World's Greatest Thief

    Shadow looks deep in thought, clutching something in his hand. It appears to be a pamphlet, but you can’t really see what’s on it from how his grip is obscuring the page. Occasionally, he glances up and around, making sure he’s not blocking any passersby on the street, before his attention returns to the pamphlet. The silent observer that is Shadow the Hedgehog is struggling to make a decision, it would seem.

    Bother him?

❝ hey handsome~ looking for the S&M shop~? ❞ comes the sultry, whispered words from behind the transgenic hedgheog. purple wings flap to pull the white bat away from the hedgehog’s reach, teals eyes watching with amusement. the way he was gripping the paper made it difficult for the woman to decipher the words, so she went with a little goading to see if she can get the man to admit what it was instead of what she suggested.

“…I swear if I didn’t know you…” Anyone else probably would’ve been halfway to the moon by now. Amy simply rolled her eyes, laughing Rouge’s teasing off. She knew of a button she could try and press, but…she might wanna get ready to dodge a kick just in case.

“Speaking of boys slowing down for us. Did Knuckles finally decide to give you the time of day, Rouge? Or are you still trying to grab the Master Emerald just to get him to notice you?~”

well wasn’t amy just continuing to be so adorable. the bat kept that smile plastered on her lips, although her teal eyes watched amy with calculation. she could see where the other was going with that jab, but unfortunately it wasn’t a real button for the bat.

          ╳ ┊ u l t i m a t e  »  “Why are you even doing this..” He’s complaining now but somewhere deep inside he did appreciate the bat’s words and efforts to cheer him up. Compliments about his appearance are not something he heard from other people anyway.. Not that Shadow would accept them from just anyone ( he would only get very suspicious of that person’s true intentions.. ) But with Rouge he could relax. He knows she’s not just trying to use him. They’re a team, after all.

          Unfortunately that doesn’t mean his ‘nasty attitude’ would go away just like that. Shadow rolled his eyes at her. Charming smile? “Saying that would require you to actually see me smile at least once.” And don’t even ask. He won’t do it. “It’s not something that comes to me very.. naturally..” Now that he thought about it maybe she has seen him smile. He’s.. unsure ( his memory was never the strongest part of him. ) Maybe after successfully completing his mission? Eh, it didn’t matter.

          “Besides.. Your smile.” The hedgehog’s expression stayed the same but his tone softened quite a bit. “Yours brightens up the whole room. Makes everything less.. dull.” Because he’s sure he wouldn’t survive GUN’s boring ( but mandatory! ) meetings if she wasn’t there with him to lighten up the mood a little. “So save some of those compliments for yourself.” Knowing Rouge, Shadow probably doesn’t even need to say that, but.. yeah.

❝  as hard as it is to believe, it’s cause i like you, shadow. ❞ she answers with ease, even IF it actually wasn’t all that easy for her to admit, but she felt like he needed to hear that. get a verbal confirmation that there was actually someone on this planet that actually cared and liked  him for who he was. the smile she placed on her painted lips came almost naturally for her, warm and gentle as she looked towards the brooding little teenager before her. 

❝  my pretty eyes aren’t for show, handsome~ you can’t hide them from me. ❞ she cheekily states in a rumble of her deep voice. though his smiles were rather fleeting, she HAS at least seen one or two. perhaps he didn’t really notice that he smiled, his attention more focused on things around him and getting too much in his head. but rouge noticed and she took note of each one.

she expected a few things from shadow. his irritability. his stubbornness. his ineptude for paying attention to certain things. him complimenting her back?? that was one thing she didn’t honestly expect and it froze her in her spot. black lashes slowly fluttering up and down as she blinked in shock. a warmth beginning to form at her chest as the words sunk in a bit more for her and instantly her lips curled into a bright smile.

her purple wings flap to drift her towards the black hedgehog, her long white gloved arms reaching out to try to envelope the hog in a warm hug. absolutely overjoyed by what shadow thought of her. she often got compliments, sure, but they were usually shallow and encompassing around her figure. getting the few heartfelt ones that were actually meaningful were far and between for the bat. 

