It had been a few weeks since (Y/N) had joined Shadow in his castle, the time passing quickly as the two got to know each other. In that time, the (a/t) had learnt a lot about the hedgehog and his home. During her first night, he had shown her around, telling her about the hidden tunnels that lead to safe houses, if there were ever to be an attack, and he showed her the rooms and kitchen, the living quarters of his servants.

It was all very confusing, and Shadow reassured her that the castle had never been attacked before, because no one knew it existed. The (a/t) believed him, and she continued her stay at the castle. After explaining why those humans had been chasing her, Shadow had also suggested it, he was well aware of the humans and their greed, well aware of the things they do, even when they aren't meant to.

Yes, Shadow insisted she stay at the castle from now on, and the (a/t) happily took up that offer. There was something about him that was so captivating, she trusted everything that came out of his mouth. If he told her to jump off a cliff, she'd believe he had a plan to catch her. Boy was she hooked.

So hooked in fact, that the (a/t) had started staying up later just to spend time with him. That, the loneliness she imagined Shadow felt every night when everyone went to bed, and the fact that she was still grateful he had saved her. It was after a few nights that (Y/N) decided to stay up later, keeping Shadow company until the early hours of the morning. Most of the time she fell asleep around him and wake up in her bed. Shadow would question her every night about it, asking why he chose to stay up so late when she were clearly tired.

The (a/t) would shrug it off, tell him she didn't want to sleep, and that would usually be the end of it. But she could tell that he knew, though he wouldn't mention it again for that night. It was a sort of acceptance the two shared, that (Y/N) wanted to keep him company, and he was alright with that, as long as she looked after herself.

Currently, the two were sitting in the hedgehog's library, both nose deep in separate books, a warm beverage sat by (Y/N)'s side. Occasionally one of the two would look up at the other, smile, and go back to reading. It was a peaceful thing, a nice quiet activity to both start and end the sleeping process.

There was a rumble in the distance, and the (a/t)'s ears perked, having not expecting a storm tonight. Shadow lifted his head as well, glancing out the window at the star filled sky,

"Strange, it must be far off." Shadow said, also clearly talking about a possible storm.

And then there was a crash, and both the Mobians were now upright, books dropped. They glanced at each other, confused, before taking off for the front of the castle. Not long after the crash came a loud banging on the castle doors. This set off Shadow's defensive side, as nothing like this had happened before. He turned to (Y/N), grabbing her arm and running through the castle, until they reached a vantage point where they could see the courtyard.

"Whoa... Warn me please." The (a/t) said, wobbling slightly as Shadow threw open the windows.

"Apologies, but it looks like we have bigger problems at hand." The dark hedgehog said, glaring down at the crowd below, "Humans have found their way onto my territory."

(Y/N) shook her head, before she too looked out the window. Her eyes widened in horror at the sight of the humans that crowded the courtyard. They had broken down the large wrought iron fence and were now banging on the door, knives, smaller blades, lighters and touches in hand. They weren't here for peace, and that was clear.

"They didn't get the message." Shadow growled, before turning and taking off through the castle. (Y/N) went to follow him but couldn't hope to keep up with him. The (a/t) let out a sigh, wishing she could help, and blaming herself for this happening. If she hadn't run out here to start with, Shadow's castle wouldn't be under attack.

And the lack of knowledge of his existence would mean these humans could get away with whatever they plan to do.

"(Y/N)." Shadow was in front of her in seconds, "I'm sorry to do this, but I have a favour to ask of you."

"What is it Shadow?" She tilted her head, anything to help something she caused.

"Lead all the others through the hidden tunnels, get them to safety." The dark vampire said, his ears twitched to the banging still coming from the front door, "I'm going to stop these monsters from hurting anyone."

"But you can't fight them alone." The (a/t) said, her ears lowering in worry, "There's probably hundreds of them, you saw that crowd!"

"And I'm a vampire." The hedgehog said, taking her arm in his hand, "I'll be alright, my top priority as king is to look after my guests. I'll keep the humans at bay until they either leave or all die."

"And if they don't?"

"Then at least everyone else is safe." The hedgehog said, pulling away and turning his back to the other, "Don't worry about me. Just focus on yourself and the others."

