A Rose And A Thorn

~~~

A Rose And A Thorn

Co-Written by Harley Quinn hyenaholic and Froggy22651

~~~

Harley: Somebody did me the honour of telling me that reading the last chapter of this fanfic was like being in a movie. Somehow that was a great feeling, to get a review like that.

Froggy: Yeah, we won’t mention his name here-

Harley: At least I think it’s a guy…

Froggy: Hey Harley, are you going to put that Automatic ShadAmy fanfic you wrote up here?

Harley: I don’t know. I’m not sure that it’s NC-17 or R. But hey, it’s really funny anyway. Maybe I’ll just insert more swearing…

~~~

Chapter Six: Hot And Heavy

Amy opened the door to her apartment and stumbled in. She sat down on the couch and took off her sandals, looking at them dismally. The walk home had ruined them, but she'd needed to think, "These were only new a couple of days ago," she commented, and tossed them aside.

Shadow's eyes tracked the sandals as they fell, feeling that it was partly his fault that they were now in such poor shape. He could have run her home... but neither of them had really felt like it. He quickly slipped off his jet shoes and set them down near the door. Then he walked over to the couch quietly, and took a seat beside her, sitting back heavily with a soft sigh.

"It's only ten," Amy added, "We're back a whole lot earlier than I thought we would be..."

Shadow didn't need to ask why, of course. The party didn't go as smoothly and happily as they’d hoped, "It's my fault… I shouldn't have gone," he said.

"Don't talk like that," Amy said quietly, "Do you think Sonic got the message?"

Shadow bit back on a sarcastic remark. He seriously doubted that Sonic would give up that easily. Their stubbornness and determination were two traits that he had no problem in admitting they shared.

"If I'd tried to tell him on my own, he'd have laughed me off, or told me I was trying to make him jealous," Amy admitted. After a moment, she suddenly buried her face in Shadow's chest and started crying quietly.

Shadow looked down, taken by surprise by her sudden emotional outburst. Hurt by her distress, he wrapped his arms around her. He gently rocked her back and forth, stroking her quills, "It's alright," he whispered, "Everything is going to be fine."

"I never thought I'd be strong enough to say all that to him..." Amy sobbed, clutching his shoulders, "I thought I'd break down before I got past the first sentence..."

"You are very strong, Amy. It's just that you and others haven't discovered that yet. I have..."

Amy clutched Shadow tighter, breathing in his musky scent as she cried, "You think so?" she asked him, her voice a whisper.

He kissed the top of her head and whispered, "I know so. You’ll get your chance to prove it."

Amy calmed down somewhat as she absorbed this, and looked into his eyes tearfully, "Shadow," she whispered, her voice shaking, "Do you know... how much... I love you?"

Shadow's breath caught in his throat as he looked into her eyes, his own heartbeat pounding in his ears. "You... love me?" No one had ever said that to him. Ever.

Amy nodded, feeling her stomach twist and churn. Once again, she'd put her heart on the line. What if Shadow didn't feel the same way? Worse still, what if he didn't know how to? "Yes... I... I do..." she managed through a throat as dry as sandpaper, “Very, very much.”

“Amy…” Shadow was stunned. Those were words he had always wanted to hear, but now that he had, he didn't know how to respond to them. His mind went blank, "I..." It meant a lot to him. He wouldn't admit it to just anyone, but it was true. And he had been hoping, a hope deep inside him that he clung to, that it would be Amy who would say it to him. Because he knew now how he felt about her, "I love you too, Amy."

"Oh, thank god..." Amy moaned, and pressed her lips against Shadow's, pushing her fingers up into his quills.

He shivered slightly as her fingers slipped through his quills, then gently cupped her face in his hands as he returned the kiss, a warm glow spreading through his chest.

Amy whimpered softly. What was it about Shadow that made her feel this way? Was it the way he was so strong, and yet so gentle? Or that he made her feel safe, as though nothing in the world could harm her? Either way, her heart ached to be close to him, a deeper, far more agonising ache than she had ever felt for Sonic.

For Shadow, everything felt better with Amy around. His past didn't bother him so much, because when he looked at her, he knew he had a future. His failures didn't sting so badly when he looked at what he had succeeded in for her. He didn't feel the need to show off and prove himself to her; she made him feel fine just being who he was. He wrapped his arms around her tighter and deepened the kiss, a soft moan of his joining her whimper.

One of Amy's hands trailed down Shadow's back, pulling him closer, while her lips left his mouth and brushed against his neck and shoulders, "Oh, Shadow..." she moaned softly, "Oh gods, I love you so much..." she whispered, her breath warm against his fur.

