Supposed To Be Me (Shadow x Reader)

Chapter 18 Reminiscence

Shadow suited up for the voyage ahead of him and thanked Maria for the useful information regarding the chaos emeralds. It helped that she remembered a document listing where The Dark Arms hid all the emeralds, so he was very grateful to her. He gave Maria a tight hug for emotional support.

"I'll be back very soon," he assured. Shadow knew for a fact he would come back. He couldn't afford to fail such a crucial mission. Not with Maria on the line...

He reluctantly let go of her and stepped back. While Maria did release him from the hug, her fingers were still firmly intertwined with his. Shadow knew she would suffer while he was gone, and it pained him to think of her crying alone. They stayed together with their hands interlocked for ten minutes straight... before Maria eventually let go.

"Good luck, Shadow...," she told him softly. Maria gave him a warm smile of encouragement. Shadow knew she wasn't just encouraging him... She was also telling him that no matter what happened, she would accept it. He would not be at fault. Maria would love him forever from the world beyond, even if he chose to abandon her and never come back.

Kind of like (Y/N).

Shadow blinked. It was a peculiar thought. He couldn't help but feel a bit guilty about what happened to her and that he didn't feel more for her. It wasn't something he could control. And besides, how could he ever abandon her if he was never with her to begin with? Shadow shook the bizarre thought from his head and refocused on his upcoming journey.

"Two days tops," Shadow promised. He internally vowed not to break his word. Maria's assured expression relaxed him a bit.

"Two days," Maria agreed. "I'll hold you to that, Shadow." She chuckled lightly. Something he hadn't heard her do since before the incident on the Ark. That too was assuring. It told him she was slowly recovering from the trauma. Slowly but surely.

Shadow hesitated for a moment. He looked toward Maria one last time. She looked so small... But so alive. So grateful to him. To (Y/N). To everyone who helped make her dreams come true. Despite it all, she continued to have hope. Her hope gave him the strength he needed. Shadow headed for the door. "I promise you. I will come back, Maria." Shadow paused for a moment before continuing his thought. "...I love you too much to leave you here."

Maria smiled. She knew he meant love like a protective sibling type of love. "Love you too, Shadow. Stay safe."

(Y/N)'s POV

You were torn over who to stay with during Shadow's quest. On the one hand, Maria needed your support. On the other hand..., you were curious about Shadow. Would he be able to find the emeralds? Were your instructions too vague? Not knowing would torment you too much, so you decided to follow him. Maria would understand your decision.

As a ghost, travel became significantly easier. You could practically teleport because there wasn't any matter to stop you. Shadow would zip around the globe, and you would follow easily. Thankfully, with your obscure directions and his chaos emerald homing sense, he had no issues finding them. Shadow stole the green chaos emerald from the city (again), found the one in the mountains, G.U.N.'s base, etc. You were beginning to think that maybe following him was a foolish idea. Just as you were about to turn around to go back to Maria, you noticed something interesting was happening. Something... different.

During Shadow's voyage, he stopped at one point to take a short power nap to regain his strength for teleports. While the chaos emeralds recharged most of his energy, he still had to sleep from time to time so his body can repair itself and he can relieve fatigue. You found it interesting that Shadow had no qualms with resting his head on the cold, hard ground. Maybe he couldn't bring himself to care considering the dire situation he found himself in. It wasn't the fact that he was sleeping on the ground like a wild animal that piqued your interest. Instead, it was what Shadow was mumbling while he slept.