"Yeah, you just keep telling yourself that buddy," Sonic retorted.

Shadow's face became flushed with anger. "And how many times must I tell you, don't call me buddy!!"

We open up at a vast field. It has about the overall circumference of a stadium except many times wider and is a place where Sonic likes to spend time racking up mileage on his famous running shoes.

Tails is hovering in the air holding a digital camera to shoot the action. The sun is shining, the birds are singing, and peace has once again been restored to Mobius. Sonic and Shadow are engaged in a competition between them to see who's the fastest and the strongest. Several of Sonic and Shadow's friends are there, which includes Knuckles the Echidna; Amy Rose, who is smitten with Sonic; Cream the Rabbit, and Cheese; Rogue the Bat, who has her own attraction to Shadow; and a special appearance by Espio the Chameleon, who is on vacation, but really just wanted an excuse to get away from his group, Chaotix, for a little while. Sonic's best friend Miles "Tails" Prower is hosting the event as well as filming it. His ability with technology and multitasking made the decision to appoint him as host almost unanimous. Amy, being a bit ditzy, wanted Sonic to host it.

As Tails hovered in midair, he called out for the first challenge, a contest of speed, to begin.

"Alright! Your first challenge is something like NASCAR! When Amy drops the flag, you'll run twenty laps around the field! First one to cross the finish line wins bragging rights and proof of who is the fastest! The use of chaos control by Shadow is prohibited," Tails instructed.

Amy stood to the side of the starting line as she stared unabashedly at Sonic, who was blushing with embarrassment. Shadow, ever the serious of the two had started off as an enemy of Sonic. But over time, their relationship simmered to a friendly rivalry between the two. Personality-wise, Shadow is everything Sonic is not: Serious, lacking a sense of humor, and even downright vicious. Ability-wise, he's a legitimate contender to Sonic in speed. He controls the power of chaos and can use it to freeze time for brief periods and even use it to create devastating attacks against anyone who dares to oppose him. His fighting ability is second to none. He is something of an anti-hero.

Sonic on the other hand, has always had a carefree personality. Though, thanks to the repeated intrusions of Dr. Eggman into his home in an attempt to enslave the inhabitants of Mobius into his robotic slaves, Sonic has become a seasoned fighter in his own right, and is always there to stop the mad scientist's evil deeds. He has a huge craving for chilidogs and is sometimes seen by some as a bit egotistical because of his reputation as the fastest Mobian in all of Mobius. Despite that, he is well liked by many and is regarded as a hero.

The two hedgehogs are at the starting line looking intently at each other, one smirking, the other gazing.

Amy holds up the flag. "Alright! You ready? On your mark..."

The two get in their position without taking their eyes off each other.

"...get set..."

Shadow's gaze shows the slightest hint of a smirk as Amy drops the flag.

"and GO!!!" she yells as the two take off with amazing speed, causing a backlash of wind in their wake. The two hedgehogs are dead even with each other as they wind around the field at breakneck speeds. In less than a minute, they complete the first lap. The same thing goes with the first ten laps. But as they start the eleventh lap...

"Well then, I'd say that was a good enough warm up." Sonic called over to Shadow who repressed a smirk.

"Alright Sonic, I've played with you long enough. You ready to turn it up?" he asked.

Sonic's grin widened. "You bet! Adios amigo!"

And with that, Sonic accelerated to speeds exceeding Mach 1, causing loud sonic booms in his wake. But Shadow was not deterred and increased his speed to match. The competition was really heating up. Everyone trying to follow their movements had to keep covering their ears from the repeated sonic booms the two hedgehogs kept generating. But Tails was accustomed to Sonic's speed and was able to keep up with the action.

"And it looks like Sonic has the lead! No shocker there! But Shadow isn't making it easy for him! And there they go into the eighteenth lap!" he shouted over the cheers from the crowd.

Shadow was starting to close in on Sonic as they entered their nineteenth lap. Sonic was now running as fast as he could, but Shadow's determination enabled him to close the gap between them. And, as they entered the final lap, the cheers from the crowd got even louder. No one noticed a mysterious figure walk out onto the track, get down in on-your-mark position, and at the point where Sonic and Shadow were halfway around the field, take off so fast that the shockwave knocked everyone over. Even Tails was knocked out of the air and crashed to the ground, causing his digital camera to break. A trail of fire was left in its wake as the form shot around the field like a bullet. And just as the two hedgehogs were fast approaching the finish line, the mysterious figure blew by them so fast that their balance was disrupted, causing them to tumble across the finish line. When they finally skidded to a stop, they were in pain; Sonic was helped to his feet by Amy, and Shadow by Rogue.

