Sonic was dashing through the brisk winter air as fast as he could, hoping that he could reach her in time. Reach Amy Rose, who needed to help him stop the terror that ensued throughout the city.

Tails and Knuckles were already downtown, fighting off the ranks of robots Eggman had sent their way. Sonic wanted to continue fighting, but he knew he needed the help of his kind, hammer-swinging bestie.

Sonic grimaced, not because of the bleak situation in the city, but because of how he had treated Amy a few days before. He had not meant to hurt her so badly, and had wanted to make it up to her sooner, although he had failed. She was right; he was dense. So unbelievably dense, although Sonic wasn’t sure how in the world to “fix” his density.

A large winter jacket adorned Sonic’s body, although his speed still lent the air to stabbing through the wool of his coat. In a matter of minutes, he reached the pavement in front of Amy’s home.

Sonic knocked on the door. There was silence.

The door opened slowly. Who Sonic saw made him gasp audibly.

“Sh–Shadow?!”

The Ultimate Lifeform crossed his arms and glared. “What are you doing here, Faker?”

“I should say the same about you. Now where’s Amy?”

Shadow’s eyes narrowed. “I’ll relay a message.”

“Boys!” Amy called out from behind Shadow. She was rushing in from the kitchen. “Sonic, what are you doing here?”

“Oh, thank goodness you’re here! Eggman is attacking the city!”

“Not him again!” She grumbled.

Amy turned to Shadow. “Hey, Shadow, would you like to help?”

She was trying to give him a hint, that perhaps he should accompany them in saving the day so that he could get a decent reputation.

“Must I?”

Amy shot him a deadly glare. “Shadow, you’re going to help us whether you like it or not, because if you don’t, I’ll… I'll… kick you out!”

Shadow grimaced. What happened to the kind Amy Rose of the previous night, helping him through his troubles? Why was she suddenly acting so rude?

Unless… She had a similar anger problem as himself?

But that didn’t make sense. She was so kind and loving towards everyone… It didn’t make sense that they could have similar struggles. Shadow himself was a loner who didn’t need anyone, while Amy was kind and thoughtful. Complete opposites. Unless…

His existence made her bad qualities come out.

No, it wasn’t his existence. He knew that. It was something else, like his personality that made her so irritable. Or maybe his demeanor negatively impacted her own. Whatever the case, Shadow needed to make sure Amy could be the kind person who he admired.

Admired? Yes, he admired her.

She took him into his home and allowed him to stay even though he had tried lying about why he had come. She had helped him when he was weak, instead of using it against him. Shadow knew he wouldn’t have done those things. If Amy had come to his house (if he had one), he would have questioned her and kept her separate from his living space. Sure, he would have helped her, but with a lot less hospitality.

He was suspicious of everyone; everyone was an enemy until proven otherwise. Amy had the opposite outlook.

Shadow sighed. “Okay, okay, fine.” He turned to Sonic. “What’s going on?”

Sonic was shocked that Shadow agreed so quickly, although was still wary. Most people would have assumed it was because of Shadow’s unpredictable nature, and how it was difficult to tell what Shadow wanted or if his priorities would align with Team Sonic. This was not entirely the case. Sure, those reasons were a small part of why Sonic didn’t want Shadow interfering in their affairs unless out of sheer necessity for his assistance, but there was something deeper.

Whenever Sonic worked with Shadow, they felt like a team. Their banter brought relief from whatever bad situation that they had to fight against, and their power was relatively equal. Of course, Sonic knew he was the most powerful, although he still liked to play along with Shadow that the Ultimate Lifeform stood a chance against the fastest thing alive–

“Eggman sent a bunch of robots into the city, but they’re not his normal robots.” Sonic interrupted his train of thought. “They’re spraying liquid nitrogen from their hands, freezing everything! We need help evacuating the citizens and finding those with burns so Tails can fly them to a hospital.”

Shadow simply nodded his head. Amy put on a brave smile.

“Can do!” She took hold of Shadow’s hand and tugged him forward. “Come on, we have to hurry!”

Those bright, smiling eyes, so eager to help people.

If only he could be like her. If only he could change.