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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Harley: Well, it’s nice to see you back Kitty. A most intelligent review, considering you’re out of practice. So, you win! It’s great to know that the reflection on Amy’s past was well received and that you actually thought about it.

Froggy: The cliché has hit the fan. And of course, it’s time to clean it up. What’s real? What’s a lie? What’s that sound at the door? It’s the sound of mindfucking being taken to a more literal level.

Harley: And if you think this is as bad as it’s going to get, you’re wrong.

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Chapter Fifteen: Three Days Later…

Shadow's eyes opened slowly. He could have sworn he heard the door to his room opening. He gave an exhausted sigh, and turned to face it. Amy was standing there, and Sonic and Tails were standing right behind her. There was a nasty expression on Amy's face.

"Amy…" he whispered painfully. She strode over to the bed, "Amy?"

"We saved you from that place," she said, her voice soft and yet dangerous, "And how have you repaid us? Attacking us, insulting us, running away from us… not very nice of you, is it? I figure we should take our own payment."

"Huh?" Shadow watched as Tails locked the door.

Sonic and Tails grabbed Shadow's arms, and pinned him to the bed, not that it took much effort. Amy stripped herself of her clothes quickly, and Shadow realised her dreadful intention, "NO!" he screamed, "Oh gods please no!"

"Shut up," Amy snarled, and climbed on top of him. Her touch, which had once been so gentle and soothing, was groping and painful, "This is all your fault, you know," she accused him, a wild gleam in her eyes, "If you'd kept Sonic from raping me, I wouldn't know how to do this."

"Amy…" Shadow moaned, and his voice rose to a scream, "Amy! Amy, please, NO!"

But she ignored him, and came down on him hard. It was Amy, and it should have been gentle and loving… but the way she forced herself on his tired, aching body was not gentle. He was in too much pain already; why was she doing this?!

She pulled off him, and then he was flipped onto his front. Fingers investigated his cock and anus painfully. They didn't even want pleasure for themselves - they just wanted to make him suffer.