(Y/N) stared at him, before letting out a sigh and nodding. She stepped next to him, placing a hand on his shoulder,

"Alright, I'll get everyone to safety. But Shadow..." The hedgehog glanced at her, and she gently cupped his cheek, "I better see you coming down the tunnel by the end of this. Promise me you'll do that."

He blinked, before giving her a silent nod. There was something deep in that silent response, the (a/t) wasn't sure why, but the vampire king's reaction to the promise was... The most genuine thing she'd ever seen from him.

She offered him a smile, giving him a thumbs up, "Good luck out there, knock 'em dead."

"That's the plan." Shadow chuckled, before taking off down the hall once again.

(Y/N) watched him go, before taking off in the other direction. She had to find everyone ASAP and get them out of the castle before the worst could happen. There was no way she was going to allow blood to be spilt, not innocent Mobian blood anyway.

The booming of the attackers on the door echoed through the castle, sounding like the ticking of a clock. Time was running out, if she didn't find everyone before they broke in, the (a/t) was sure to fail her job. But even as she ran and searched through every room, (Y/N) just couldn't find anyone. Had they all run off? Hidden? Gotten somewhere safe already?

No, they don't know about the tunnels of the castle, Shadow specifically told her, and only her, about them. So where was everyone?

The (a/t)'s chest felt heavy, she couldn't find anyone. Had they already been captured? Did they try to leave and meet a terrible fate?

She closed her eyes, shaking her head. No, don't think like that. Maybe they've all grouped up in one of the rooms, maybe they were looking out for each other. (Y/N) slowly came to a stop, panting from running everywhere. She took a deep breath, trying to calm her racing heartbeat. That's when she heard something, her ears perked to the sound of something crashing.

Of course, the kitchen!

To the (a/t)'s relief, behind the kitchen doors were the rest of the guests, all hiding behind the benches, holding pans and knives in defence. A young rat was clutching some pots, the lids of them on the floor. He looked terrified.

"Thank the Gods." (Y/N) said, closing the door behind her, "Is everyone here?"

An older cat got to his feet, nodding, "Yes... We heard the banging, Lucinda saw the humans, and we all grouped up to hide."

"Good job. I'm proud of you all." The (a/t) smiled, before glancing over her shoulder at the door. Thumping could still be heard, and now so could the shouting. They were closer to the front of the castle than she felt comfortable, "But we need to move. Shadow told me of some secret tunnels, they lead to a safe place, he made it my job to get you all there."

"What of the king?" Another asked, she was a light blue bird, holding her feathered hands close to her chest.

"He's taking care of the humans, which is why we need to go now." (Y/N) said, opening the door and looking out. The banging had stopped, now it was just yelling and screaming. There was fighting happening, "We need to go now."

It took a lot of sneaking and shushing of children, but after a while the (a/t) managed to get the group of guests into the common room. The walls draped in red curtains; a fireplace sat in the far-left corner. She ran over to it, ducking between the wall and stone of the fireplace, shoving it with her shoulder.

At first nothing happened, and the other guests stood and watched as she struggled to move the wall. But then there was a squeak, and the fireplace started to move. Seeing this, some of the other guests started helping the (a/t), pushing or pulling on the fireplace to reveal the dark tunnel.

Once there was enough of a gap for anyone to fit through, the guests grouped around it, staring down into the dark hallway. They didn't move, seeming somewhat sceptical of this secret underpass, and a loud bang caused everyone to startle.

"They broke through the door." The older cat said, before turning to the (a/t), "You're sure this will lead us to safety?"

"Yes, Shadow strongly instructed I get you all to the end." (Y/N) said, now watching the opposite wall in case anyone came running, "I want everyone to walk before me, I'll follow behind."

"But how will we know if we're going the right way?" The young rat asked, tilting his head.

"There's only one way. Just keep walking until you reach the end. I don't know how long it is, but I know the end is a safe haven for us all." She said.

Yelling came from the hallway, and everyone started to panic. They all hurried into the tunnel, but (Y/N) stayed behind. Someone had to close the tunnel away, and the humans were too close for her to do it on the inside.

The bird glanced back at her, and the (a/t) gave her a hard look, "Go, I'll distract them."