Shadow closed his eyes and leaned his head back slightly, baring his throat to her. His body trembled as he felt her warm breath, powerful words of affection carried by it. He purred in response, a smile forming, "I love you too, Amy..."

It felt really good to say that. Amy's touch became more desperate as she heard those words, her kisses trailing over Shadow's chest, over his neck and up to his lips again as her hands gripped his sides firmly.

Shadow melted into the kiss, his hands roaming over her back, stroking her quills, sliding down her back, rubbing and scratching. Her taste and scent flooded his mind, casting away all thoughts that didn't involve her.

Amy's tongue ran over his lips as she pulled him down onto her, stroking his hips. He closed his eyes and leaned his head back slightly, baring his throat to her. He moaned quietly as she pulled him closer, knowing what they both had in mind. It was different now... now, she knew what was happening and was more confident. They both were.

They had already grown closer. The fear was gone. His tongue flicked out and caressed her own lips as he removed his gloves and slid his hands down over her dress slowly. After a few moments, they slid up under it, rubbing her belly in circles. He tilted his head down and suckled her throat, the purring louder and more insistent.

Amy moaned in pleasure just to hear it, removing her gloves and running her bare hands over Shadow's chest. One moved down to his belly, scritching gently as she kissed his shoulders.

Shadow chuckled as she scratched his belly. Something new she had learned; the Ultimate Lifeform was a little ticklish. Smiling, he buried his face in the fur of her shoulder, breathing in her sweet scent. Shadow pushed himself up, and his hands ceased roaming her body, beginning to remove the clothing between their bodies instead. He reached behind her, unzipping the back of the tight dress.

Amy could feel her breathing speed up as she wriggled out of it and watched it drop to the floor, her pink strapless bra following it, moaning as his bare hands moved over her breasts, massaging them gently. After a long moment, Shadow leant forward and began to run his tongue over them slowly.

Amy sighed deeply in pleasure and stroked her hands down his body, pushing one between his thighs. A pleased rumble escaped his throat as she touched him there, his breathing speeding up and his loins churning in anticipation. He nuzzled her chest, feeling her rapid heartbeat through it, his own adjusting to match it, "Mmm... I love you..." he murmured, flicking his tongue out against her throat.

"Oh, Shadow..." Amy moaned, "I love you too... so much..." Her free hand pushed down her panties, and they soon fell to the floor too, as she pressed her lips to Shadows once more, probing them gently with her tongue.

Shadow opened his lips, inviting her tongue in. His hands ran up and down her sides as he straddled her, toes digging in to the soft couch, ready to push against it. He hummed into her mouth as they kissed, somehow feeling excited and at peace at the same time.

Amy's tongue slid against his, while her hands rubbed slowly at his crotch, feeling his cock harden. She shivered as his hands brushed her sides lightly; for some reason it aroused her far more than a groping squeeze would have.

Shadow groaned into the kiss, his mind swimming in pleasure and contentment. He could feel her shivering under him, feel her hand against his crotch... her touch was electric, hot and burning; it made his stomach flip, his heart race, and his cock tremble. There was nothing he wanted more than to just be joined with the pink hedgehog who had seen through his darkness to the light hidden deep within. His growing erection pressed against her hand as his tongue slid across hers.

Amy moved her hand away from Shadow's crotch, freeing him, stroking his belly instead, the fingers of her other hand trailing down his spine, spreading her legs beneath him as a shiver ran through her body.

Shadow ended the kiss, pulling away slightly and looking down at her. He slowly got into position, lining himself up, his eyes seeking and finding hers. He swallowed, took a deep breath, and placed his hands on either side of her head. With a grunt and a quick, powerful thrust, he entered her slick passage, smoothly and more confidently than before, but still pacing himself. As he slid inside, he kissed the tip of her nose, softly whispering her name.

"Oh, Shadow..." Amy moaned as he entered her, her breathing speeding up with the pleasure, "Nnnngh... oh... oh... oh... yes..." She braced her legs against the couch, bringing her hips up to meet his, her chest heaving with each gasping breath.

Shadow moaned with her as he began to make love to the pink hedgehog, his fingers digging into the couch, his heart hammering in his chest as he felt the pleasure he’d only recently discovered could exist. They fit perfectly together, and not just physically, but mentally, emotionally, eternally. He began to thrust in and out of her slowly, a simple, ancient rhythm that could make or break lives, "Amy... oh yes... oh, yes… mmm!"

