. "Sheesh... What am I gonna do with them?" Shaking her head patronizingly, she turns to leave, disappearing into a mist of water droplets. "So ridiculous..."

----------

"Hey, wake up already!" Rouge laughs, shaking me gently.

"Huh?" I yawn widely, opening my eyes, dazed. My snowy bat companion is leaning over me slightly with a grin.

"You sleep with your mouth wide open, you know that, right?" She smirks down at me, leaning back as I sit up, rubbing my eyes.

"Wh--I do?" Blinking, I shake myself off, trying to clear my head. I didn't know that, though it would explain why my throat feels so dry.

"Yep. Wiiiide open, like a fish!" She chuckles, and I scowl at her, embarrassed.

"Hmph," I snort, sliding off the bed. "Whatever..." Glancing over at her, I notice that she's changed outfits--I suppose the suit she was wearing is just her work clothes. Now, she ports a plain black tank top bearing the words 'I WANT TO KI|_|_| YOU. options may vary' and some very short shorts. I smirk, trying not to laugh. That's most definitely a Rouge shirt, right there.

"What're you smirkin' at?" She crosses her arms, and I look away.

"Hm, nothing," I answer, walking past her. I can smell food in the main area, and my stomach rumbles, reminding me that I haven't eaten since earlier today when I stuffed myself on those pastries. They didn't really go far.

"For dinner tonight, we've got some lovely Chinese takeout." She walks behind me, her bare feet thumping on the hardwood. "I didn't know what you liked, and you looked pretty peaceful, so I decided to just order their most popular dish for you." Emerging from the hallway, we walk over to her kitchen area. Within it, there's a small table with two chairs, and a bag radiating the scent of oriental food. With a flap of her wings, Rouge soars over my head to land next to the chair furthest from me. Opening the bag, she pulls out two cartons, handing one to me. Steam wafts up from it, and as she sits down she picks up another carton, opening it. "Dig in!" She chirps, and I settle myself into the chair opposite her; almost as a second thought, she pulls out napkins and a couple small, thin wrapped packages, sliding some over to me. Crossing my legs, I gently pry open the waxed cardboard box, and a delicious aroma of chicken and spices drifts up. I glance down at the wrapped object, then back at her; to my surprise, she opens hers to reveal a pair of smooth sticks.

"What're those?" I query, puzzled, picking up my own small paper sleeve.

"Chopsticks," she answers, holding hers delicately between her fingers. "Haven't you seen them before?"

"No," I answer, trying to hold mine the same way she holds hers. It's difficult--I can't even begin to figure out how she contorts her hand like that. The more I try, the less it works, and I feel my cheeks begin to heat up with embarrassment as I fumble.

Rouge stifles a giggle. "Here, handsome, lemme teach you." Leaning forward, she grabs my hand, pulling the chopsticks out of it. "First off, hold your hand like this--" she turns my paw slightly, aligning it so that it looks like I'm about to shake hands with someone. "--and then, put the first chopstick here." She wedges it under my thumb, between the joint connecting it to my palm and the side of my hand. "Now, hold the second one between your thumb and forefinger..." I watch as her blue eyes glitter, intently focused on my hand. She's smirking slightly, and as she gently moves my fingers I can't help but marvel at how very small and slender her hands are. Given her line of work, that's definitely an advantage. "Now, bend your ring finger and little finger under the first chopstick," she curls my fingers for me, and I wince; that requires a bit more flexibility than I have. "Oookay, hold that position, and curl your middle finger under the top chopstick." Pulling back, she beams at me. "Presto! Now you just gotta wiggle the top stick to pick stuff up!"

"Thanks," I say sincerely, looking down at my hand. I'm not sure what kind of witchcraft she pulled, but hey, at the very least I can eat now. Carefully, I pick up a piece of chicken, and it wobbles unsteadily between the chopsticks; concentrating hard, I lift it out of the package, and just as it begins to fall I snap my fangs around it.

Rouge giggles. "Hey, you're getting the hang of it already!" She teases, effortlessly putting a clump of noodles in her mouth. I nod, unable to talk around my food; it's savory-sweet with a spicy undertone, like honey and curry. It's wonderfully flavorful, and as I swallow my bite I reach to pick up another piece. I almost can't eat it fast enough, it's so good! "Don't eat too fast," Rouge chastises me, "or you'll get sick."

"I nev'r ge'sick," I mumble around a mouthful of rice and chicken, and she laughs cheerfully. The rest of our evening is spent like that--even after we finish our food, we sit at the table and talk for a while, about anything, everything, and yet, nothing. It's just time-wasting, but it's the best way I've ever wasted my time. I've forgotten just how much I missed her, and yet it's only been a month or two... So much happens in such little time around here. Or maybe that's just how my life works. I don't really know, but for now I think I'm okay with that.