Sonic was clutching his head as he tried to regain his bearings. "Whoa! Who did that?"

"Oh that would be my doing," said a feminine voice behind him.

He turned around and saw a very gorgeous Mobian bear. Like everyone else on Mobius, she was anthropomorphic. Her fur was a slightly darker yellow than Sonic's when in his Super Sonic form. She had a very curvaceous figure and nice firm breasts. From the waist down, however, was completely different. Everyone's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets and their mouths dropped as they saw her legs. They were very muscular, with thighs that were really wide and had the most detailed muscle definition any of them had ever seen. Her calves bulged with power and size and her feet were enclosed in shoes that looked similar to Sonic's shoes, only brown. It really made her overall figure disproportionate, but she didn't seem to mind or care.

She had a smile on her face as she looked at the two awestruck hedgehogs; her hands were on her hips.

"Well how about taking a picture boys...and girls," Blur winked.

Sonic walked up to her. "That's just unbelievable! I've always thought myself to be the fastest. Where do you come from? How come I haven't heard of you?"

Blur took her hands from her hips and put them together below her waistline. She was enjoying the sexy posing and seeing everyone's reaction. "Weeellll. I guess it's as simple as I had no real desire to make myself known to the world at large, at least until now. As for where I come from, it's from a quaint little village from the other side of the planet in an isolated region where only others of my kind live."

Tails stomped over to Blur clutching his broken camera. "Hey! Just who do you think you are busting in like that?! You trashed the track and you broke my camera! Do you have any idea how expensive it was?!"

Blur was suddenly behind Tails. It was like she teleported. She moved so fast that she left an afterimage.

"Geez kid, you sure are pissy. But you're cute!" she said as she pinched his cheek.

Tails moved to brush her hand away, but his hand went right through hers as it became an afterimage. Suddenly, she was leaning against Sonic, caressing his face. Sonic was embarrassed by this show of speed that even he couldn't do.

"You know, why do you hang around little foxy boy when you can be with someone who can truly test your speed?" she cooed in his ear.

Sonic grabbed her shoulders and gently pushed her back. "Listen Blur, I don't know why you're here, but I don't appreciate you talking about my bro like that."

Blur just turned her back and looked over her shoulder at him. "Your loss sexy."

Blur walked over to the starting line of the track. "Well then Sonic. You want to make it official and have a little race of our own?" she asked.

Sonic, never one to back down from a challenge, shook her hand. "You're on!"

Sonic turned to Tails. "Hey buddy, care to do the honors?"

But Tails turned away. "No way! Find someone else! I'm not helping her with that ego!"

Sonic sighed. Suddenly, Espio walked up. "I'll do it."

He picked up the flag and held it in the air. "On your mark..."

Sonic got down in position, but Blur started jogging in place really really fast. Sonic was perplexed at the sight.

"get set..."

Blur's legs were now moving so fast that they were a blur. Sonic knew he had to beat her somehow, but something about her legs moving unbelievably fast looked...sexy!

"GO!" as he dropped the flag.

Sonic never stood a chance. In his moment of distraction at Blur's powerful legs, she was out of sight moving around the field so fast that, by the time Sonic started to take off, she was almost completely around the field. Blur slowed down so she could look back. Sonic was giving it everything he had as he ran as fast as his legs could carry him. Blur actually stopped and watch Sonic pass her to make his way around the field to catch up.

As Blur watched him, she actually felt sorry for him. But at the same time, she began to feel an admiration for him as well. Sonic could clearly see that he didn't stand a chance at beating her, and yet he was still trying. And that determination made her feel an attraction to him. She almost wanted to let him win just to preserve his ego. But she knew that Sonic wouldn't like that and would rather just lose fair and square, than win a false victory. As Sonic passed her for the third time putting him one lap ahead of her, she took off running; her speed again making her a blur to all who were watching. She passed Sonic and was mere seconds from passing him again, putting her back in the lead. Well suffice to say that by the time Sonic finished the tenth lap, Blur completed the race.