"Shad… oh... Shad… oh... oh... oh..." Amy felt as if his body pressed against hers could make the whole world vanish, leaving just them two. Nothing else mattered except that they were so very close. Her fingers ran through his fur more rapidly with each thrust, "Shad... oh!" she cried out as they started to speed up.

Shadow leaned over her, his hands clutching her sides, his face twisted in a grimace of pleasure as their bodies pushed against each other, their heat and scents mingling together, their gasps and cries of pleasure filling the room. "Nngh! Amy!" Shadow cried out, his moans increasing in volume as he sped up, craving more of her, trying to get closer.

Knuckles scowled as he tramped up the stairs to Amy’s apartment. How had he let Sonic talk him into following Shadow and Amy home? Oh, yeah… to make sure that Amy would be safe with Shadow. The bruises on her neck had made his skin crawl. And then when nobody had spoken up… the cowards… he thought to himself. They’d just let her leave with that black-and-red psycho without asking a single question.

"Shad... oh! Shad... oh!" Amy cried out, wishing she could melt into him so that they could stay this way forever, aroused more each time he cried her name, "I... love you! Oh god!" The neighbours to her apartment were thumping rather hard on the walls, but by now it was quite impossible for either of them to stop, trapped in a utopian pleasure just for two.

Shadow didn't care if the whole damn world wanted them to quit. This was their time together, and no one was going to take it from them, "Amy! I... oh god… I love you... too!" he gasped, the words seeming to amplify the pleasure, increase it ten-fold, "Nngh! Oh! AMY!" He practically screamed her name, loving the sound of it, loving her. His thrusts reached a frantic, desperate pace, his breath rasping against her ear.

Knuckles stopped outside the door. There was an awful lot of noise coming from the apartment… a sort of groaning, panting, creaking noise. He pressed his ear against the door, his eyes wide. Then he heard Amy screaming.

"Shad... OH!" Amy screamed to each thrust, feeling her body reach that terrifying thrill again. This time she welcomed it, knowing already the agonising pleasure it would bring her, "SHADOW! I... OH GOD!” Tears of pleasure began to pour down her cheeks, “OH GOD, PLEASE!!!”

“Hang on, Amy!” Knuckles shouted, “I’m coming!” He punched in the door with ease. And stopped, almost swallowing his tongue, “Oh, fuck…”

“PLEASE SHADOW, oh YES!” Amy screamed again at the dark hedgehog, the two of them not even noticing Knuckles standing there with his mouth wide open, his muzzle rapidly turning the same colour as the rest of his body. It continued for several seconds.

“Oh, god…” Knuckles muttered, covering his face with a hand.

As they realised he was there, they came to an abrupt halt. Shadow pulled out of Amy slowly, looking shocked at first, and then the shock turning to anger, a glare forming on his face.

"What... do you think you are doing in here?" Shadow growled, his red eyes almost glowing in anger as he fixed them on the red echidna.

"I... uh..." Knuckles tried to think straight, "Heard noises..."

"I’ll bet you did," Shadow snapped back as he sat up on the end of the couch, his arms crossed over his chest. After a moment of thought, he crossed his legs too.

Amy sat up, trying to cover herself with her hands, "Knuckles, why are you in here?" she asked him.

"I thought... I thought..." Knuckles tried to get a grip on the situation; two naked hedgehogs having sex on the couch. He’d never been so damn embarrassed in all his life, "I heard you screaming. I thought you were in trouble or something."

"In other words, you thought I was hurting her," Shadow stared coldly at the echidna, unblinking.

"Well... Yeah! What was I supposed to think?" Knuckles riled up again, "You tried to hurt her before - I know you put those bruises on her neck!"

"I did not try to hurt her!" Shadow yelled at the guardian, "A foolish assumption..."

If there was one thing that got Knuckles really pissed, it was thinking that people were calling him stupid, "Are you calling me stupid?!" he shouted, "Amy! He hurt you, didn't he?!"

Amy, who was still trying to cover herself, looked down, "A little," she admitted, “But-“

"See?!" Knuckles yelled.

"It was an accident!” Shadow almost screamed, “I was waking up from a nightmare! I didn't even know it was her! And you are in no position to lecture me on self-control, Knuckles. I'm not the one who fell for Eggman's lies... What is it, twice now? Three times?"

Knuckles suddenly looked as if he was going to explode, "Shut up! That's got nothing to do with this!" he insisted.

"It has everything to do with this," Shadow said, "Everyone at that party immediately assumed that I hurt her. Those bruises could have been put there by anybody, but you all immediately pointed fingers at ‘that psycho hedgehog’, didn't you?" Shadow shook his head, a look of disgust on his face, "I would never hurt Amy on purpose."

