Author's notes.

Well, Christmas passed and we're back to our daily crap. I hope you guys and gals enjoyed the holidays.

I got a drawing tablet for Christmas, and I'm going to see if I can put what drawing skills I have so far to use. I highly doubt I can utilize it with just that device, but I have some ideas with it.

Shoutouts

Marigretle: Ah, my old editor... Sorry that we haven't spoken in a while. I would have sent the chapters to you, but I'm trying to get these things published as soon as I'm able too (and it wouldn't hurt if I try to edit them myself. I really needed the practice). You've been a great help, thank you! May God's blessing be upon you!

Alright, let's get back to it.

---

It was another day, a day just like before, a day like any other day. Shadow would have been more or less at ease when it came to routine. Peace, unfortunately; was the last thing on his heart.

He never felt so confused, so conflicted, and so… Angry at himself. Ever since he attacked Canterlot with a fist of furry, he couldn't stop thinking about it. Everything he destroyed, every guard he killed, and every victim he has made refused to leave him be. He could recall every face he has slain, from his first raids on this planet to now, those images refused to leave him be. The lives he took here, aside from the changelings, they weren't monsters, murders, invading aliens, or robots; they were innocent sapient beings.

Those faces never left him. Not for a single day did the memories of killing those soldiers didn't come to his remembrance.

He looked down at Ponyville from Fluttershy's cottage, standing on the same branch as he has. There was no way he could go down in Ponyville and see the family of those guards…. There was no way he could.

With these thoughts still rushing through mind, he simply huffed and clutched his fists, "I'm stronger than this. When they chose to live by the sword, they die by it. That's how it always works."

He had to force himself to say that sentence, in fact he heard his own voice choke when he spoke. He wanted to do something, anything, to get his mind off of things. It wasn't like he could participate in any events they may be having. There was nothing in the library that interested him, the boutique didn't suit him either. He was in no mood for any massages.

What was the name of that Bakery near the center of town? Sugar Cube Corner?

He may not need to eat because of the Chaos Energy bawling inside of him, but that doesn't mean he couldn't try to enjoy some of life's luxuries. He couldn't remember the last time he tasted ice cream.

With a Chaos Emerald in his hand, he teleported to a rooftop near the eatery. Sonic may just store the emeralds in a safe place when he's not fighting, but Shadow always carry at least one of the emeralds with him. He never knew when he might need it. In this case, he did.

"CHAOS CONTROL!"

At that command, time itself came to a screeching halt. The flags that were put out stopped waving, the birds simply froze in the air, and the few scattered ponies that were about halted in their footsteps. It takes a lot of Chaos Power to grip time, especially for one emerald, but Shadow wouldn't be in there for long. He'll simply go in there, grab a cone and a scoop of ice cream, and head out without anyone knowing he was there.

Hopping from the rooftop and landing right in front of the bakery, he swung the door open and got an eye full of what was taking place inside. Ponies were scrambling all over the room, some were screaming, while a few fainted from the chaos that took place.

Even if the scene surprised him, he didn't care. He just wanted ice cream; desperate to clear his conscience for a while. His eyes darted around the dining area as he headed towards the kitchen.

Twilight was grabbing a poll with Tails latching on her back legs while Cadance and Armor was trying to pull him off.

Pinkie was standing behind the cash register with an air horn in her hoof.

Rarity had Applejack in a chokehold with Knuckles panicking on the sidelines while a group of stallions were placing bets on a different table.

Rainbow was lying on the floor with a huge bump on her head while Amy was hovering over Sonic with her hammer hanging over her head.

Out of instinct, Shadow's mind began to sort out the bits and pieces of what was taking place in the dining area as he walked in the kitchen, immediately finding a bowl of homemade ice cream near the fridge. Even though he could care less about what was going on, his mind began to draw conclusions from what he knows and by what he saw.

He has overheard from a group of mares about Twilight's infatuation with Tails. The fox would never do anything so perverse, especially towards a friend. There had to be an outside influence to compel him to chase the element of Magic in a haze of lust. Shining Armor and Cadence immediately came to mind. Cadance specializes in handling relationships between two ponies, and since she was an alicorn, her magic is very potent. She must have casted something to make Tails burst out like he did.