Everyone was expecting Sonic to stop right there, but he kept on going. No one understood why he kept going. But he did. He was feeling hurt; to be completely pushed out of his own league like this. But yet, he couldn't bring himself to resent Blur for this. And rather than feel any jealousy, he chose instead to simply finish the race and keep his pride. At last, he completed the twentieth lap and skidded to a stop. Everyone began walking over to him, but as he was panting from exhaustion, he put up his hand.

"Guys. I thank you for coming. But it's clear that this competition between me and Shadow will have to wait until another time," he said.

Shadow would normally object at Sonic's evasiveness, but in a rare moment, he could actually feel Sonic's humiliation and knew that he was in no spirits to go on. Amy ran over to Sonic to object, but Sonic stopped her with a look.

"Please Amy, you too. I need to be alone," he said as Amy had some tears in her eyes. It pained her to see him like this. But she knew that he was serious so she left as well. Rogue turned back to Shadow who was still standing there.

"Are you coming or what?" she asked impatiently.

"You go. I'm staying here," Shadow responded.

Sonic looked up at him and in another of rare moments, he lost his cool. "Please Shadow! I'm in no mood to have you standing there gloating at me. And this wasn't even YOUR victory!"

But Shadow remained still. "Actually, that's not why I'm staying. But I am staying. You can try to make me leave, but I don't think that would be a good idea for you right now."

Rogue was fed up at Shadow's stubbornness and turned around and left with the others. It was just Sonic, Shadow, and Blur now. Blur had her eyes on Sonic the whole time. Normally, she didn't really care about anyone. She was quite familiar with Sonic's heroic battles against Dr. Eggman. And in a small way, she even thanked him for keeping him at bay. She knew that if the scientist knew of the people of her village, he would surely try to enslave them for their abilities. Shadow walked away from the area to give Sonic some space, but he wanted to keep an eye on him nevertheless. As Sonic sat down, lost in thought, he kept replaying the race in his mind.

Blur slowly walked over to him and put a hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry I insulted your friend Sonic, that was wrong of me to do. I hope you can forgive me."

Sonic looked up at her, gave a weak smile and nodded. He was just numb from his utter defeat. Blur sat down next to him and took his hand into hers.

"Look. I'm not going to apologize for beating you. But I do want to say that just because there's someone faster than you doesn't mean that you have nothing left to live for."

She paused as he considered her words.

"Look, I know you pretty well. Who hasn't heard of your brave deeds? In spite of the things I said earlier, you're considered a hero to my people as well. Me and my sister aren't even..."

Sonic interrupted her. "You have a sister?!"

Blur smiled. "Yes I do. If you think I'm a freak, you should meet her! She is very strong, and that's putting it mildly."

Shadow overheard this and ran over to them. "You mean there's another one of you nearby?"

Blur wasn't really tolerant of Shadow's blunt nature. "Yes Shadow, there is. You actually have a few things in common with her personality-wise. She too is a bit blunt and to the point with things."

She turned back to Sonic, who was back on his feet. "I'll make you a deal. Allow me to race you again. But this time, you use the Chaos Emeralds and become Super Sonic. With your speed in that form, it will be a more even race."

For the first time since his defeat, he had a glimmer in his eyes.

"Alright, it's a deal!" he said.

Shadow just stood there indignant.

Blur started to walk away, but turned back to face the two hedgehogs.

"Come on! I want you to meet my sister!" she said as she dashed off at a speed that mirrored Sonic and Shadow's top speeds during their race. They sprinted off after her as they left the field.

After several minutes, they reached town. The place was bustling with activity. They slowed down to a standard run as the two followed Blur through the mass of people everywhere. Eventually, they reached a part of town that had fewer people. They approached a hot dog shoppe and Sonic's nose twitched.

"Ah, my favorite place! Did you plan this?" he asked her.

She smiled. "Actually, no. Why do you ask?"

He laughed a bit. "I guess you don't know me as well as you say you do. C'mon Shadow, let's nab some chili dogs while we're here!" he said to Shadow.

But Shadow wasn't exactly sharing his enthusiasm. "No. I'm not in the mood to eat right now."

But Sonic was persistent. "Nonsense! After all that racing we both did, I know full well you're as hungry as I am! So why don't you just drop the tough guy act for a few minutes and have some chilidogs. Have you ever had them before?"

"As a matter of fact I have. I'm just not so flamboyant about eating them," Shadow answered.

