Dealing Hearts

Okay! Hey guys, so I've hopped back into the Sonic fandom recently by watching a little too much Sonic X (my boyfriend and I may or may not have watched every episode in a little more than a week…) and playing Sonic Heroes as if I have nothing better to do (I don't). Due to these recent developments and a lot of extra time on my hands lately, I've decided to write my first ever full length Sonic fanfic! (I already have a one shot titled 'They'll Never Know' if you fancy checking it out!)

Now before we jump right into the story I just wanna leave a quick message about its content. I know that there's a LOT of craziness over couples and pairings in this fandom and I just want to make myself very very clear here: I ship BOTH Knuxouge and Shadouge as well as BOTH Sonamy and Shadamy. Bottom line- I don't have any strong feelings towards one way or the other, all are adorable in my eyes. I don't want to spoil the ending by saying who ends up with who here, but just know that if you have any strong feelings of hate towards any of these pairings you may find some of the content rather aggravating. If this is the case, please keep pointless hate out of the reviews because it won't change what I'm going to write! Constructive criticism is more than welcome though!

This takes place at no specific point in the games timeline, I've hinted at certain plots a bit but mostly I've just made a lot of the world up.

Well then after that long note- let's get started!

Disclaimer- I wish I owned Sonic but I don't, Sega does… duhhh! (I also didn't invent 'The Picture of Dorian Gray'… look it up xD)

Chapter One: Paper

(Shadow)

Almost effortlessly I bolted up the back staircase to the upper floor of Club Rouge as my pursuers followed. I was nearly certain I'd shaken their trail quite a way back, but there was never a guarantee, I'd had to learn that the hard way over the years. Hastily I fumbled with my keys and unlocked the back door as fast as I could: even though I was in a hurry, I still wasn't prepared to deal with the consequences of breaking Rouge's stuff. The main entrance was through the club itself but I couldn't risk going in that way, not with a gang of robots following close behind. Once inside, I bolted the door behind me and took one final glance out of the window. It didn't look like I'd been followed as far as the club, which was a good thing for a number of reasons: a) they wouldn't know where to look for me next, and b) I didn't want them invading the first home I'd ever really had.

For the past few months, since discovering the truth about what happened before the battle on Space Colony Ark, I'd been living with Rouge and working with her and the other G.U.N agents while simultaneously helping her out in the club. To say it was a change of scene for me was an understatement- I'd always gone it alone or swayed more towards Eggman's loyalties- but settling into a routine and having somewhere to come home to felt… really good. I was more at peace with myself, but Eggman still had to try and spoil my fun, and all because he felt I'd double crossed him. It was his robots that had been following me, spying on me from all over the city. I'd been avoiding them for weeks, hoping to keep as under the radar as possible and not alert Eggman to my current residence. As the Ultimate Life Form, the man was more of an annoyance than a threat, and honestly I couldn't be bothered with the fight that would undoubtedly ensue if I was ever found. He was a waste of my time at best.

The upstairs back door of Club Rouge lead into our little kitchen; a somewhat cramped but well-loved room with a white linoleum floor and pale lilac walls. All over the refrigerator, scraps of paper containing important dates and times for the club, G.U.N and our personal agendas were fastened on with round black magnets. Our alphabet magnets (that Rouge insisted on having to make the place 'homely') were cleverly arranged to spell out "Shadow is a douchebag" by the bat herself. It wasn't uncommon for her to leave insulting little messages for me to come home too, but I never lowered myself to giving a response. Instead, I simply mashed the letters up into an incoherent jumble: that way she knew I'd seen it and didn't approve, yet the game still continued.

I made my way into the living room- also rather small- and flopped down on my favourite black recliner. From there, I could reach the book shelf, and I did so without looking. I allowed my fingers to dance along the spines of the books, trusting my natural instincts to pick out a good read. I had gotten into classic literature ever since I had been living here: it was deep, usually dark, and some of it wasn't much older than me. Rouge had a lot of books lying around that were left by the previous owners of the property and she never really read them herself. I felt like the authors just 'got' me, and it was nice to disappear into someone else's world for a while.

I latched onto a book and pulled it towards me: 'The Picture of Dorian Gray' by Oscar Wilde- a story of vanity, callousness, soullessness and revenge- something I could more than relate to. I began to read, pondering as I did exactly what Wilde was trying to prove. Not every beautiful person was 'a face without a heart,' I knew that for certain from personal experience. But vanity… vanity was different from beauty. I was somewhat vain I supposed, so certain of my power that I felt no threat. I also happened to be ageless, against the laws of nature as Dorian was. Perhaps a few months ago I would've believed that I too was doomed, but recently I'd started to feel a little more as though I was finally in the right place.