She gave a worried nod, before running after the others. And with that, the (a/t) started working on pushing the fireplace back into position. It was a lot easier to move now that it had been used for the first time in who knows how long, and (Y/N) only struggled a little to push it back to where it was.

The fireplace gave a little click once it was in place, and the (a/t)'s ears perked. She turned to glance at the door, seeing two tall shadows coming from the hallway. She jumped, glancing around the room for a quick escape, before jumping behind one of the plush seats herself or Shadow sit in while reading.

She covered her mouth, ducking behind the furniture as the humans walked into the room. They seemed to be in a rush, running through what seemed to be an empty common room.

"There's no one here either." One of the humans growled, (Y/N) heard a thud, as if they had hit something, "I could have sworn I had seen many other freaks here. They all looked like they had great pelts."

"Just shut up and keep looking, they could be hiding anywhere." The other human huffed, "We'll find them, and when we do, it's a big pay day for us."

(Y/N) glanced out from behind the chair, watching as the two humans disappeared out the other door and down another hallway. Once they were gone, she jumped to her feet, looking around for anything to help protect her. Moving the fireplace now would alert any humans nearby, and she had no clue who was where.

But the fact that they got in...

She had to find Shadow.

Her eyes landed on a shelf across the room, two long swords were perched on top, as if a decoration. She hurried over, grabbing at one in haste. The shelf gave was as she tried to pull herself up to reach, and both swords clattered to the ground. The sound echoed in the room, and she heard footsteps almost immediately from both hallways. Grabbing the closest of the two swords, she stood and held the long weapon up in front of her.

The shadows grew closer, growing along the walls as if caging the (a/t) in. But then one of the shadows disappeared, and the other started shrinking. Were they running away?

Two of the shadows had now disappeared, but the other two eventually morphed into people, and they spotted the (a/t) immediately. Smirks appeared on their faces, and they started towards her, one holding a hunting knife, the other holding rope.

"Finally, I told you we'd find one."

"And look at that pelt. She alone will be enough to last a month."

(Y/N) gave a warning growl, lifting the sword at the two. The humans only chuckled, splitting off to surround her. She watched them, until it was too hard to see them both. She knew what they were doing, and she knew she was in trouble. Glancing at one would leave the other open to attack, so the (a/t) needs to make her decision quickly.

She faced the guy with the rope, glaring at him as he snickered. If she thought correctly, they wouldn't actually hurt her, not if her pelt really is as expensive as they claim. So turning her back on the knife was a calculated choice.

Or so she thought.

The human behind her rushed, and although she turned to block his attack, the human was faster. He dove the knife into her shoulder, and the (a/t) cried out, stumbling back into the other person. Rope was wrapped around her torso, holding her arms to her sides, and she dropped the sword.

"Think we wouldn't hurt ya huh?" The human that had stabbed her chuckled, "Thing is, you Mobians heal faster than us humans, we don't mind waiting."

(Y/N)'s eyes widened, and she started to struggle against the rope. No way was she going to let them win, not after Shadow had saved her the first time, not after she had been given a second chance. The pain in her shoulder was throbbing instantly, and she cursed herself for misjudging their intentions.

She couldn't get out, the ropes around her were too tight, and her shoulder was screaming in pain. This was it; she had been captured. The fear swimming in her body had her frozen, her shoulder had paralysed her. She couldn't move, and that meant she had been captured.

And Shadow crossed her mind. She hadn't seen him come through at all, the humans had invaded the castle. Did that mean he had lost too? Did that mean he had been captured? Or worse... Killed?

He could be gravely injured right now, and here (Y/N) was, giving up at the slightest instance. She growled. How could she have given up so easily? The (a/t) started to struggle again, even as they finished bounding her. Her struggles clearly annoyed the humans though, as she made it difficult for them to pick her up. She'd kick her legs out, making one of them drop her, and shake her head and body as much as possible.

Finally, one of the humans got sick of it, and when they dropped her again, he reached up and grabbed the knife still lodged in her shoulder,

"Stop moving you fucking brat." He growled, the knife twisting slightly in her shoulder.

(Y/N) hissed in pain, but glared at him, "Do... Your worst..."