Shadow began to scream in despair…

~~~

Shadow woke up with a scream, sitting up swiftly. After a moment, he sighed in relief. It was just a nightmare, not real. It felt real enough. The worst part was that it was getting harder and harder to tell dreams from reality, even after he woke up.

Groaning, the hedgehog rubbed his aching head. It had been three days since he had run off from the hospital in a rage, and in that time, the drugs he had been given were slowly leaving his system. It still hurt though, and he was afraid for the pain to leave. The pain kept him distracted, helped keep his mind off of the image of Sonic and Amy... Why? Why did she betray him? Why, after all the effort she put into saving him and their son? Why, after what Sonic did to her? It made no damn sense to him; it just made his head hurt worse and his heart feel heavy. For once, he just wanted to forget his past, all of it.

He almost regretted leaving the hospital now; he couldn't run, his head was constantly hurting, and he didn't feel right. He became aware of a shadow suddenly blotting out the sun, "Mister Shadow?" a low voice rumbled.

Shadow blinked and looked up at the mountain of purple fur that had spoken to him. "Wha..? Yeah. Who are you?" he asked

"I'm Big, and Amy said to me, 'Big, if you see Shadow, look after him and call me'." the huge cat replied simply. He was holding a fishing rod over his broad shoulders, and a large frog sat beside him.

Oh yes. Big. Shadow remembered the feline, a friend of Amy's who she met in some adventure before he showed up. Kind and loyal, but slow, and dumb as a box of rocks, "Good for you,” the hedgehog grumbled as he got to his feet, looking around at his surroundings. He had run out of the city and into the woods, settling down for the night near a creek. It was peaceful out there, away from the constant noise and people. Shadow appreciated the quiet privacy, "I'm not going back to her."

"She was really sad," Big pointed out, "She kept saying she didn't mean to make you unhappy, and she wanted to explain."

"There's nothing to explain," Shadow said, turning his back on the cat and crossing his arms over his chest, "She betrayed me."

Big just shrugged, "You wanna come home with me?" he asked, "I'll call Amy and she can come over and explain."

"I don't want her to explain!" he growled, "I can't believe she still chose that stupid blue freak after what he did to her! Has she completely lost her mind?!"

"She doesn't love Sonic," Big replied. He bent down and picked up Shadow, "She just wants to talk to you."

The hedgehog struggled against the cat, surprised by Big's strength, "Let go of me! I said I don't want to!"

"Don't be such a baby," Big admonished him, "Besides, you're not well. Amy said so."

"I am the Ultimate Lifeform!" he declared, trying to wiggle his way free, "I can withstand anything! Now unhand me, or I'll... I'll...."

The cat paid him absolutely no attention, his grip merely tightening on Shadow. He began to walk off through the jungle-esque surroundings, eventually arriving at a tiny hut that didn't look big enough for a person half his size. He crawled under the door frame, and Shadow realised that much of the hut was underground, with large windows set high in the wall.

Shadow sighed, giving up his struggles. He had to admit to himself that he wasn't in good shape to resist. So he would wait, and Amy would come, and then they would have their confrontation. He couldn't run forever; so he might as well get it over with now.

Big placed him carefully on a large, comfortable, purple bed, and picked up a phone, "Amy is very sad without you, Mister Shadow," he said, before dialling her number.

"No, she’s not," he muttered bitterly, curling up and glancing out of the high window, “She already has her knight in shining armour, and it’s not me…” he sighed, “I should have known better…”

He didn't hear the conversation between Big and Amy, but when the cat turned back to him - although he couldn't see it - he frowned, "Why are you so angry at her?" the large cat asked slowly.

"Because when you love someone, you don't go and kiss on someone else. Particularly if the other guy raped you in the past. She betrayed me, after all I've done for her... I suppose it shouldn't be a surprise."

"Why?" Big asked, curious.

"Humph... Betrayal just seems to be an inevitable occurrence in my life,” the hedgehog said quietly.

"You need a friend," Big said calmly. There was a croak, and the frog jumped into his arms, "Froggy keeps me company when I get lonely."

"Friends die. Lovers turn away. Creators manipulate me," he replied, "Who could I possibly trust?"

Big looked puzzled, "You could always trust yourself," he suggested.

"I already do,” the dark hedgehog said with a low chuckle, "I meant who else could I trust."

About an hour passed before somebody knocked on the door, and Big opened it, "Amy!" he cried out, "Come in. Mister Shadow doesn't want to talk to you but he's here anyway."

Amy climbed into the little house, wringing her hands, "Shadow, please, let me explain," she begged him.

Shadow was silent for an uncomfortably long moment, blankly staring at the wall. Finally, he did speak in a quiet, strained voice, "Fine. Speak."

Amy took a deep breath, "I was talking with Sonic. He was cutting himself and I made him promise to stop. And then... then I forgave him. I had to. I couldn't keep on remembering like that..." Amy sniffled and wiped her eyes, "And then he asked me to kiss him. He said he wanted to know what he missed out on. And I told him I'd think of you and kiss him, because I felt sorry for him."