After reading a few chapters, I was drawn out of my thoughts by a sarcastic call of "honey I'm home". The velvety, feminine voice had come from none other than my housemate, Rouge the Bat. There she stood in the doorway, donning the pink and purple cat suit that she so often wore, the one that clung to her body in a way that was so frustratingly flattering. A lot of guys wanted Rouge, there was no doubt about that, but although her beauty was undeniable, I didn't really see her in that way. She'd been my ally, someone who I could rely on in business situations, and had been kind enough to take me in when I had nowhere else to go. Now it was safe to say we were friends, good friends, and I hadn't had a friend since… well…her. Maria. Part of me worried about getting too close to Rouge for fear that she would be taken from me as Maria was, but then I always remembered that she was more than capable of taking care of herself. Rouge was strong, super smart, and incredibly skilled in battle. She could handle herself almost as well as I could.

I placed the book down on the coffee table in front of me and nodded to greet her.

"You know I don't like that" I responded gruffly, "that cutsey talk or the thing with the magnets." At this she chuckled and plonked herself down on the plush red sofa adjacent to me, crossing her legs as she did.

"Awww don't be mad Shaddy I'm only messing with ya" she replied, playfully punching my arm. At this I smiled a little. I hated to admit it but I loved it when she showed me affection like that, just the slightest touch showing me that she cared and that we really were friends. No one had ever really been like that with me before, her playfulness was refreshing.

"Hmm, I know", I said. Suddenly I thought I should tell her about the earlier events of the day, she would surely want to know that the robot stalking's were getting worse. Maybe G.U.N would finally agree to do something about it. "Hey Rouge I-"

"-Can it wait?" she cut in, suddenly abuzz with excitement. Who was I to take that from her?

"I guess…"

"Good!" she declared, "you will never guess what I've been up to today." I took a moment to think about it.

"Well, if it's not to do with G.U.N, the club or that echidna you're screwing I'm all out of guesses." I teased, actually cracking a full smile. Rouge hated when I brought up Knuckles, largely because she hadn't wanted me to know anything about their secret affairs in the first place. Unfortunately I recently came home to the rather unpleasant sight of them … *ahem*… 'canoodling'… on the couch, and I hadn't let it go since.

"Hey!" Rouge defended, "I'll have you know that Knuckles and I don't 'screw' we 'make love'."

I visibly gagged, at which she chuckled.

"You know that phrase makes me cringe!" I warned, "and anyhow, if there's all this 'love' between your sheets then why aren't you guys official yet?"

"Oh.. you know Knuckie" she mused, attempting to seem carefree but her eyes betraying her. "He's all about that Master Emerald- not that I blame him, that thing is b-e-a-utiful. I doubt he has time for a relationship these days. I guess I'm the same really, this arrangement just works for us, you know?"

"Not really" I admitted.

"Of course you don't" she sighed, clearly put out but still mustering a small smile for me. She was a strong girl, not just physically but mentally. She cared a lot more than she wanted people to think, and the fact that she managed to maintain such a secure front was really a feat in itself. I suppose the two of us had that in common.

"So… about what happened today?" I prompted, changing the subject in an attempt to cheer her up. I never was good at comforting.

"Oh, yeah" she responded, her eyes immediately gaining their sparkle back as the excitement returned. I liked her better this way. "Basically, there's this guy. G.U.N seem to think he's responsible for a major bank robbery downtown, but the police have never identified anyone so it's all risky business- hence why we're involved. It seems a long shot that it is this guy, but Topaz claims they've done their research. Anyway, he's entering this talent show at city hall, he plays guitar and sings or something I dunno, guess it's his day job. In the show you go through three rounds and get to train with professionals- professionals with lots and lots of money-alongside other contestants: that's where I come in."

"So let me guess… you are being entered into the show to spy on him? What on earth are you going to do? You have a talent?"

Rouge looked almost genuinely offended at this, but regained her cocky demeanour in no time.

"I have a lot of talents, honey, ones you can only dream of" she teased. "But seriously: I sing, dumbass, I've always sung, didn't you know?" she asked. I couldn't help but be completely bewildered. To say she'd caught me off guard was an understatement.

"Rouge, no one knew. Name one other person you've told this to" I argued. She struggled to find a response, something that was extremely rare for the legendary sass queen Rouge the Bat. I'd made my point.

"Okay maybe no one knew" she admitted, "but I do sing… though maybe not fantastically." Unless I was greatly mistaken, I could have sworn I saw her blush a little at that moment. If there was one thing I knew about my teammate, it was that she found it extremely difficult to admit defeat. "But the point is" she continued, "I'm there to spy, not to win: I'm only posing as a contestant… though the prize is a pretty hefty sum of cash."

