ARAAT2: Eclipse - Part 2

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A Rose And A Thorn 2: Eclipse

Co-Written by Harley Quinn hyenaholic and Froggy22651

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Froggy: Heart of Darkness asked a very good question. Why DO we sacrifice such a huge part of our lives to bring you a weekly instalment at AFF.net? Well Heart, do you read any online comics? Or do you ever visit deviantart? Or the Pit of Voles? We give up our time for the same reason they do - love.

Harley: Aw… We love writing, the both of us. We love it enough to turn out a couple of chapters a week. We’re not doing this to make you happy. We’re doing this because it makes us happy. It gives some purpose to our otherwise empty, pathetic lives.

Froggy: Hey! Anyway, we just happen to be good enough, that it makes you happy too. I think few of you can actually really deny that it’s good to see good fanfiction. Writing bad fanfiction is just… cruel. It’s unfair to both readers and writers to praise it.

Harley: This fanfic is now complete. You are reading the Epilogue, also known as the Prologue to the next fanfic. And the first chapter of that is up. You will read it. Please?

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Epilogue…

Amy opened her eyes slowly. It took a little while for her to adjust to her surroundings, but she realised soon enough that she was lying in Shadow's warm embrace, on the couch. She sighed in pleasure and shifted a little closer to him, remembering last night. Everything was so warm and smelt of Shadow. She began to stroke his spine gently.

Shadow's ears twitched, and the red and black hedgehog began to purr quietly, shifting slightly in her embrace, still asleep.

Amy smiled, and reaching up, took the edge on one of his ears into her mouth, suckling on it gently, still holding Shadow close to her.

Shadow shifted again, his mouth opening to release a quiet sigh. He snuggled closer, making a sound something like a moan. Finally, the hedgehog's eyes opened with a sharp gasp. His sleep-fogged mind took a moment to remember the night before and figure out just what was going on. Once he had it all together, Shadow smiled. "Mmm... Good morning, Amy..."

"Good morning, Shadow," Amy savoured the feeling of his warm body pressed against hers, "Did you sleep well?"

"Very well," was his reply as he kissed her on the cheek, still purring, "I trust it was the same for you?"

Amy just nodded, smiling. She rested one hand on his chest, feeling it vibrate slightly under her touch, "I wish I could do that," she said softly.

“What, purr?” Shadow raised an eyebrow curiously, "You mean you can't?" he asked her, surprised, "I just figured that was something that all hedgehogs did."

"Oh, no," Amy nuzzled his chest, "Hedgehogs can't purr. You must be special."

The purring increased, and he couldn't help but smile, "Another unsolved mystery. My life seems to be full of them... I'm starting to think that I'll never learn the full truth."

"We'll get your memory back from GUN," Amy replied reassuringly, "Then you'll learn the truth."

The purring stopped. Shadow's eyes shifted away from her, "...What if there is something in my past that I don't want to remember?"

"We all have things in our past that we don't want to remember," Amy answered, "Very few people are lucky enough to pick and choose their memories."

Shadow's voice carried a hint of nervousness... of a safely-guarded fear, "What if... there was a good reason for GUN to lock me away?"

"They locked you away because they were afraid of you," Amy sighed, "That was all the reason they needed."

"I guess you are right," he said with a nod, gently resting his forehead against hers. Amy always managed to comfort him, to say the right things that made him feel better. This time was no different. But there was still that hint of doubt in his mind that wouldn't go away.

Amy stroked Shadow's ear, "You are a good person," she whispered, "And nothing you do or say will ever convince me otherwise."

Shadow purred again and leaned in to kiss her lips. It was times like this that reminded him exactly why he loved her. Ending the soft kiss, he looked into her eyes, "I've learned something new about my past. ...I have to go to the ARK soon."

"What? Why?" Amy looked confused.

Shadow closed his eyes, "There are others... other experiments locked aboard the ARK. GUN knows about them now. They are going to destroy them, or worse, try to turn them into brainwashed weapons. I can't allow that. They deserve a chance at a life of their own just as much as I do. And... they may have the answers I've been searching for."

Amy looked down, "Then you must help them," she said quietly, "But this time, Shadow... this time you must take backup. I won't let you go off on your own again - certainly not into space."

Shadow swallowed and nodded his head, "Yes, I agree. I'm not going to be that stupid again. I'll ask… Espio to come with me."

Amy kissed his forehead, "I love you," she said softly. Suddenly, there was a knocking at the door.

Shadow turned towards the door, his eyes narrowing, "Stay here," he told Amy as he slipped out of her embrace and stood up. He opened the door a crack to see Lady Vanilla, Cream and Cheese standing there. They were pushing a small pram.

Cream waved, "Hey Mister Shadow!" she said cheerfully.

Shadow relaxed. Despite Amy's assurances, he wasn't so sure that GUN wouldn't try to take them again. It was going to be a long time before he could completely relax again... "Hello, Cream, Lady Vanilla. What brings you here?"

"We've brought back Eclipse," Lady Vanilla said simply, "Amy phoned us yesterday, saying you'd be better by today. I trust you've made a full recovery?"

