WOWC - SV End of Chapter 4

"He betrayed me….he lied to me," Sonic cried to himself as he lay there battered and broken. He could feel his shattered heart beat slower and slower by the second, his breathing becoming shorter as tears continued to flow from his dulling emerald eyes.

He could hear Shadow call his name. "Sonic," it sounded so far away, almost faint. "Sonic!" There it was again. Everything was black now. What was going on? He could still feel Shadow's arms on him. Had he gone blind?

"SONIC!"

"Aaaah!" Sonic screamed as he sat bolt upright in bed, his scales drenched with cold sweat. Where was he? What had just happened?

"Sonic?"

The slave instantly turned his head to the source of the noise. Beside him, Shadow was kneeling on the thick mattress, a concerned frown on his face as he rubbed Sonic's back. His crimson eyes glowed in the dark.

"NO! STAY AWAY FROM ME!!!" He screamed, instantly throwing Shadow's hand off him and bolting from the bed, but his ankle couldn't take so much pressure and he collapsed under his own weight. He let out a cry as he hit the floor, hard. A look of pure terror was evident in his eyes as he gazed up at Shadow.

"Sonic? Are you… Are you alright?" The boy asked, slowly walking to his pet, prompting a whimper from the male. Shadow frowned at that. He had been lying awake up in the rafters of his high ceiling home (it was his favorite spot), when his sensitive ears had suddenly picked up the sound of him shivering, and crying in his sleep. Trying to shake him awake had only made it worse.

"Please! Don't hurt me again, Master! I'll be good! I'll be good, I promise!" Sonic begged as he backed himself into a corner and began to tremble violently, his bloodshot eyes becoming unfocused.

"Hurt you? What are you talking about?" Shadow asked, holding a hand out to Sonic. The cobalt slave simply pushed himself further up into the corner, wincing loudly at his hurt ankle.

"Sonikuu? What's wrong?"

"Please…" Sonic breathed, a few tears slipping from his eyes.

"What? Speak up…" Shadow encouraged, trying to sound as gentle as possible.

"You… Raped…" That was all Sonic could produce before he simply started sobbing, curling into a ball with his quills raised up in defense as the tears fell heavy.

"I… Raped you?" Shadow exclaimed, a look of disbelief coming over him, quickly to be replaced with empathy. "Oh, Sonic…" he was by his side in an instant, embracing the boy as he continued to sob. Shadow did not try and rush him to explain, and he could have easily read his mind, but he simply continued to caress him gently as he whispered comforting words into his ears.

"Shh… Everything's alright… It was just a dream… It's all over …" He knew that Sonic needed this. If he tried to rush him, he'd appear pushy, and he didn't want Sonic to drift away from him. He continued to sob deeply, wanting to push him away but finding himself completely unable to, instead clinging tighter to the prince.

Sonic's sobs gradually grew quieter, and eventually he was simply crying silently, wetting the white scales on Shadow's chest as he had eased him into sitting in his lap, holding the uke protectively. Slowly, he raised Sonic's head to look at him, his tear-streaked face illuminated by the soft lamp that sat on the night stand.

"Are you alright?"

"Y-yes…" Sonic murmured sadly, bowing his head in shame. "I'm s-sorry, Master, I didn't mean to-" He was cut off by Shadow, the ebony's lips meeting his in a soft, gentle kiss, his first kiss.

Sonic's eyes widened.

"Don't be sorry, Sonikuu. Nothing is your fault and you can't help whatever dream you had. Speaking of which… Do you want to talk about it?"

Sonic shook his head, continuing to look downwards. "No… I'm… I can't."

Shadow smiled warmly in understanding. "That's fine with me…" He whispered, slowly moving to help him back up. "Would you like me to stay here tonight? I don't mind and I could watch over you if you want…"

Sonic wanted him to stay SO badly, but he, somehow, couldn't push himself to say yes. He seemed to consider it for a moment, before shaking his head, and saying, "You don't have to if you don't want to, Master. I'll be fine...But I would like to stay down here…I feel…more comfortable," he added, pertaining to the floor because there was no way in HELL he was getting back in that bed after dreaming something like that. He was used to sleeping on the floor by now, anyway.

Shadow paused. It was not the answer he was hoping for, but he complied, "Very well, then," making his way to the door, turning the lamp off in the process. The door slid open for him to exit, but he paused. He glanced over his shoulder and saw as the slave lay down on all fours, sniffing a little and trying to settle down.

Sonic's closed eyes snapped open when he felt something brush up against his back where he lay curled up on the floor. He peeked around and saw Shadow, now on all fours as well, sitting down on his hind legs beside him on the cool hardwood paneling.

"Master? What are you doing?" he asked, confused.

"You said that I didn't have to stay in here if I didn't want to, and well...I want to," he smiled warmly down at his treasure.

Sonic blinked, both shocked and touched. Shadow leaned down and nuzzled his cheek, purring softly and adding, "You look tired. Get some rest. And just tell me… If you need anything…" he said, lying down on all fours beside the boy who'd already got comfortable. Sonic smiled a little when he nuzzled him and it grew when he heard his master purr. Apparently, he made him happy. So, he complied, lowering his head and closing his eyes.

With eyes still closed, he asked, "Master?"

"Yes, Sonikuu?" he asked, turning to face the teen.

"Thank you… I feel… safer… With you here…" Shadow must have known what he was thinking because Sonic truly did want him to stay.

Shadow smiled, as if pleased by the way the boy had answered.

"Goodnight, Sonikuu." He whispered, kissing him softly on the forehead.

"Goodnight… My master…" Sonic said, as he slowly began to fall back to sleep.

But, Shadow lowered his head away from him; his mind seemed preoccupied as he gazed out the glass door to the balcony, where gentle rain streamed down the window. In his mind, his conscience could be heard saying that his actions were not befitting a prince—sleeping on the floor like the very slave that he bought, that this was outrageous, preposterous, and certainly uncalled for. Then, another part of his conscience could be heard telling the first to shove it, because he would do anything to make sure that Sonic was happy. ANYTHING. The boy just didn't know how much he truly mattered and how important he was to him.

So, he closed his glowing eyes, right before curling up closer to Sonic, his body pressed against his and his crimson-streaked tail drawing the azure in closer as he now rested his head only centimeters away from his, nearly cheek to cheek. Sonic peeked over at the boy and ended up falling asleep with a smile on his face.

And as the gentle rain subsided and the hours counted down towards morning, Shadow continued to stay close by his side, never breaking his protective barrier around the one that mattered most.