"You feel sorry for him? The man who betrayed and raped you in the back of that flower shop? To hell with Sonic!" Shadow growled, "He doesn't deserve your kindness, he doesn't deserve your respect, and he certainly doesn't deserve your forgiveness."

"It wasn't about forgiving him, Shadow," Amy blew her nose daintily on a tissue Big gave her, "It was about forgetting. What was I supposed to do? Remember forever and just let it boil inside? I don't want to have to remember!"

Shadow continued to lay there in silence, deep in thought. No, of course she didn’t want to remember. After several heartbeats, he spoke up, "...So you don't really care for him like that?"

"No," Amy replied, without the slightest hesitation, "Sonic means nothing to me. I never wanted to hurt you."

"Well you did,” Shadow muttered sourly.

Amy took another deep breath, and knelt beside the bed, "Kissing Sonic meant nothing to me," she said simply, "So I can't be sorry for it. But I never..." her voice shook slightly, "I never meant to hurt you..." she choked on her tears, "I'm so sorry that I hurt you..." she whispered.

Shadow released a soft sigh and slowly sat up, facing Amy. She said sorry. She did. She knew it was wrong, "It's alright,” he told her, "Just... don't do it again, ok?" Then he pulled the pink hedgehog into an embrace, "Please, don't ever do it again..."

"Never..." Amy whispered, "I never... I never... Oh gods, I was so stupid... I almost lost you again..."

"I would have come back, eventually,” he whispered into her fur, holding her tightly, "I could never stay away from you for long."

"Please come home with me Shadow," Amy murmured, still holding him, "Not to the hospital; back to our real home. Where you'll be safe and I'll look after you..."

The dark hedgehog nuzzled her cheek, running his fingers through her quills, sighing in relief. "Yes. Let's go home. I've been away from it too long."

Amy helped Shadow to his feet and turned to Big, "Thank you so much, Big," she told him, "If there's anything I can do for you..."

Big considered this offer for a few seconds, "I... I need a new fishing rod," he said slowly.

Shadow smirked, "We'll get you one as soon as we can,” he promised the feline.

Amy smiled. Big never had been one for extravagances. She helped Shadow out of the little hut, and he saw a taxi waiting just outside, "I came as fast as ever I could," she said, and blew her nose again, helping Shadow in.

"I know," he replied, smiling slightly and sliding into the cab, allowing her in next to him, "I guess... I'm sorry, too."

"Why?" Amy asked, "You don't have anything to be sorry for."

"I might have overreacted. I tend to do that,” he said, “I should have listened to you, but… I needed to get away.”

"Tch..." Amy kissed him on the cheek as the taxi drove away, "It wasn't your fault. Those horrible drugs that GUN put in your system must be playing merry hell with your emotions."

"Oh, you have no idea,” he said with a tired shake of his head, "I just hope those jerks leave us alone from now on..."

We should be so lucky, Amy thought doubtfully, her arms around Shadow. It was quite a long drive home, but nonetheless it was uneventful. She paid the taxi driver and climbed out.

Shadow slowly climbed out after her, limping towards the door of their home. It felt like it had been a thousand years since he had last seen it.

Amy opened the door quickly, "You probably need a real lie down in a real bed," she said, "You've been gone three days. Please, use mine."

Only three days... incredible, "Oh thank you, Amy,” he said quietly as he made his way towards their bedroom, dropping down onto the bed with a loud sigh, sinking into the covers. It was a little slice of heaven for the dark hedgehog’s aching bones.

Amy sat beside him, resting one cool hand on his forehead, "Would you like a bath?" she asked him, gently, "It'll clean you up and relax you."

Conflicted between falling asleep and having the bath, he decided on the bath. After three days without one, he was beginning to smell, and this way, he would get to spend a little more time with Amy. He slid off the bed and nodded, letting her lead him.

Amy led him into the bathroom and turned on the taps, running the bath until it was half-full. She tested the warmth of the water with her hand, "There," she smiled, "That should be just right."

Removing his shoes and gloves, Shadow climbed into the bath and smiled as he slipped into the warm water, feeling it ease his weary body, "Oh, that's so much better," he smiled.

Amy's smile became broader, and she stepped behind him, rubbing his shoulder firmly with her fingers, working on muscles that had cramped up and twisted over the last week, "I missed you so much," she told him gently.

Shadow sighed happily, feeling her loving hands rub out the tension from his body, "Missed doesn't begin to describe the feeling,” he murmured.

Amy pulled off her gloves and wet a sponge, moving it over Shadow's spines, "You don't need those silly doctors," she said calmly, rubbing his back hard, "What you need is people who love you and care about you."

He certainly wouldn't argue against that. If he saw another sterile, white room, he was sure he'd vomit on the spot. The dark hedgehog shivered as she ran the sponge down his back, happy to be pampered after the recent days of hell. It wasn't what he was hoping for in the days before and following their engagement, but he supposed it had all turned out alright in the end.

Amy ran the sponge over his quills carefully, then his face, then the fur on his chest, "I love you," she told him, "And I will love you forever. All I want in return is for you to love me back."

