The Crossing Destinies [OPEN Sonic the Hedgehog FF]

New Path (1/4) - R

It was a few hours since Shadow and Sonic arrived in the village, not knowing, there was a duo investigating the incident they had got involved in. At this moment, they were staying in an inn, and Shadow had spoken with as a few people as possible since the feeling of uneasiness was still lingering inside of him. What more, he hadn't talked with the boy yet. He was unable to speak with him during a simple lunch, hardly noticing the taste his meal had as his head was swollen with thoughts.

It felt strange and suffocating, but Shadow had no idea how to break the silence. It wasn't just that, the small wings were burning his skin. He felt them, constantly fighting with an urge to spread them, and take off to the sky while burning everything to the ground. Not even during the day he felt safe.

His original plan was to leave the town and never return, but Sonic made a mess of it. The priest was thinking, how to send him back home. He had no certainty the demonic transformation wouldn't occur again. There was no way he could risk this child's safety.

After the lunch, they headed back to their temporal room. It was a small one; it had two beds, one wardrobe, and a table with a chair. Shadow was standing in front of the opened window, watching the lively street below while Sonic was sitting on his bed. The ebony hedgehog wanted to continue traveling, so even staying here, was making him nervous. He took a deep breath, ready to face this challenge.

"Sonic-" He turned around.

"Father-" the boy interrupted him as they had spoken in unison.

"Ah, sorry, you first," mumbled the adult hedgehog.

"No, you, Father."

After a few seconds, Shadow cleared his throat, speaking, "I'm glad you are alright. I really am. When I heard from the aunt, you had gone missing I was afraid something might have happened to you."

The blue hedgehog only looked at him. There was no visible reaction, but Shadow could feel the tension.

"I know, you must have a lot of questions. But I'm afraid I don't have answers. What happened that night..." He noticed Sonic shivered. "... that was the first time it occurred. I'm sorry for scaring you so much."

Shadow came a bit closer, seeing, the other was getting nervous. The priest gently put his hand on the boy's shoulder. He was indeed shivering, bowing the head a bit.

"From the other people's reactions, I can see you haven't told anyone about it. I'm truly grateful. I don't know what I would have to do otherwise. I don't wish to hurt anyone."

The priest noticed, he was starting to squeeze Sonic's shoulder more tightly, so he quickly retracted his hand, putting it behind his back.

"It would cause nothing more than panic."

The priest moved back to the window, taking two deep breaths. Despite the nice weather and gentle breeze, his body was burning and suffocating.

"I wish to be honest with you. You might have heard about my departure. I was lying."