With Rarity and Applejack fighting, he already understood that the two were close friends because each represented an element of harmony. From the Intensity of the fight, it had to be something very personal and emotional. Since he overheard from one of his allies that Knuckles was dating Rarity, it had to involve him. The two seem had to be fighting over him.

Pinkie was obviously going to try to calm the chaos down with her air horn. She and the Cakes are trying to run a business after all.

With Amy attacking Sonic with a knocked out Rainbow on the sidelines, well; he can only presume that Amy must have thought that he was 'cheating' on her… But again, Sonic knew she was possessive over him, so why go out openly with Rainbow Dash? The two must have been together for them to be out like that, otherwise, Sonic would have been by himself if he knew that hanging around with another female meant trouble for him.

He could thank military training for that bit of unnecessary bit.

With an ice cream cone in his hand, Shadow began to make his way towards the exit, passing the frozen ponies as he went. Before he passed the door, he turned around and took one good look at the ponies and his allies.

It was a pathetic display, it would almost embarrass him if he were friends with anyone in his group. For a moment, a sense of pride enveloped from within him. He was too good to be caught in things like friends or attachments. He was above that, fulfilling his purpose was the only thing that was worth anything to him.

…

And he failed.

He was meant to do good; benefit society with his powers, but from his own actions here, he has slain the ponies he was supposed to protect. He has failed to hold to his purpose, and there was nothing he could do to take it back.

A low grunt slipped from this throat as he tightly clutched the door knob. He looked upon his allies making complete fools of himself and he felt his anger boiling inside of him. This group is the only thing keeping peace on planet Earth and this is how they act!?

With all of that frustration finally flowing over, he raised his Chaos Emerald and constricted the chaos energy flowing from it, releasing its grip on time itself.

And the sudden noise that was to follow. From ponies screaming in panic to an air horn going off. From shreals of two mares tangling to Sonic's pathetic screams of mercy.

With his Chaos Energy still raised, he redirected that energy into a single, powerful beam.

"CHAOS BLAST!"

The building shook as the yellow beam completely obliviate a section of the ceiling above him. His one attack was so loud that it completely drained out the noise around him. Everypony in that building felt their hearts stopped, and froze in surprise and fear as they saw the black hedgehog trembling in anger as his slit eyes observed the room. His allies, with Amy suddenly dropping her weapon, to Knuckles nearly jumping out of his skin when the blast went off, even Tails; still under Cadance's compassion spell, froze. All attention was on him.

As soon as he opened his mouth, words as hot as Hell's fire shot forth.

"WHAT IN THE NAME OF CHAOS ARE MY ALLIES DOING!? WE ARE CALLED TO PROTECT THESE PONIES, AND THIS IS WHAT YOU DO!?"

His words made Sonic, Amy, Tails, and Knuckles flinch. Shadow's words began to die down, but his voice remained as sharp as ever.

"Out of all the stupidity I have witnessed traveling with my team, this is by far the most pathetic, foolish, and selfish act I have ever seen from a group of heroes! The protectors of Angel island! The saviors of earth! The keepers of the most powerful artifacts known to the human race! All reduced to a bunch of squabbling teenagers!"

His eyes darted and found Tails awkwardly leaning over with Twilight just right in front of him. Shining Armor and Cadance was just a few feet away from the two. Shadow stomped his way towards them, clutching his hands into fists as his temper flared.

"Tails! You went from a brilliant, innovative engineer to a spineless doormat!" He glanced at Twilight, "You're going to let this daughter of a whorse push you around!? I've seen Fluttershy handle flirting ponies better than you!"

Shining Armor felt a ting of sudden hatred and anger as a lightening spell began to form, but he didn't dare fire.

"You let her push you around to such an extent that you don't even know what to feel anymore! There is no color when it comes to others, Tails; it's black and white! If you like this mare, you'll know it! If you find her a pain in the rear; you'll know it! If she can't accept what you feel, then she has absolutely no business being anywhere near you!"