"You're capable of blowing up an entire planet, I suppose someone like you would class raping a woman as a step up from there!" Knuckles raged.

“You thought…” Shadow's eyes widened. Suddenly, Knuckles found himself pinned against the wall, the hands around his throat picking him up off his feet, "Bastard! I should kill you where you stand!" Shadow snarled at him, starting to squeeze. After only a few seconds, the echidna was already turning purple in the face.

"Shadow!" Amy suddenly shouted. He turned to her, still pinning Knuckles up. She was holding two large cushions against her body, "Let him go!"

Shadow's eye twitched, hearing her command. After a moment's hesitation, he put Knuckles back down, took a step back, and took a deep, calming breath.

Knuckles wheezed a few times, his face returning to its normal colour, "Geez," he gasped, and looked over at Amy, "Aren't you scared of him?"

"No," Amy answered, "Shadow, Knuckles was just being... protective. It's not entirely his fault he goes overboard," she turned to Knuckles, "And Knuckles, Shadow was not hurting me. We were... making love..."

Knuckles nodded, absorbing this information, "Uh-huh..." he muttered, "I guess... I guess that's okay then..."

Shadow closed his eyes and nodded. He was calm and in control of his emotions again. As before, Amy had been his better half; she endowed him with the self-control he sometimes lacked. With but a word, she could stop his fury, "Just a misunderstanding..."

Knuckles regained his confidence, "But you'd damn well better not hurt her - 'cus I swear, I'll beat your black-and-red ass six feet under if you do."

"I hope you would..." Shadow said quietly

"You what?" Knuckles asked, looking confused.

Shadow tried again, with less subtlety, "If I were to become crazed enough to hurt Amy, I would want you to punish me."

“Right,” Knuckles said, getting it. He turned to Amy, “Amy, if he ever hurts you, just tell me, I'll kill him,” To Shadow, he said, “You'd better treat her better than Sonic did - that's not too tough for you, is it?”

“Treat her better than Sonic did? I could best him in my sleep,” Shadow said, a small, cocky grin appearing.

Knuckles’ face twitched into a brief smile, and he turned to leave, "Uh... sorry about the door, Ames," he said, looking at it. He'd all but busted it off its hinges when he'd punched it open. Now the lock was broken, “It won’t cost too much to fix, right?”

"You broke it, you can pay for it," Amy replied.

"Uh… Yeah, okay," Knuckles walked out, closing the door as best he could as he left.

Shadow sighed in relief, "I'm sorry about that, Amy..."

"It's hardly your fault," Amy reassured him, "Knuckles is a pot waiting to boil over, he practically came here looking for a fight. He always assumes the worst, and nothing will convince him that he's wrong. You handled it well, considering," she told him.

"If you say so," Shadow said. He had nearly killed Knuckles right then and there. Knuckles was always insulting people, his mouth was bigger than his brain… but when he’d accused Shadow of being capable of something like rape…

He’d just seen red. If Amy hadn’t told him to stop he knew he might have snapped the echidna’s neck - hardly what he would call handling it well. He turned to face Amy again; she was still holding those pillows in front of her. Somehow, he doubted they could just continue what they were doing. The mood had been somewhat shattered.

Amy sat down, "Shadow, don't feel bad. My whole apartment would have been trashed if you and him had started fighting. And one of you would have got badly hurt."

Shadow sat down next to her, feeling drained. "I know... but I shouldn't have lost control like that..."

Amy put down the cushions, "You're getting better," she told him, and hugged him from behind again, comfortingly.

Shadow smiled and leaned back, resting his head on her shoulder, "Thank you," he said before giving her cheek a kiss.

Amy nuzzled his cheek, "True strength isn't about how much power you have in your fists," she told him softly, "It's about how much power you hold in your heart. And you are so strong, Shadow. I know you can get through this."

"It's your faith in me which gives me strength," he said quietly, nuzzling her. He turned around slightly and pressed his lips against hers, pulling her into a deep kiss.

Amy sighed into the kiss, tasting Shadow again. His scent drove away memories of the unpleasant confrontation between him and Knuckles, for all she could feel was his body, so close to hers. She broke the kiss after a long moment and lay down beside him, cuddling up to him and smiling gently.

“I love you, Shadow,” she told him.

Shadow smiled back, lying down with her, cuddling and just enjoying her presence. The night certainly hadn't been a complete loss...

Besides, there was still a lot of night left to enjoy.

“I love you too, Amy…”

~~~

Harley: Sex scenes! Aren’t they like, orgasmic?!

Froggy: Not when Knuckles walks in on them.

Harley: True, true. Oh, I can just see the look on his face…

Froggy: Hey, people, if you can see the look on his face too, review and say so!