Heya!! I’m not sure what I’m doing, but I decided to share with you a little fragment of my newest WIP!! I have NO IDEA when I’m gonna publish it tho; I have the outline and some scenes finished, but I think I still didn’t fully recover after finishing “Sedated” and I’m not sure if I’m ready to commit to new idea 🥲
But what I can already tell you, is that this new story is going to be less intense than my previous fic, and significantly shorter too. HOWEVER, since it’s still my story, it’s going to have mind controlled Sonic and our favorite toxic jackal in the background~ I’m aiming in the endgame Sonadow, but tbh I don’t know if this fic will lean fully into romance, it may be too short for that, to my personal taste.
Also, it was mostly created for my own self-indulgent. Heh.
I didn’t came up with a title yet. For now, let’s call it… “Gladiator AU”
WIP UNDER THE CUT!
(I consider this scene a little spoilerish, but it will be placed pretty much at the beginning of the story - chapter 2 maybe?. I could give you the opening scene, but I decided this particular moment may catch your attention better ☺️).
Shadow leapt onto the arena. The soles of his air shoes struck the sandy ground, kicking up a bit of dust into the air. He moved toward Sonic, who was still waving at the cheering crowd gathered in the stands, a wide smile on his face.
The blue hedgehog’s ear twitched at the scraping sound of Shadow’s boots, but he didn’t turn to him or stop what he was doing.
Shadow came to a halt right behind him.
“Having fun?” he asked roughly. His voice was icy, low and sharp.
Sonic blinked, then without lowering his hand turned his head toward Shadow, tilting it slightly. “Huh…?”
Something in that reaction made Shadow’s stomach tighten, while at the same time his blood began to boil. His eyes burned with accusation.
“That’s your answer?” He crossed his arms over his chest, barely holding back his fury. “You disappeared without a word and you’re here, wasting time.” He shook his head. “This is pointless”, he murmured to himself. Then, looking back at Sonic, he continued with a sarcastic scoff: “Are you coming home, or do you plan to bask in your glory a little longer?”
Sonic let out a quiet chuckle, but it was somehow distracted, the kind that barely acknowledged Shadow’s presence. He turned back to the crowd, continuing to wave at them with a steady hand. “Home? This is my home,” he said smoothly. “I’m the Champion, after all.”
The words were spoken so easily, so casually, that at first Shadow almost didn’t register them.
Then his gaze sharpened.
Sonic’s fur, in the golden sunlight beneath a cloudless sky, wasn’t as blue as it should have been. It looked duller, dusty; clumped in places and streaked with something darker, like carelessly and not fully wiped, dried blood.
His posture, though seemingly relaxed and confident, seemed to carry a certain weight.
But it was his face that caught Shadow’s attention the most. His smile was too wide, his eyes too bright. There was exhaustion hidden behind them.
Yes—Sonic looked exhausted, like he was running on fumes.
“…Sonic.” Shadow’s voice lost its edge, becoming something closer to concern. “Are you okay?”
Sonic glanced at him briefly, his smile not wavering in the slightest. “Never been better,” he replied. His tone was almost as confident and arrogant as always.
Almost.
Shadow focused his gaze on the object resting on Sonic’s head. It resembled a crown—or rather, a laurel wreath—and it was made of a golden, metallic material. The sunlight reflected off its surface, refracting within it.
Shadow’s expression darkened. He looked Sonic in the eyes.
“Do you even know how much time has passed since you’ve been gone?” Shadow asked. His voice was quiet, but heavy.
Sonic, in contrast, gave a light shrug. “Not sure what you’re talking about, but does it matter?”
Shadow’s stomach tightened again, this time not with anger, but with deep unease. “It matters because your friends are looking for you. They’re worried about you.”
Sonic blinked, somewhat absentmindedly. His hand hesitated for a moment.
“…My… friends?”
Shadow felt the air leave his lungs. “Yes. Your friends. Tails, Amy, Knuckles. Me.”
Sonic’s expression flickered with confusion for a second, but then the hedgehog laughed, as if the very idea wasn’t even worth mentioning.
A lump formed in Shadow’s throat.
He took a slow step forward, feeling a tightness in his chest. “Sonic, do you… do you know who I am?”
Sonic’s gaze drifted over him, and for the first time Shadow realized how shallow it was, as if Sonic was looking through him, not at him.
At last, Sonic lowered his hand and turned fully toward him, casually resting one hand on his hip. Then, with an almost amused smirk, he said:
“Sure I know. You’re one of my fans, right?”
Shadow froze in place.
His brows drew together, his hands curling into fists on their own.
He exhaled sharply through his nose, forcing the storm rising inside him to settle, at least for a moment.
Then his darkened gaze lifted.
Among the mindlessly cheering crowd, one figure stood out, seated in something like a private box. Dressed in long robes, their face hidden behind a golden jackal-shaped mask that shimmered in the sunlight.
Shadow’s instincts screamed at him.
This was wrong. All of this was wrong.
He clenched his teeth hard.
His body moved faster than his mind. He turned back to Sonic, grabbing his arm and gripping it tightly. “I don’t know what the hell is going on here, but I’m getting you out of here.”
Sonic flinched at the touch, then instinctively pulled back, wrenching himself free.
“Hey, easy there, buddy,” he said lightly, but now, as Shadow noticed, almost absent. “I can’t play favorites. I’ve got plenty of fans counting on me.” His expression was a strange mix of pride and uncertainty, as if he knew this place meant something to him, but not quite why.
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It terrifies me that we only get a limited amount of time with people. And that some people get more time than others who should have. I’m forever envious of those who’ve gotten more time with you than I have. That I may never get to be with you as long as they have. That our time is running out. And I miss you already. And I never want to say goodbye. At first it was slow, late nights in your car and afternoons in my bedroom. But now it feels like it’s happening all at once, like you’re doing a snow angel on my heart and it keeps getting bigger and bigger. Kissing on the sidewalk, holding hands in your coat pocket because I forgot to bring gloves. Wandering around museums and having hard conversations on your couch that make me love you even more; even when the air becomes glass, I can’t stop thinking about how lucky I feel to know you. That there’s no one else like you. My heart aches in your arms and aches when we’re apart. And I just want to be as close to you as possible, for as long as possible, because you are the most beautiful person I’ve ever met, and I love who I am when I’m with you. -Madisen Kuhn http://hellopoetry.com/madisen-kuhn/