Shadow tore his gaze from the petrified fox. He gave a quick sneer towards Shining Armor.

"A real stallion keeps dominion in his own house... I would think that someone like you would fall in love with a wise and upright princess, not a stupid mare who acts on a whim."

The hedgehog walked away from the captain, not even bothering to look back as his sharp ears heard the sound of a spell being formed. Cadence placed her hoof on his chest just in time to stop him from casting.

Shadow then walked straight towards Knuckles, who was still standing in the same spot when the blast went off.

"You are the last of your race to carry on the dignity and honor that once held your kind champion! You were smart once, Knuckles! You used to give Sonic a run for his money when Eggman first tricked you back at Angel Island! You want to know why most tales of this team's efforts paint you as some kind of stupid muscle guy!?" He pointed at the two mares who were still interlocked, "This is why! You caused strife and rivalry between two friends just because of your incompetence! You have no one to blame but yourself for causing this fight!" He glared at the two mares, "I expected the keepers of harmony to know better than this! What would have happened if you two were to hold a grudge against each other when the Elements needs to be unleashed!? You would have put the whole kingdom in jeopardy because of one idiot!"

At last, he marched towards Sonic; hovering over him as Amy awkwardly stood on her spot.

"I always knew you to be a coward!" Shadow shouted, "How long did you plan to keep this up!?" He pointed at Rainbow Dash's unconscious body, "Look what you caused! You were willing to put her in danger just so you can make a statement towards Amy!? You knew she was going to act like this! You had no business of brining her into problems that only you can resolve!" He gave his attention to Amy, "How many strikes with the hammer will it take to make him fall in love with you!? Think about that before you decide to attack him!"

Still furious, he began to march his way towards the exit. His anger did nothing but boil, and it came screaming out of his mouth as his hand touched the door knob.

"Weak! Feeble! Pathetic! That's all my team is! I still wonder how we managed to save this kingdom from burning to the ground! It must have been destiny, because there was no way you idiots could save these rotting corpses from doom! Putting your own emotions ahead of logic, it's no way for a hero to act!"

Shadow was just about to walk out until he heard a gruff behind him.

"What about you?" Shining Armor asked, "Where were your logic when you killed my guards in Canterlot with those emeralds of yours? Seems like to me you could have went straight for the princesses instead of throwing your weight around, saved yourself a little time instead of waiting it on those who were just trying to protect Equestrian citizens." The captain sneered, bottling his anger in a sealed jar and directing it towards him, "Our citizens."

Shadow whipped his head around and stared wide eyed at the captain as the stallion sternly, but calmly stared back. A chaos spear began to crackle in his hand, but Shining made no move.

"Yea, that's what I thought," He continued, "Kill me, and you'll prove yourself to be no better than what you fought against. Heck, I see you no better than Eggman anyways. Your thinking made just as much since as his did."

That earned a subtle, but surprised gasp from the hedgehog in question. Shadow stood there, completely caught off guard by this captain's remark. In a flash of anger, he threw his spear towards him… The captain didn't care to move as the spear strikes harmlessly beside him.

Shadow didn't say another word, but his face showed a twisted show of anger and anguish as he simply walked out the door and teleported.

Everyone in the room, more specifically the six mares and Sonic's team, stood awkwardly and silently as they stared towards the door. Cadance cast a quick reverse spell to take the compassion spell off of Tails, Applejack and Rarity gave a quick look of understanding to each other before standing up, Amy's poster began to relax as she slowly stepped away from the hedgehog, but still kept her disapproving gaze at him.

Sonic stood up, and slowly walked towards the unconscious Rainbow Dash. He knelt down and closely examined the point of impact, which was just on the top of her skull. It looked like Amy didn't put too much force behind her swing, but it was surely enough to keep her out for a couple of minutes.

The hedgehog simply glanced behind him, at every one of his friends and inhaled.

"I think we need a minute to talk this out."

---

"I-I seriously didn't know it would get this out of hand," Knuckles sighed, "I thought that since you two were good friends to begin with, we could have worked something out."