"Oh you're no fun at all!" Sonic said as he followed Blur inside, Shadow trailing behind.

As they entered, they saw Blur looking around the place. She looked all around twice and turned back toward Sonic.

"She's not here!" she said.

One of the patrons got up and turned toward her as if in recognition.

"Are you looking for this Amazon bear that was in here earlier?" the guy asked.

"As a matter of fact, I am. She's my sister," she answered.

All eyes were now on her as they saw her muscular legs. The guy seemed really freaked out. "She... left. She wasn't exactly quiet about it either. She was saying something about being tired of waiting and just left."

Blur put her hand to her face in disgust. "Ugh! I knew she couldn't wait. I told her that I wasn't going to be long, but noooo!"

Sonic had a feeling that wasn't the only reason she left. Something told him she was probably attracting a lot of stares if she was anything like Blur here.

She turned toward Sonic and Shadow. "I guess I got to go look for her. Knowing her, she's making a scene somewhere," she said.

Sonic's mouth was watering as he was gazing at the menu. "Actually, can you two go on without me? I'm really hungry and I think I'm going to eat while I'm here. Why don't you two just come back here once you've found your sister?"

Blur chuckled. "Suit yourself sugar. Boy, you sure live up to your name, I'll grant you that."

So with that, she left with Shadow. As they made their way farther towards the edge of town, Blur asked various people where her sister might have went. They all pointed towards a large lake that borders the far end. So they made their way over there in a hurry. Once they got there, it wasn't long before Blur spotted her and ran up to her to chastise her for disappearing like that. But Shadow was standing there, his mouth hanging open. He could only see her back from this angle, but what he saw was even more amazing than Blur by a long shot. Her back was huge! It looked like a cobra's neck spread wide open! He couldn't see much as she was wearing a shirt that seemed pretty tight on her. But he could see that she was enormously muscular. Her arms were resting on her legs as she was sitting on a bench. They were just huge. But again, he couldn't make out the detail as they, too were covered by the shirt's sleeves. It seemed rather out of place on a day like this.

Blur looked behind her towards Shadow and gestured him to come over and join them. He slowly walked over and tried his hardest to regain his composure as he looked at Blur's sister in full view for the first time. He half-expected to see her have a masculine face on her. But much to his astonishment, she was even more gorgeous than Blur. Her face... so beautiful. She had the most enchanting eyes, eyelashes full and prominent. Her nose was small and served to accentuate her beauty. And her lips. Try as he might, he just couldn't keep his expression from softening. Her lips were full and she was wearing reddish pink lipstick. Shadow tried to deny what he was feeling, but the obviousness of what he was seeing was too much for him to ignore. Shadow the Hedgehog, one of the most ruthless fighters and complete opposite of Sonic...was in love.

Blur didn't seem to notice anything as she gestured toward Shadow. "This is Shadow the Hedgehog, the one I told you about."

She put her hand on her sister's shoulder. "And Shadow, I'd like you to meet my sister, Buff the Bear."

Shadow walked over and took her hand. "I'm... pleased to meet you," he stammered.

Buff looked him in the eyes; it felt like she was gazing into his soul.

"Pleased to meet you too, Shadow. I've heard... interesting stories about you," she said with a sensuality in her voice.

Shadow had never had a relationship before. Even with Rogue's occasional advances, he never saw her as anything more than a friend. He had a cold interior that came with his creation. He was never intended to feel like this before and these emotions were quite new to him. At first, he wasn't sure how to articulate these feelings. In fact, the sight of a female with muscles like this should be having the exact opposite effect on him.

"Hey, yoohoo! Mobius to Shadow! Wakey wakey!" came Blur's voice from somewhere distant. Shadow snapped out of it.

"We'd better head back. I'm sure Sonic is waiting for our return," Shadow said, managing to return to his usual demeanor.

Buff smiled inwardly. She had many gifts that she wanted to show to him besides her muscles. Normally, she was just as emotionless on the outside as Shadow. But there was something about Shadow that seemed... exciting. And she could easily tell that Shadow was attracted to her. It made her feel special. No one had ever felt like that toward her; not where she came from anyway. Normally, her body was a turn off for just about every guy she has interacted with. And if there were any who liked her muscles, they never had the courage to show any indication.