I rolled my eyes and scoffed. Jewels and money meant more to Rouge than anything I had ever known to mean to anyone. She was so materialistic that at times it irritated me. While I was deep, she was shallow, but I supposed that balanced us out. "And how do you expect to win if you're not even that good?"

"Well…" she began, her trademark mischievous look crossing her face. "It may help that I intend to be wearing next to nothing throughout the performance and potentially incorporating a pole dancing routine… we'll see." As she spoke those last words she flashed a wink in my direction. I wasn't even sure if she was joking, I could've sworn that bat just flirts with everyone.

"Oh dear Chaos" I groaned, physically face-palming at the mere thought. As I raised my head once again, I couldn't help but laugh and I guess my laughter was infectious because soon Rouge was laughing too. I rarely laughed, and when I did it only ever seemed to be in her company. The girl was, essentially, a lifesaver, and she interested me to no end. Once she started talking I was always engaged straight away, always eager to know how her stories finished.

When we finally calmed down she uttered, "Well Shadow, I'm glad you get your kicks from my failed attempts to be sexy."

"Oh, they don't fail, I've seen guys that would commit murder for you" I admitted, "but I can't help but notice that you're completely insane. It's always fun to watch your dramas unfold. You're like live reality TV." At this she laughed again, and I couldn't help but join her.

"Shadow, you're a funny guy, why can't you be like this all the time, why always so sour?" she pressed playfully, batting her eyelashes in some sort of attempt to get answers. I simply shrugged and folded my arms, leaning further back into the recliner.

"I just don't have a lot to laugh about" I admitted, another shrug accompanying my blunt statement. "Which reminds me of what I was supposed to tell you earlier" I continued, "I was stalked for a good hour by Eggman's spies today; they almost followed me back here. This is getting out of control."

At this, Rouge became instantly more serious, switching smoothly into business mode. "I still don't get why you don't just beat the crap out of them. It can't be too hard to defeat a few little robots, not for the "ultimate life form"".

"Hey, the air quotes weren't necessary there!" I warned, "I am the ultimate life form. Fact is, I just want to stay under the radar, for now at least, you know? Destroying those spy's would only make Eggman think I'm up to something. More spies would be sent out, more powerful ones, they'd track me down to here."

"And why exactly is that such a big deal?" Rouge questioned, folding her arms across her chest and turning ever so slightly away from me.

"Because maybe I like it here and don't want to risk it being blown to pieces in some pointless battle" I replied. Rouge looked stunned, turning back towards me and listening more intently. "I… I can't lose this life now I've found it, I've never settled before." It was hard for me to admit, just as it was hard for me to show affection, but Rouge needed to know just how much all this meant to me.

Quickly she snapped out of her astonishment and came back with a quick retort. "Aww, do I make Shaddy happy?" she cooed, leaning towards me and patronisingly tickling my chin. I batted her hand away and rolled my eyes, but I knew she could tell that she did, whether I wanted to express it or not.

Suddenly, she practically leapt from her seat, startling me. "I can't believe I haven't told you this yet!" she exclaimed, "this is gonna make you even happier: Amy broke up with Sonic. As in she broke up with him. Never saw that one coming, but from what she told me it doesn't look like they're getting back together any time soon."

It took a while for me to see exactly what Rouge was implying, but to say my heart didn't skip a beat would be lying. I'd admired Amy from afar for a long time, ever since she helped me to get in touch with my humanity and save the world. She was such a good person, it was truly admirable how pure and loving she was. I could never be that in all my life, but to know there were people out there that were gave me hope.

Keeping my face neutral, I replied, "and why would that interest me?" I think I played it off pretty cool.

Rouge wasn't buying it.

"Come on Shadow, I know you like her. It's more obvious than you think."

"I like a lot of people." I lie. I hated a solid 80% of the people I knew and , for the most part, only tolerated the rest.

"But you like like her, don't you?" she teased.

"Is this kindergarten? Have I gone through some sort of time warp? Are you five?" I retorted, a small smirk crossing my features.

"I could help you get together" she offered, completely ignoring my comment. "I'm good at this kinda stuff, I know what girls like." It was probably true, Rouge had more experience in the field of romantic interactions than the majority of people, but when it came to constructing an actual relationship she always fell short.

"Can we drop this? I'm hungry" I interjected. Discussing my feelings had never been on my list of favourite things to do, not even with Rouge.

"Normally, I'd give you hell for changing the subject, but me too" she agreed, "let's make some dinner."

(Rouge)

We didn't make dinner. We ordered pizza. Before Shadow had moved in I'd tried to cook a few more simple things like pasta and noodles, as well as anything you could just bung in the oven. The issue was it nearly always went wrong somehow. I clearly wasn't cut out for cooking, and although I could just about stomach the crap I made, I didn't want to force it on anyone else. Shadow could cook a little, if he could be bothered, which most of the time he couldn't. We lived off of ready meals and takeaway, unless of course I managed to coax Shadow into going to a classy restaurant, but dressing up wasn't his thing.