The six mares and the others were now outside, with the crowd that were inside earlier now departing and leaving them alone. There were ponies in there giving them disgusted looks before leaving, and even a few camera ponies were taking a few snapshots from a distance. The bakery, without question, is almost wrecked from the inside; not to mention there's a big gap in the roof. The Cakes were on the sidelines, watching the group with knots slowly appearing on their heads.

"Yea, ya shouldav' thought before gitten' all of us together," Applejack answered.

"I really wish we can someway make it up to the owners for the damages we've done," Rarity mumbled, "I bet Pinkie isn't happy about it either."

They caught a glimpse of the pink mare sitting at the door, glaring at them while holding up a broom and mop in her hooves.

"But we've should have been mature about this," Rarity continued, turning to her mare friend, "I'm sorry, AJ. I just lost it when you brought up spike. It's not like that at all."

"Ah know," Applejack sighed, "Ah shouldn't huv' bought him up to begin with. Ah need ta learn to think twice before sayin' things like that," She reached her hooves out to gently hug the unicorn's neck, "Sorry, hun."

"I'm sorry too," Rarity answered back, returning the favor before quickly letting go. She turned her attention to the enchida, who was still standing idly with his head casted down in shame, "Knuckles."

He slowly lift his head up, forcing himself to look her in the eyes.

"As much you hate to admit it, you're a sweet heart. I was completely taken back with the first few days that I've actually gave you a chance. You have the making of a true gentleman, something which I will have to drop, unfortunately."

Knuckles raised his eyebrow.

"To put it bluntly, I'm breaking up with you. I'm not going to force the decision upon you, so I'm making it for you."

He raised his hand, "Wait,"

"No, no," She denied with small smile, "Applejack is truly the mare for you… I'll go ahead and admit that I was completely disgusted with any vulgar thing you may have pulled while visiting my place. As much of a gentleman you turned out to be, I have to turn you down."

Applejack shook her head, "Rarity, ya don't have ta do this."

The unicorn turned to her, "Darling, you began to have feelings for him long before I did. By every right, you should have him. Not me."

Rarity turned to still stunned Knuckles, "Admit it. You pretty much did it on a whim without putting thought behind it."

He wanted to argue, but his mind and heart held his tongue in place.

Is she really willing to do this? He studied her features and didn't see a single muscle or movement that would suggest otherwise. Her sincere smile was as bright as ever, "Now… Y-you sure about this?"

She nodded, "Trust me, I've dated a couple of stallions before you, and I'll be dating plenty after. It's not like you've broken my heart, Knuckles. It's just moving on for me."

Knuckles turned to Applejack, who was standing idly and awkwardly as she gazed upon him. The enchida took in a deep breath and approached her.

"Let's start this over," He sighed, "We've been friends for a while, and… I was wondering."

Applejack quickly lean in for a hug, "No need fer that, just promise me not ta' set up anymore double dates next time."

He quickly returned it, chuckling, "Sure thing."

---

Cadance's head was hung down and covered in complete shame; there was no way she could show her face in public again… Not after this.

"Shiny," Cadance called, "Don't be mad at me. That shot wasn't my entire fault."

The captain idly glanced at her before looking back at Twilight and Tails talking. His face was stone cold, with a solid frown that was not going to leave for a long time, "Oh, don't apologize to me. We have a whole public to apologize too."

The alicorn shifted a bit, trying to lighten the situation with an encouraging thought, "But… Maybe it's destiny that we're here. Those two might have grown closer together because of us. Who knows? Tails might actually have feelings for her, and this could have broken the ice."

Shining Armor glanced at her again, with his frown still in place, "You're trying to justify what you did, aren't you?"

She winced with guilt, "Maybe, but I do believe that."

Twilight and Tails were quietly staring at each other, with a combination of complete embarrassment and shame as they recalled what just took place moments ago.

"Tails," Twilight called, more sincere than anything than the fox heard from her, "I-I don't know what to say."