When they returned, they went inside and saw Sonic at a table in the far corner eating his chilidogs. The three went over to sit with him. Buff looked at the staring faces as she sat down in the seat facing the hallway leading to the restrooms. This put her out of view of everyone else in the shoppe. This also put her next to Blur while Shadow reluctantly sat next to Sonic. Buff leaned in toward Sonic.

"Thank you for choosing this corner. To be honest, I was getting sick of everyone staring at me. Normally I don't mind, but I could feel it in the atmosphere that much of it was disgust," she said.

"No sweat. I had a feeling that's what it was," he replied.

Sonic looked at Buff and saw her massive frame. He couldn't believe a female could look like this. She had a very pretty face. In a way, she reminded him of Rogue, but less devious-looking. Sonic, however, was more into Blur and her legs. It felt so mesmerizing to meet a woman with such strong legs that could run that fast. And despite being defeated by her, he was finding himself really attracted to her. He glanced at the menu on the table.

"So um, how 'bout I go up there and order a round of chili-dogs for you three? My treat!"

Shadow just gave a vague look that was his way of saying yes.

"Sure, that'd be great!" Blur said eagerly.

"I suppose a couple won't hurt," Buff said.

So he went to get in line as Buff looked across at Shadow, who upon eye contact began to blush involuntarily.

"So Shadow, tell me something. I've heard about your various escapades. But why must you be such a loner?" Buff asked.

Shadow struggled to retain his composure. "That's...none of your business. I am who I am. My past is of no concern to anyone else."

Rather than being offended by this, Buff seemed even more determined to break through Shadow's icy exterior.

"I'm sorry; I don't mean to pry. It's just that you seem to have so much depth to you, and I thought you might want to get something off your chest," she said.

Shadow kept his gaze partially averted. "Perhaps... maybe another time."

Buff smiled; "I'd like that."

Blur was listening to the exchange and looked at Buff perplexedly. "Are you ok? You aren't acting like your usual self?"

"So? What's wrong with that?" Buff asked back.

But Blur just shrugged her shoulders and looked at Shadow. "Just so you know, she is NOT usually this mild."

Buff gave her a push. "Will you shut up about that!?"

"Well it's true!" she retorted.

Sonic returned carrying a basket with several chilidogs and distributed them. At first, everyone started eating them with little being said. But once Buff finished her first chilidog, she looked over at Sonic.

"So, how are things going where you're from? I trust my sister told you where we come from?" Buff asked.

"She did, and things are doing fine. I don't think that creep Eggman will be bothering anyone for a while," Sonic said.

Buff clutched her arms at her side and tensed them causing her biceps to come dangerously close to tearing her shirtsleeves.

"Sometimes I hope he'd try to start a fight with my people! I would love an opportunity to kick his ass!" she said a bit loudly, causing people around them to crane their necks around to stare again. She saw this and decided that she'd had enough.

"And if you people don't stop staring at me so rudely, I'm going to kick all of your asses at the same time!" she yelled, prompting everyone to turn away quickly.

Blur chuckled. "Now that's my sister."

After a few minutes of eating and light chatting, they got up and left. Once they got outside, they could see it was getting dark. Blur grabbed Sonic's hand.

"Thanks for the chili dogs, they were delicious! So, I'm really looking forward to that rematch with you. What do you say we have it tomorrow around this time?" she asked.

"That's good. But I think we will need a bigger track." he said as he paused to think.

"I know! Let's make it good and race one lap around the world!" he proposed.

Blur's excitement was showing as she squeezed his hand, "That's a great idea! That field track wasn't big enough to suit me anyway. And, as fast as we can both run, crossing bodies of water won't be a problem. Just be at your best. It's going to be a long race!"

"Same with you. Your legs will surely need the energy," he said.

Blur flexed her thighs as they bulged in unison. Sonic was really loving this.

"Well, I think I'll head home then. I'm going to tell my family about this. This is exciting! To think that I'll be going up against the chaos power of Sonic the Hedgehog! I can't wait!" she exclaimed.

She turned around to see Buff standing there. "You coming, Sis?"

Buff just smiled. "Actually, if it's OK with Shadow here, I want to stay with him and get to know him more."

Blur's smile became twisted. "Oh really? I see what's going on. So you do..."

"SHUT UP!" Buff and Shadow shouted at the same time.

"Alright alright. I'll see you three tomorrow at the field we raced at. We can start the race there. You cool with that Sonic," she asked.

