It was nearly midnight when Shadow finally finished the paperwork he had been assigned to complete while on leave from field missions, he would have liked to have been put on full parental leave sooner but that wouldn't come into effect until after his baby was actually born. Until then he still had weekly paperwork to fill out and submit, thankfully he was allowed to do that from home for the time being. He sighs softly and shuts his work laptop before carefully standing up from his desk, a hand rubbing at his sore back in an attempt to ease his aching muscles. A hot bath sounded nice right about now, if only Sonic was here to take one with him. The blue hedgehog had headed off to investigate the Starfall Isles with Tails and Amy almost a month ago and the three of them haven't been heard from since then, Knuckles was missing too. The strangest part was that Eggman hasn't even tried anything in their absence, not even a single attempt at taking the Master Emerald. That wasn't necessarily a bad thing he supposed, at least it meant that there was one less thing to worry about while Sonic was away.
Shadow makes his way into the bathroom and turns the hot water on to fill up the bathtub, adding in his favorite lavender scented soap to help him relax and take his mind off of his partner's disappearance. Sonic would turn up again eventually, he always did. Everything would be alright in the end, it had to be. Right? He shakes his head and sighs, he shouldn't be getting himself worked up. The hedgehog rubs his belly when he feels the baby kicking, it always seemed to react when something was bothering him. Maybe they shared some kind of mental link due to his alien heritage? He hoped that was the only trait his child had possibly inherited from that side of him. He would love them no matter what though, they were Sonic's child too after all. There was no way he could ever hate anything that came from Sonic, he already loved their child more than he could put into words. He would never turn them away.
He turns the water off once the tub was filled to his liking and slips his socks off before carefully stepping into it, easing himself down into the hot water as he lets out a moan of relief and shuts his eyes. This is exactly what he needed, his back had been bothering him after sitting at that desk for the better part of the day. A tired smile crosses Shadow's face as he relaxes back against the tub, letting himself sink down until the water was up to his shoulders with the curve of his belly poking out just above it's surface. The heavily pregnant hedgehog quickly drifts off to sleep, the hot water and lavender scent soothing his muscles and easing his mind enough for him to get some rest. He would be needing it to prepare his body for what was soon to come, his due date was only a week away now.
Shadow doesn't know how much time had passed before he was woken up by a sudden sharp cramp that shot across his belly and wrapped around into his back before fading away after a few seconds, leaving a dull ache in it's place. He sits up in the water a bit more only to be taken aback when he sees that his now barely warm bath water had turned cloudy and pinkish in color, did his water break while he was asleep? He reaches for the drain stopper to empty the tub so he could refill it with warmer, clean water. He rubs his tight belly to try and soothe away the ache that had settled in across it, noticing that he could feel his baby's kicks near the top of his belly instead of towards the underside. At least he knew it was in the right position, that would make this easier for him to handle on his own.
He turns off the faucet once the tub was refilled enough then lays back again to wait for something to happen, he was in this for the long haul so why waste his energy on getting out of the tub when it was large enough to move around comfortably and had enough space to allow easy access to his lower half? He hadn't planned on giving birth in the bathroom but he also didn't plan on trying to get back to his bed at this point, so why not just stay put? It was definitely safer than trying to walk on a wet floor when he could be unexpectedly hit by overwhelming pain at any given moment, he didn't want to risk falling and hurting the baby or himself. He didn't even know how far his labor had progressed while he was napping so trying to get up now was just too risky, he would rather play it safe.
He gasps and bites his lip to hold back a groan when the stinging pain takes hold again, spreading down into his groin this time. Deciding to stay in the tub was a good idea, Shadow didn't think he would have been able to even stand while trying to handle pain like this. He clutches his belly and breathes heavily until the pain eases enough for him to notice the pressure that was quickly building in his pelvis, he shifts his hips a bit and spreads his legs apart to try and relieve at least some of the pressure. No such luck, in fact the position change only seemed to speed things up. He whines softly as the pressure increased little by little until he felt the instinctual urge to bare down against it, he gave in to the urge and started pushing as hard as he could. Shadow grunts loudly from the effort of how hard he was pushing, the sound turning into a guttural cry as an intense stinging sensation spread across his groin. He could feel his opening beginning to bulge outwards as he pushed, the pressure and stinging growing into a white hot burning pain that momentarily took his breath away. Something was definitely starting to happen.