We sat around the table as we ate, Shadow with his nose in a book, making very little conversation as usual. I was jotting down some important dates and times for G.U.N when I had the sudden thought that one of the talent show days might clash with a live act coming into the club. I stood up and checked the fridge for any notes that might enlighten me but found nothing. G.U.N work always came first; after all I wasn't getting any closer to precious gems working at a nightclub- that part was only really a cover- and would have to be rearranged in accordance with G.U.N's plans.

"Shadow you don't have next week's club entertainment schedule do you? I can't find it." I asked.

"You've barely looked!" he responded, seeming more aggravated with me than he should be. Probably all because I disrupted his 'reading zone'.

"Have to!" I argued. He just stared blankly at me, not even flinching. He frustrated me so much, his aura of calmness and indifference made me feel so disconnected to him at times. It was the price I had to pay for getting close to the Ultimate Life Form- he wasn't as in tune with his emotions as I was, and yet somehow I could see that under it all he really did care for me.

"As it happens, the notes are in my room." He explained in a monotonous voice.

I was seething.

"AND YOU COULDN'T HAVE JUST TOLD ME THAT BEFORE GETTING ALL GRUMPY WITH ME?!" I exclaimed, grabbing hold of his shoulders. He just let out a faint chuckle. He loved to mess with me, perhaps even more than I loved to mess with him.

I shook off my anger and strolled into his bedroom, a small, rectangle shaped room with navy walls and a single bed pushed into the corner. I gravitated towards his desk, my eyes scanning all around as I began to rifle through the sheets of paper that littered the surface. He had so much crap lying around: poetry he'd either written or copied out, sketches he'd done, random business related notes… and that's when I saw it.

Hidden at the very bottom of the pile was not the entertainment rota, but rather a sketch of a certain pink hedgehog. My jaw dropped at first and I couldn't help but scoff. Shadow was such a liar, it was clear he had a thing for the Rose girl, but he would never have admitted it to me. Didn't he trust me? Okay I kinda understood that, I wasn't the most loyal person in the world. But surely he knew that he was an exception to my traitorous ways? He was my best friend; he should have been able to tell me this sort of stuff.

I flipped over the page, seeing text scribbled across the back. As I read through it, a sly smirk spread over my face before I could stop it. This was golden.

Overjoyed with my little discovery, I pranced back out into the kitchen. Before Shadow even looked up at me, I made my dramatic entrance.

I cleared my throat

"Dear Amy" I began. Shadows head immediately snapped up and he dropped his book. He looked mortified, and the torture had barely begun. I would enjoy this.

"I don't know how to put my feelings into words, I've never been very good at it. So here goes…" I had only just started reading when Shadow lurched for me. He was- of course- too fast to try to outrun, and he caught me before I could even make it out of the room. He slammed me against the wall, wrestling with me in an attempt to pull the paper from my hands. I was certainly stronger than I looked, and if I could hold my own against Knuckles, I could hold my own against him.

"This isn't funny Rouge" Shadow growled, anger flaring in his eyes. From the angle I was at, I still had a perfect view of the paper. I continued to read.

"Your beauty is astounding, but your heart is even more so. I have been thinking about it a lot lately, how anyone could possibly be so good, so inspiring." Shadow made another attempt to grab the paper, to no avail, though he did crumple it too much for me to read.

"There's some good stuff in here Shaddy" I commented slyly, "You should give this to her." Finally, he was able to pry the paper from me and quickly retreated to the other side of the room.

"You were never supposed to read that" he sighed. I rolled my eyes and tried to gather my bearings.

"No shit" I replied. "When did you even write that?"

"Months ago" he answered, "before Amy and Sonic started dating. I was going to give it to her, but then that faker had to swoop in and steal my thunder as per usual." I was sure my sympathy showed in my eyes and I carefully walked over to him and put an arm around his shoulder. To my surprise, he leaned into me and sighed once more- defeated.

"I'm sorry" I apologised, "I didn't realise-"

"It's okay," he interjected, waving me off him. "I haven't really thought about her in a while. I've just accepted that a guy like me could never really have a relationship, you know?"

"Don't say that!" I argued, "you have a million qualities girls love." And it was true. Aside from being ridiculously good looking, Shadow was deep, sensitive and artistic, and when he cared about someone, he really cared.

I decided I needed to step in here- even the Ultimate Life Form needed a confidence boost sometimes. My brain began to whir with crazy schemes and ideas.

"Shadow, I have a plan."

Okay guys, that's that for now! REVIEWS are very welcome, I love feedback, good and bad, it really helps! See you soon!