Tails felt a tug of guilt when opening his mouth. He knew exactly where the conversation was leading, and he wasn't looking forward to having it, "You don't have to say anything, Twilight. I-I don't blame you at all."

"You should," She sighed, with her body losing poster, "I-I shouldn't have tried to force myself on you. I-If you're not interested in me, then I need to accept it."

Tails was about to say something, but held it and said something else in it's place, "That doesn't mean we can't be friends. Other than Sonic, you're probably the closest friend I have. I enjoy working with you, hearing your theories and logic as we work together is just one of the many things why I like you."

Twilight shallowly chuckled, "To be honest, you were my wet dream when I saw you. You was something that I dreamed of when I was a filly, having a boyfriend who was smart, humble, brave,"

He scratched the back of his head, "That's the first time I've heard of that."

"I meant it," She added, standing on her four hooves and approaching him, "Just promise me one thing."

She wrapped a hoof around his neck, and buried her head on his shoulder, "Just don't think of me any different than you did when we first met."

Her motion knocked the fox back a couple of steps. Tails only had one response for her, and his answer brought peace to him about his feelings to her. He was a friend, a good friend.

"Water under the bridge."

... At least he hoped. There has always been a part of him that's been very curious about her. She's acting very differently this time; this wasn't a 'move towards him' or anything of that nature. This was real, she was actually talking to him as a respected individual, not something to chase. It felt good, really good.

"I had no idea your old baby sister can cast something like that," He added with the thought just coming to mind.

Twilight broke the hug and looked at him with a smile, before shrugging, "She's the princess of Love, remember?" She glanced at the two and winced, "I don't think my brother will forget this anytime soon."

---

Rainbow Dash was rubbing her head, standing rather protectively by Sonic as he and Amy stood in front of each other. Her hammer, even though dropped earlier, was recovered and was drawn to her side.

"Amy," Sonic called with a kind, but stern voice, "We've been through this many, many times… We're not together. We're not a couple. You are a friend."

She relaxed her stance and rest the hammer by her side, using it for support and leaning on one side, "Now Sonic, don't be ridiculous about this. You were cheating on me, and you're just trying to talk your way out of it."

He flinched when she raised her hammer up, but held his gaze, "You hurt someone… Someone very close to me."

She curiously asked while cocking her head to one side, "You're cheating on me with her. Did you consider she's seducing you, to steal you away from me? I wasn't going to stand there and let it happen."

Sonic sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. He had this conversation many, many times before with her. Every time they had these discussions, it always ended like this. He would back down because of her temper, and her temper has leveled so many robots and enemies. It wouldn't never pass his lips, but he was scared of her, scared that she would hurt him, or anyone else because of her obsession with him. He and his team would have already disbanded her if she wasn't so close to them as friends.

This time, though… This time was different.

"I'm going to make this as blunt as I can," He said, "I'm not in love with you. I'm not dating you. We are friends, and I am not interested in dating you."

She advanced towards him. It was only a couple of feet, but that distance felt like a lot to them. Rainbow Dash put herself between him and her, spreading her wings and snorted.

"Did you hear him?" She growled, "Back off!"

"You need to stay out of this, Rainbow Dash," Amy warned in a sweet, but threatening tone, "He needs to learn his lesson."

"No!" She shouted, "You're not hurting him again!"

When Amy took another step forward, Sonic stepped in front of the pegasus, "Put that hammer dow-"

She suddenly sprinted, closing the gap with surprising speed and knocking the surprised hedgehog to the side with a shove. With Rainbow Dash clear in sight, she raised her hammer and jumped, screaming her infamous war cry as she swung her hammer down.

"YOU WILL NOT TAKE MY SONIC AWAY FROM ME!"

Rainbow sidestepped just in time for the hammer to swoosh by her, slamming against the dirt with a loud thud. She swung her hammer towards the pegasus, just missing her as propelled herself backwards with a swift flap of her wings. Amy brought her hammer back on her shoulder while Rainbow Dash crouched down in a fighting stance.

"You're crazy!" The pegasus shouted.