"Gladly." The human chuckled, twisting the knife more. The (a/t) could feel her flesh rip, and she screamed in pain as blood ran down her arm.

"Dude stop." The other human said, shoving him back, "Damager her too much and she'll scar."

"I'm passed caring at this point." The first human snapped, "She's all we've been able to find, her pelt is going to be expensive either way. We'll just make up some shitty story and get a little extra for our troubles."

The other sighed before finally picking the (a/t) up and lugging her over his shoulder, "At least she stopped squirming. But now I've got blood on my clothes."

"Pussy." The first scoffed, before walking behind him. He looked around, keeping an eye out for any other prey that could possibly earn them a quick meal.

They started walking down the hallway once again, towards the front of the castle. (Y/N) noted that this was where the other two shadows had disappeared, and when she saw blood on the walls, a strike of hope went through her chest. Maybe Shadow was alive, and he was killing the humans off one by one. There were a lot, it made sense to think some would get past him.

A gust of wind went past the group, and both humans froze. (Y/N) lifted her head to see Shadow standing in front of him, his fur and cape were drenched in blood, his fangs were handing over his lips, and a look of rage would have turned the humans to dust if possible.

It was within a blink of an eye that the human behind the (a/t) disappeared, a scream echoed down the hall, growing faint as Shadow dragged the human away. The one holding (Y/N) cursed, before he started running out of the castle. Dead bodies littered the courtyard, blood soaking the dirt. The human cursed again, now repeating the damned word as he stepped over his dead comrades.

And then Shadow was in front of them again, blood dripping down his muzzle. He growled, throwing his cape to the side. It fell in a soaked heap, Shadow paying it no more attention. He ran at the human, who dropped the (a/t) instantly in fright. Shadow managed to catch her with one arm under her shoulders, the other shoving through the human's chest.

The human coughed, blood spurting out onto the hedgehog as he stared down in horror, a few tense, silent seconds passed before he fell back. He was still before he hit the ground. (Y/N) was shaking staring at all the dead bodies around them. She knew Shadow was strong, but to think he had done this...?

His red gaze was on her next, and she couldn't help but feel intimidated. The look in his eyes screamed crazed, and she started to wonder if she was his next meal. His eyes then landed on her shoulder, and his nose twitched.

"You're hurt." He said, and his manic behaviour instantly evaporated, "I'm sorry, no one was meant to get hurt."

He knelt down, sitting the (a/t) in the damp dirt, before pulling the blade from her shoulder. She hissed, pulling back slightly with her ears down.

"It's alright, the fighting is over now." Shadow said, taking her arm gently. She let out a whine, any movement sent sharp pains through her shoulder. The dark hedgehog's eyes softened, and he leant forward, "I'll do my best to heal it, but this is a big wound. I can only assist so much."

"Sh-Shadow..." The girl muttered, closing her eyes, "I was worried..."

"Like I said, you don't have to worry about me." Shadow said, before healing her wound as best as he could. Once he had done everything he could to help her, he got to his feet, grabbing his cape, "What happened to the others?"

"I got them to safety. No one was injured." (Y/N) said, also getting to her feet. The pain in her shoulder was now just a slight ache, a throb in the back of her mind, "Thank you Shadow... I wished I could have helped more."

"It's alright. You've done more than enough." Shadow said, "You took charge in the areas I couldn't. You were a good leader no doubt."

She couldn't help but smile now, feeling herself relax around Shadow, feeling the intensity of the fight disappear, "Good enough to be a queen?"

The hedgehog startled slightly at the comment, before clearing his throat and nodding, "Yes, good enough to be a queen."

(Y/N) couldn't help but giggle, "Well then, let's go attend to our people. I'm sure they're very worried about us."

A smile cracked on Shadow's lips, and his fangs disappeared. He nodded, and the two headed back inside the castle.

AHHHHHH I'm sorry ;-; gone for 3 weeks, and then I write this shit. The ending is super rushed, I'm so sorry about that, but I just couldn't figure out how to end it and it was dragging on really bad so I had to wrap it up. This is nearly 7 full pages long!

Anyway, I'm back now, uni is over for the year and I can focus on writing! Feels good to be back :)

Haven Out!!!