"Works for me," he said.

She took off running with sonic speed and was soon out of sight. Sonic was looking at Shadow, who was looking elsewhere. He was no fool; he could see that there was something different about Shadow. Whatever he sees in Buff has elicited a reaction much like what he himself sees in Blur. He never imagined that Shadow could have such feelings. Even simple compassion was something he rarely showed. He could see all eyes on him as he realized he was not wanted here at this moment.

"Well then, I guess I'll be leaving myself. I need to see how Tails is doing. I hope he's not mad at me," he said as he sprinted off.

The number of people around them had greatly diminished at this point. Shadow turned around and began walking away.

"So, just like that, huh? No conversation?" Buff asked with disappointment in her voice.

Shadow turned his head slightly, but his back was still facing her.

"Forget what you may have heard about me. Being with me is dangerous. The life I have lived; I highly doubt you could cope with the things I have done," he said.

Buff walked in front of him. "You think I care about any of that? I'm not here to judge what you did in the past. I want to judge who you are now; what you'll become."

Shadow's eyes finally locked on hers. Here was a female whose shirt was straining against her muscular body. It was the kind of body that on anyone else, would repulse him. But those eyes brought out so much beauty in her that her physique suited her well. He held her gaze for a few moments.

"Why? Why would you be interested in someone like me?" Shadow finally asked.

Buff walked closer to him and took his hand in hers. Shadow wasn't the type to like being touched by anybody. But he didn't find himself reacting badly at all. Her eyes had such a glow in them that he couldn't help but let her hold his hand.

"Maybe because I think you need someone who can care for you. Maybe because I can sense your tortured soul," she said, rather bluntly.

Shadows eyes lit up a bit, but he remained calm. "And how could you know enough about me to say that I'm tortured?"

Buff kept her gaze on him. "Because I'm also empathic. I can feel the emotions of others, even if they are projecting completely different emotions from what they are really feeling. This is one of my gifts."

Shadow wanted to respond, but found he couldn't. So Buff continued.

"Maybe I think that what you need the most is someone you can care for again," she said very carefully. And with good reason. Shadow lowered his head. His face filled with sadness.

"You miss her still, don't you?" she asked.

"...Yes. Maria was the closest thing I had to a family other than the professor who created me. When she and I were trying to escape from G.U.N. during their siege of the Space Colony ARK, a soldier shot her. It hurt me to be unable to save her. She wanted me to bring hope to humanity, but I couldn't even do that." Shadow said as he looked up at her again.

"It's strange. You're the first person I have ever shared this openly with," he said.

Buff smiled. "Maybe it's time you followed your heart for a change. Come with me, I want to show you something."

Buff lead Shadow deeper into the city. As they made their way through a more crowded area, they came to a clearing where there were lots of parked vehicles.

Buff stopped and turned to him. "Is it true that you're pretty strong as well as fast?"

Shadow was a bit confused at the question. "Well I suppose I am."

"Can you show me how strong you are?" Buff asked, rather bluntly.

Shadow looked around in slight embarrassment. "Well, um, I guess so."

Shadow walked over to a nearby car that was midsize and put one hand under the front end and hoisted it up over his head.

"Wow! You really are strong!" she said delightedly.

Shadow slowly lowered the car back to the ground. "Is there a point to this?"

Buff smiled coyly. "Actually, I kind of wanted to give you a basis for comparison. You see, as you can tell, I'm a very strong girl. I've been that way all my life. These muscles hardly do my strength any justice."

Shadow's eyes nearly popped of his head. "Are you kidding me?! You mean to say you can lift this car too?!"

Buff walked over to the car Shadow lifted and put her hand under the front end.

"Actually Shadow..." she said as she stood up, lifting the front end over her head, "...this is child's play!" she finished as she put the car back down.

Shadow wasn't sure whether to be attracted to this or humiliated. Buff walked over to a large bus. It looked like a cross-country type bus that's bigger than a school bus. She ducked and walked underneath it. Suddenly, the bus floated upward, she pressed it as high above her as her arms could stretch. Her already tight clothes were once again dangerously close to the ripping point.

She winked at Shadow. "In fact my darling, even this doesn't fully test my strength."