Amy huffed, breathing heavily as snot dripped from her nose, her eyes slit with murder, "YOU WILL STAY AWAY FROM HIM! YOU WILL NOT TAKE HIM AWAY! HE WILL ALWAYS BE A PART OF ME AND NOTHING ELSE WILL SEPARATE US!"

With a wild scream, she charged; with her hammer over her head ready to strike the pegasus who would dare take away her love.

"You left me with no choice!" Rainbow shouted back, "I'm taking you down!"

The pegasus charged, galloping with a bull's charge with her wings spread out to her sides. The two quickly closed the distance between them, and Amy was ready to swing her hammer to her side and strike her foe… Until a blue blur flashed by her.

*Smack!*

The pegasus's charge game to a screeching halt when that blue whished in front of her. The very next thing she saw was Amy knocked down on her back, with a large, nasty bump on the side of her head. Sonic was beside her, kneeling down with his fist clutched tightly. There was a little speck of blood on his fist, and Amy's nose began to drip the same liquid.

Sonic slowly stood up, with his eyes closed and teeth gritted in frustration and regret and slowly turned to the downed Amy. She could only stare at him in complete shock.

"…You already know too well how I feel about you," He said quietly in a low, scornful tone, "You denied it. For so long you have denied that you tricked yourself into thinking that there's something between us… I have tried my best to keep our friendship, after all the abuse, the embarrassment," He paused, giving a quick glace towards Rainbow, "But when you hurt my friends, that's where I draw the line!"

She didn't say a word to him, but only blankly stared back with watery eyes.

"Not one time was I happy being forced into one of your dates," He continued, "I used to fear you, Amy, you used to force yourself upon me when you threaten me. As much you threaten me, I would never fight back. Not because I was intimidated by your strength, but because you were my friend." He took in a deep breath, "I would never hurt my friends."

Amy's words became nothing more but whispers, "W-what are you saying?"

He shook his head, "You broke the camel's back when you turned against us in a fit of rage like an animal… We're done."

For several seconds, she lay on the grass motionless, letting the blood dripping from her nose carelessly drip down her face as tears began to mingle with them. Trembling, she slowly stood up. She couldn't even look at him, facing her head away from him as she got on her feet.

Suddenly, she ran, crying out in agony of a broken heart as her feet swiftly carried her through the town. Sonic, Rainbow, and everyone else around them only watched as Amy disappeared behind a building, continuing to run before she escaped out of town.

"… Sonic," Tails quietly called, still shocked that he suckered punch a close friend of theirs, "Y-you didn't have to do that-"

"She left me with no choice," He quickly answered, simply walking towards the wrecked Bakery, "Leave her alone. She needs to think about what she has done."

Quietly, everyone began to follow him, whispering behind his back, but didn't dare to make any statements. Pinkie was still standing by the entrance, this time with a small collection of brooms for them.

The group was in there for nearly half a day cleaning up, with Pinkie watching them intensely on the sidelines.

---

Author's notes

Ladies and Gentlemen, I have a deadline to finish this Fanfiction. If I miss that deadline, I'll be forced to shut this down. There are things I have to do and I can't delay them any further.

It's going to be in the middle of May, when I'll be graduating from college. I won't go into too much detail, but I'm just going to say that God has called me for something, and that calling is going to require every bit of my attention. I thought that I could get done with this thing before long, but it's been taking me WAY longer than it should. For readers that don't believe in God (or in 'a' god), then just think of me realizing something I never realized before. There were things that uh, I'm going to say 'haunted' me while I was in high school. There were so many questions and up until just recently, I'm having some of those questions answered.

When you envisioned something and you see that it's coming to a head, even though it's something that you desired for so long, it's just… I don't know. People say that it's a wonderful thing when you're dreams come true, but for me and my situation; It's freighting.

I'm sorry, but I'm drawing the line here. I have to put God first.

There's still one more ark to this story, and that begins after this chapter. It's actually been leading to this point since the very beginning. Sorry for you action fans, but it's going to be drama from here on out.

I'm always keeping my audience in prayer. I could use one too if helped.

Harry