Shadow's eyes brightened at the mention of Eclipse. Opening the door fully, he said, "Yes, I'm doing very well. Thank you for taking care of my son, Lady Vanilla. I owe you for this."

On hearing the voices, Amy had dashed into the bathroom, wiped most of the mess off her belly, and pulled on a pink dressing gown. She returned, her face breaking into a massive smile, "Oh, my baby!" she almost ran to the pram as it was wheeled in, and picked up Eclipse, cradling him in her arms, "My baby... Our baby..."

"Nonsense," Lady Vanilla smiled at Shadow, "I'm glad I could be of help during this... difficult period," she said to them both.

Shadow smiled warmly, seeing mother and son reunited. He could feel ripples of comfort and love coming from both of them, warming his core. It felt good, very good. He walked over to his lover, wrapping an arm around her shoulder, the other reaching over to gently pet their child. "Let's just hope that such a difficult period never happens again," he replied, looking over at the rabbit, "If you ever require my assistance, just ask, and I will be there."

Amy cradled Eclipse between them. He was gurgling quietly and reaching out, tugging gently on Shadow's fur. His father chuckled quietly, letting the baby play with his fur. "It's good to see you again, little one. Did you enjoy your time with Vanilla?" Strangely enough, Eclipse replied in the form of feelings, emotions. Eclipse did like Vanilla and Cream, but he had missed his parents. He was glad to be back with them too.

The joy on Amy's face was indescribable. She couldn't possibly feel what Shadow was feeling right now, but she looked up, "We're a family again," she said softly.

"Yes..." he replied, "And nothing is ever going to break that."

"Well, we’ll be going now," Lady Cream said, slightly louder, "Oh, and Amy, can I see your left hand?" Amy held out her hand, displaying the ring, "Oh, so Cream wasn't exaggerating! I wish you both all the happiness in the world."

"Farewell, Lady Vanilla," Shadow said, "Until the next time we meet, I wish you well."

Lady Vanilla left with a smile, and Cream left with a smile and a wave. As they went down the corridor, Shadow heard Cream ask her mother, "Mommy, what was that white stuff on Mister Shadow's tummy?"

“Uh…” Lady Vanilla hesitated as they walked down the hall.

Shadow didn’t hear her answer. His eyes widened, and he looked down at his stomach, "Oh... whoops," he mumbled.

Amy chuckled as she saw the mess, "Don't worry about it." She sat on the couch - which really needed a good scrubbing to get rid of the smell - and held Eclipse close. He nuzzled at her chest, and after a moment she opened up her dressing gown and held him closer, "I've missed this," she said, looking up with tears in her eyes, "I've missed us all being together."

Sitting beside her, Shadow said, "We've had so little time just to ourselves. I hope to change that soon. We've earned our peace."

"A hundred times over," Amy said softly. She looked up at Shadow, "I love you, Shadow. And I hope you find the answers you need. But never forget that where you really belong... is right next to me and Eclipse."

A spike of guilt stabbed through him as those words reached his ears. He very nearly did forget that in the hellish GUN lab, "I will never forget that, Amy, I promise. No matter what I learn, my place and my purpose are both right here."

Amy relaxed as she fed Eclipse, rocking him gently in her arms, "Hurry back," she said, "I'll miss you so much while you're gone."

"I will return as soon as I can," Shadow promised her. Finding it hard to do, he turned from his beloved family and began preparations to rescue other, previously unknown relatives. His fur washed, his shoes and gloves on, the emerald ready, and Espio phoned and explained to, Shadow waited outside for the chameleon to arrive.

Amy followed him to the door, Eclipse in her arms and tears in her eyes, “You’re sure about this?” she asked him.

“Completely sure,” Shadow tilted his head up slightly and said, "I know you are there, Espio."

"Humph," Espio said as he turned to his normal colours at Shadow's side, "How did you detect me?"

"I'm not sure," the hedgehog admitted, "I just... felt your presence. My powers have been changing, growing, improving."

The ninja narrowed his eyes, contemplating this. His hedgehog friend had explained to him the effects of the drug GUN forced him to take over the phone, and the increased power they gave him. Now it had allowed Shadow to find Espio, no easy task when the reptile didn't want to be found, "I must improve my skills then, to escape your notice. But that will have to wait. We have business on the ARK to attend to."

"Indeed," Shadow said quietly, a slight growl to his voice. He turned and looked behind him at a tearful Amy, looking into her eyes. He gave her a short nod and sent comforting feelings in her direction, hoping she got their meaning. He would return to her. No matter what. Turning away once more, he said confidently, "Let's do this." He held his green chaos emerald out in front of him, its awesome power flowing into him, granting him the ability to warp time and space itself. The world opened up to him, Shadow focused on his destination, the place of his birth, the place of his greatest tragedy, and the place his destiny seemed to be permanently intertwined with.

"CHAOS… CONTROL!"

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Harley: ALL RIGHT! Done and done. Except for the NEXT one. Now we know what Shadow’s past is, we can integrate it into the fic!

Froggy: Go listen to… um… “She Will Be Loved” by Maroon 5. Yeah, that’s it. That’s what you want. Sums the whole thing up quite well.