love like war - shadow x reader

five

She clung to him, small fists clutching at the stark white fur on his chest. He winced slightly at the woman's grip. "Don't pull it out, it took some time to grow." Muttering, he pushed her away, noticing her eyes were squeezed shut. "Idiot," he shook her shoulder, stretching the word out. "We've arrived."

Instantly, her eyes snapped open to reveal bright (e/c) irises. She pushed herself away from the hedgehog, crossing her arms with an angry expression covering her misty features. Her hair slightly framed her face, allowing her gaze to appear more menacing. "You could have given me a warning." She stated, brushing herself off. Looking around, the large tree trunks caught her attention. "Look at all these big ass trees[1], Shadow." She waved her arm, gesturing to the tall ash trees that suddenly intrigued her.

His tan muzzle was dusted with a soft pink; she actually said his damn name. He smirked softly, enjoying the way his name sounded on her lips; the way it rolled off her tongue, and the way it seemed molded into her--What am I doing? He cursed mentally. She's a witch, she's messing with my damn brain. I wouldn't doubt it.

He simply hummed, attempting to forget all thoughts, rubbing his forehead in exasperation. "We should search for Mephiles' hideout." His tone was bored, almost annoyed.

"Right." She was instantly back on track, calculating (e/c) eyes taking in her surroundings. "We should begin on the ground, then we could search from the trees."

"Good, you're not stupid," he sneered, causing her to do the same. The ebony hedgehog gestured behind him, leading the way. She let him, although she wasn't quite sure why. Running to a nearby stream, Shadow looked around, the sound of the rushing water calming him. Where could he be?

The dark heroine took the lead. "Follow me." She firmly ordered, arching an eyebrow when he agreed without hesitation. This time, she grabbed his wrist, leaving him trailing behind her. "Stay close, being separated could pose as a threat." The handsome one only continued to nod; any gesture other than glaring and nodding seemed to be nonexistent within his large personality.

They continued to look, his larger hand soon engulfing her much smaller one, neither of them noticing. "I guess you aren't as much of an idiot as I had initially assumed." He bluntly said, causing her to give him an incredulous look. What?

"Excuse me? I'm not an idiot. You're the idiot here, little man." Her petite hand slipped from his grasp, a small blush covering both of their cheeks from realization. Shadow coughed, effectively covering his pink cheeks with a gloved hand. "Sneaky bitch." She whispered, Shadow casting her a deadly look.

"We should go to the-" Pausing, she struggled to form a comprehensible sentence.

He calmly finished it for her. "-trees." They bobbed their heads at each other, the slender woman quickly scaling a tree and landing gracefully atop a branch.

He resorted to Chaos Control, showing up next to her. "You take the lead, little man. I would like to see how talented you really are." He snorted, jumping to a branch further ahead.

"Try to keep up, princess."

She waved cockily, signalling for him to begin leaping. He pounced, not waiting for her to start behind him. She kept jumping from branch to branch, the wind whipping through her (h/c) locks. "I'm catching up to you!" She yelled, increasing her speed.

Adrenaline pumped through her veins, causing her to release a euphoric laugh. Jumping again, she closed her eyes mid-leap, enjoying the wind on her face and through her hair. As she landed, she collided with something--no, someone, and a grunt was heard along with a profuse string of cuss words. Cracking an eye open, she saw that she had run into Shadow, who apparently had stopped moving.

Now, they were slowly falling to the ground, which was some 40 metres below. Panic set into her mind as she struggled to find the grapple on her thigh, but to no avail. The wind slapped her, Shadow seemingly worried, yet he put on a calm façade, watching her fumble with her grapple. "Shadow!" She yelled over the rush of the wind. He raised an eyebrow, his dark quills shaking with the fall. "My grapple is stuck!" She looked down. The ground was nearing, faster and faster as her mind raced to possible outcomes.

He rolled his eyes, slightly moving towards her. "Idiot." He whispered firmly, sending shivers down her spine like the fingers on a piano. He wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her against him. She tried to protest, only for him to glare at her and pull her closer. Looking down again, her eyes widened as the muddy ground was close enough to reach out and touch. Reaching into his quills, he pulled out the bright red gem. (Y/n)'s nose grazed the blades of bright green grass. "Chaos Control!"

She found herself safely atop a large rock, water lapping at the cold surface. She turned in the protective grasp of the dark hedgehog, facing him. She rested her hands on his forearms, cheeks slightly flushing at the close proximity of their faces. "Thanks, little man." she breathed, her warm breath fanning out across his emotionless face.

Grunting, his arm raised to rest at the small of her back, his other hand burying itself behind her knees. He hoisted her up, leaping from rock to rock in search of dry land. She squealed in protest, yet he continued without a word. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she made herself more comfortable in his grasp. "You're only going to slow me down," he reasoned, convincing her and himself that there was no other reason for his actions.

Finally, they arrived at a dark looking cave, no light emitting from within. He gently let her stand, instantly moving away once she regained her balance. "Thanks." She repeated, her eyes clearly displaying gratitude while her laid-back posture stated otherwise. She reached to her thigh, adjusting some things within the grapple, firing it at a tree. "Works like a charm." She applauded herself, crossing her arms.

Ignoring her, he gestured to the large cave, an eyebrow raising. "Do you think we should go in?" His crimson irises darted towards the entry to the cave.

She shrugged. "Do we really have a choice? We need to locate Mephiles, and he just might be in there." Nodding, they made their way over, their bodies slightly closer.

Shadow looked at her, gesturing for her to enter first. She laughed cockily, using her arms to wave towards the entrance to the cave. "Ladies first."

"You little-"

"Just go in."

They firmly nodded at each other, a playful fire in their eyes.

She's better than I thought she was.

[1] This is from Attack On Titan!