Smiling up at the pink hedgehog, he said, "You have it, Amy. I love you very much and always will." Pulling his hand out of the water, he reached up and caressed her cheek.

Amy closed her eyes and nuzzled the wet hand on her cheek, smiling. After a few seconds, she bent forwards and kissed Shadow tenderly on the lips.

Shadow gratefully accepted the kiss, pulling her closer and deepening the kiss, being careful not to pull her in after him. He kissed her as if afraid it would be their last, and after his time in captivity, it seemed like a healthy fear for him to have.

"Don't be scared, Shadow," Amy whispered, feeling his fear, "I'll protect you... I promise..." She stroked his cheek gently, as her other hand worked its way down his spine.

Shadow nuzzled Amy, soothed and reassured by her words. He had learned quite a bit about his own mortality, and he knew he couldn't assume that he was invincible any longer. There was more at stake now then just his own life, "Thank you, Amy..."

Amy buried her muzzle in Shadow's fur, breathing in his scent. Before the bath he had smelt, quite frankly, as if he had rolled in dog filth. But now he smelt clean and fresh again, with that musky scent she could only ever describe as 'Shadow'.

They held each other close like that for a long moment, totally oblivious to the fact that Shadow was getting Amy soaked in the process. They were too relieved to care. Their lives together had come so close to ending in the last few days...they certainly had not emerged unscathed. They both would have long-lasting scars from the past week.

Amy's fingers wandered over Shadow's back, touching the deep cuts from the glass and the whip, "Shadow, I would... I would do anything for you," she said softly, "If I could have stopped them from hurting you... if I could have been there in place of you and Eclipse-"

"You did stop them,” he whispered, "You got me out of there. You saved me when I couldn't save myself." He nuzzled her softly, feeling his back ache dully with the memories of his harsh treatment. "You know I would do the same for you."

"Yes, I know that," Amy agreed, stroking his back with the sponge again. The physical scars would be there for a long time, but she was more concerned about the mental scars.

Almost as if he heard her thoughts, he said, "I'll be alright, Amy. They... they hurt me bad, but with you and Eclipse's help, I'll get through this."

"Eclipse is staying a few nights with Lady Vanilla," Amy replied, "So that you have a chance to recover. You don't have to worry about disturbing him."

"Actually, I'd be more concerned with him doing the disturbing,” he said with a smirk, "Especially late at night when I'm resting peacefully."

"You need as much rest as possible," Amy kissed Shadow on the forehead, "Don't stress over anything."

Any other time, that would be something impossible for Shadow the Hedgehog to do, but he was too worn out to do any stressing, "I won't. Thank you."

Amy murmured quietly and closed her eyes, rubbing her cheek against his, both of them soaking wet. The main difference was that Amy's clothes were also wet. It occurred to her that she'd have to change out of them soon, or she'd catch a chill.

Shadow noticed that the water he was sitting in was getting cold. Had he and Amy been there that long? Smiling at his future wife, Shadow slowly stepped out of the bath tub. "I feel much better now."

Amy hugged him tightly, dampening herself some more, "That means a lot to me," she told him, smoothing down her dress. She picked up a large towel and started to pat Shadow dry with it gently, "Here, raise your arms."

Shadow would have had no trouble drying himself off, but if Amy wanted to do it for him, he had no problem with that. Smiling, he did as she asked.

Amy continued to dry him, working her way down his body, from his tousled quills to the tip of his tail, finally drying his legs with a smile. She finished by pulling the plug out of the bath, and stripped herself off, then pulled her pink dressing down over herself.

All the while, Shadow kept his eyes on Amy, raising one eyebrow, his smile taking on a more mischevious quality.

"Well, I couldn't walk around all wet," Amy smiled, seeing his expression. On an impulse, she hugged him again, cuddling up to him gently.

Shadow cuddled back happily, sighing softly against her cheek. After a moment, the dark hedgehog suddenly scooped her up into his arms and walked out of the bathroom with her

Amy giggled. Suddenly everything felt almost back to normal. She knew it wasn't, of course, but being n his arms ago, feeling his strength around her, it all added to the illusion that everything was perfect.

Shadow set her down on their bed and crawled in after her, pulling the covers over their heads. No longer able to see her, he could still feel her warmth and softness, still smell her scent, and he could still hear her breathing. He pulled her close to him, burying his face in her fur, "I'm home."

Amy giggled again, feeling Shadow's lips move against her breasts, "Yes," she smiled, stroking the back of his head gently, "But then again... I'm always home when I'm with you."

"I love you,” he murmured again, almost seeming to melt in her arms. For the first time in what seemed like forever, he felt at peace again.

"I love you too, Shadow," Amy whispered as he fell asleep in her arms. After a while, she heard his breathing slow a little, becoming soft and regular. He was finally asleep.

~~~

Harley: So, Shadow's home.

Froggy: That could be dangerous for Amy.

Harley: What do you mean, could? By the way - go check out my one-shot, "Not Real, Really". And review it. Right now.