She then adjusted her position and balance and took one of her arms off the bus leaving the weight of it being supported by one arm. It started rocking back and forth a little. Shadow was starting to feel humiliated by this. He was the ultimate life form. He possessed the powers of chaos and the knowledge of many forms of combat. And here was this muscle-bound hulk of a woman who has superhuman strength. Buff finally leaned down to set down the bus and emerged from under it. She walked up to Shadow, stood next to him, and put her arm around him. For the second time, he didn't react to being touched like this.

"I've been waiting to do this since Blur and I first got here. I wanted to show it to someone special," she said as she brought her arm out in front of her so Shadow had a clear view of it and began to flex it. Before she was even halfway through her flex, her sleeve burst open revealing the largest bicep he had ever seen. When she finished her flex, her bicep peak was huge; he estimated it to be at least thirty inches around, with such amazing detail for a body that is covered with fur. His humiliation all but disappeared. He just couldn't explain this feeling. Could he really be in love with her? That's just preposterous... but is it?

"So you like my rock-hard biceps, eh? Go ahead and feel it. Try to squeeze it. Don't worry, you won't hurt me," she cooed.

Shadow's heart skipped a beat as he did just that. He felt her arm and it felt really warm to the touch. But not only that, it felt like there was a rock made of steel under her fur. As hard as he tried to squeeze it, it would not budge in the least. Buff stepped back from him, turning her flexed arm to her side and flexed her other arm, causing that sleeve to also burst immediately. The bicep swelled in size to match her other one as she assumed a double bicep flex.

"I'm going to give you to best display of feminine muscle you have ever, or will ever see," she said as she began to flex her entire body. Now Shadow understood why she insisted on wearing such tight clothes on her. It was like they merely served to enhance the effect of how muscular she is. Her chest began to expand a few inches as her breasts pushed through her shirt, causing it to explode from her body. She had a bikini on that left a lot of her breasts showing. Her nipples were hard and over an inch long as they formed a tiny little tent around them. Her pectorals were like slabs of concrete. Her abs were bulging from her stomach with small veins randomly spread over them. She shifted her focus into her legs. Her thighs were already as big as Blur's, but now they got bigger. Her pant legs exploded from within as her thighs bulged with indescribable power. Her calves were full of rippling muscle. Shadow was mesmerized by the sight as she went into a series of poses.

She was clearly enjoying this as she blew Shadow a kiss. Shadow's face was blushing as she saw this. "Well, it seems that I have finally met the real Shadow the Hedgehog. You see, I told you: you do have a heart. A heart of stone could not feel the emotions I sense in you. So please don't lie to me as I feel you want to," she said as she relaxed her body, leaving her clothes torn all over.

She had on a thong underneath as she ripped off the remainder of her pants. She looked stunning before but now, in nothing but that thong and bikini, she looked like an Amazon goddess. She walked over to him and slowly raised her hand to his cheek. Shadow's eyes were fixed on hers. Suddenly, he slowly put his right hand on her hip and his left on her hand that was on his cheek. The two were locked in each other's gaze. And for the first time ever, Shadow smiled. And without a word, the two leaned toward each other and kissed. It was so passionate, so loving, that Shadow never wanted this moment to end. And last it did. Shadow put his arms around her waist as she wrapped hers around his neck as they continued their warm embrace. Shadow knew at this moment that he truly was in love with her. Her body, her lips, her eyes; she was truly the perfect woman for him. And he never would have known otherwise.

After several minutes of embracing their newfound love for each other, they finally separated their lips. Yet, they kept gazing into each other's eyes. Shadow found her eyes to be the most enchanting thing about her. Buff had known enough of Shadow's reputation to know that the love in his eyes was something exclusive to her. She felt so joyful that she was the first to see it. Shadow gently stroked her cheek.

"I love your incredible muscles. And I love your eyes. God, I've wanted to say this, but your eyes are the most alluring. You have the most beautiful face a woman could have. It's really your face that I find the most attractive," he said with warmth in his voice.

Buff's eyes filled with tears. She had never received such a compliment before. Shadow could tell how touched she was as he wiped her tears from her face with a finger. He leaned in and kissed her, Buff returning the love. He leaned back and never took his eyes off her.

"I'm in love with you Buff. I never thought it possible. I love you so much," Shadow said with joy in his voice.

Buff's face once again filled with tears of happiness. "And I love you, my dearest Shadow. I think that from the moment I met you, I had those feelings for you deep down."