          ╳ ┊ u l t i m a t e  »  Tch. Whatever. As long as she made no comments about his cheeks getting slightly red, it’s fine. He’s just going to awkwardly stare at the floor as if that would make it better. “Yeah, thanks a lot.” So maybe Shadow’s not a very good listener when he’s angry ( so like 80% of the time.. ) but it’s true people liked to hide things from him so he could be manipulated more easily.. and that has made him just a little paranoid.

          Another one? Very tempting, considering he’s been touch-starved for almost three weeks now and no matter how much he denied needing any physical affection maybe it’s alright if it’s Rouge.. then again her teasing was starting to get too much for him. Sometimes ( like right now ) she made him wish he was deaf. 

          An ear twitched. She was greedy, all right.

          And there’s that signature death stare of his. “You know.. When you repeat the same compliment constantly, I’m starting to feel like I actually look hideous.” Which would probably make sense since he was related to Black Arms, but ugh. “I’ll pass.” Don’t try again later.

and there it was. that signature death stare of shadow’s. the look itself caused her heart to beat fast and not in the way he would be hoping for. her painted pink lips continued to stay spread in a smile, teal eyes watching him carefully as she drifted to the side.

❝  your looks are one of your best qualities. not satisfied? should i switch it up for you, mr. ultimate lifeform? ❞ she questions, drifting towards him now to be level and facing the black hedgehog. she complimented him on his looks because she wanted him to KNOW that he looked good. she knew the guy had a thing for self-hatred and always acting like he’s just some walking weapon, yada yada yada. she just wanted him to feel confident about himself. not as the ultimate lifeform, but as shadow the hedgehog. 

          “And no one bothered to tell me about this.. echidna prophecy?” Honestly he’s not surprised. It’s not like people just told him the important things ( nothing’s ever that easy.. ) even if it concerns him and his creation process. Anger started to bubble up inside Shadow so strong that he clenched his fists and— and.. ..

          “… Hmph.“ The Ultimate lifeform’s too stunned to speak. And that means no Chaos Spear today. He’s just going to.. stand there. Menacingly.

❝ i just did~ ❞ she spoke up. and it wasn’t that no one told him things, its just shadow never STOPPED to listen to people. rouge was like a walking gossip/info hub and if shadow took the time to glean some things from her, than he’d be a lot more knowledgeable on a lot of things.

the bat giggled at the reaction she got. was that...did she DARE to see a hint of blush on the ultimate lifeform’s cheeks? oh, now THIS was gold. it was almost as good as getting a haul on gems. clearly this BAT had gotten this hedgehog’s tongue.

     Grimaces.

     “On second thought? I’m just fine with what I have. I apologize greatly for complaining and will continue to be satisfied with the doppelgangers that I currently have.”

     “I mean   it’s ridiculous! What, because they look similar? THEY DON’T EVEN! That’s like saying Eggman and Snively looked similar because they’re both humans.” -Wait, Snively isn’t even slightly game-canon, how does he   “IT’S STUPID! They’re two completely separate entities that just so happen to slightly overlap with similar skillsets. And even then, the only thing they share is speed and super states!” He’s also going to ignore the fact that she insulted him off the top. He was too deep into his ranting to acknowledge it anyways.

rouge had to suppress the giggle daring to erupt from her lips. no no, if she did that, she’d lose this chance to enjoy knuckle’s ranting. he’d actually catch on. ( for once ) 

          “Me? Based on someone as pathetic as Sonic? You’re insane, I’m clearly superior. And what is this mural you’re talking about?”

did she compliment him or did she tease him? truly, power was just too sweetly in her grasp. today, she’ll be nice.

     “And NO, Shadow DOESN’T count. He technically came first, even if theories stand to debate that the basis of Shadow’s original design was based off of the murals depicting a hedgehog’s stand against a larger-than-life threat created by the ancient echidna race. Even still, he is his OWN THING, he was not based on Sonic IN SPECIFIC. Don’t even START with me on that.”