Shadow reaches a shaking hand down to try and feel for what was going on down between his legs while he caught his breath, his eyes go wide when his hand comes into contact with his painfully stretched skin and the large mass that was bulging against it from the inside. He could also feel a patch of fur that was slowly widening little by little, that was his baby. It was really coming. Tears start rolling down Shadow's cheeks when that thought crosses his mind, he was finally going to become a dad tonight. The hedgehog takes a few deep breaths to ground himself and braces his feet against the sides of the bathtub before pushing with all of his might and letting out a shuddering cry as his baby's head crowns to it's widest point, stretching him open more than he thought was physically possible. The burning grew so intense that Shadow thought his opening might split from how tightly it was stretched around his baby's emerging head, the sensation thankfully only lasts for a moment before the head squeezes free.
Shadow stops pushing with a sharp gasp and pants heavily to catch his breath, his eyes clenched shut as a wave of dizziness makes his vision blurry. He groans softly and brings his hand back down to make sure the umbilical cord wasn't wrapped around the baby's neck, his heart skipping a beat when he feels that the cord was loosely coiled around the hoglet's neck. He quickly works to unwrap it, making sure to be as careful as possible. The hedgehog sighs in relief when he successfully untangles the cord from around his baby's neck after a few clumsy attempts, his hands still shaking from pain and adrenaline. He rests for a moment to calm down and steady himself, gently petting the hoglet's head and ears to give himself something to focus on. Just a little more effort and it would all be over, his baby was almost here.
Shadow carefully cradles the baby's head in his hands as he puts all of his strength into one last push, not hearing the front door unlocking and swinging open as he let out an ear piercing scream when the baby's shoulders slowly squeezed their way through and the body quickly followed as baby finally slid out into the water "A-Ah...oohhh it's okay...it's okay, darling...you're okay...Papa's g-got you...Papa is here..." He coos softly, his voice weak and raspy as he lifts the newborn out of the water and onto his heaving chest. He presses light kisses to the wailing hoglet's forehead, shutting his eyes and laying back against the side of the bathtub with his cheek carefully resting against the top of his newborn's head.
"SHADOW?!" Sonic's voice calls out in concern only seconds before the blue hedgehog scrambles into the bathroom, nearly breaking the door down as he immediately rushes to his partner's side "Wh-What happened?! What's wrong?! I heard you screaming, are you okay? Is the baby okay?" He rambles frantically, kneeling down next to the bathtub and freezing like a deer caught in the headlights of an oncoming car when his gaze lands on the tiny hoglet that laid on Shadow's fluffy chest.
Shadow's eyes flutter open at the sound of Sonic's voice and a weak grin spreads across his face "Sonic...you're here...you're home..." He whispers, bringing a shaky hand up to touch the stunned blue hedgehog's face as tears well up in his eyes "Y-You're really home...you're safe...I-I missed you so m-much...I was s-so scared..." He sniffles before breaking down into sobs, everything he had gone through in the past month had been chipping away at the brave mask he wore for the world until all of the pain and stress finally being lifted off his shoulders caused that mask to crumble away as he let out all of the emotions he had been bottling up since Sonic had disappeared. He had been staying strong for the sake of their baby but he was just so completely spent that he didn't have it in him to be strong right now, he was so tired and so relieved to finally have his partner back home safe. Despite how his tears made it seem he was happy too, everything was just too much for him to handle right now. That was okay though, Sonic was there for him now. He didn't have to be strong anymore, he wasn't alone anymore.
"I'm so sorry, Shadow. I never would have left if I knew that I was going to be gone for so long, we didn't even plan on landing The Tornado. I tried contacting you every day, I was so worried about you. Not knowing how you and our baby were doing killed me, I wanted to come back to you so badly it hurt. I'm sorry I couldn't come home sooner, I'm here now though and I'm not going anywhere any time soon" Sonic apologizes as he carefully lifts Shadow and their baby out of the bathtub and gathers them into his arms, hugging them both close as his partner started to calm down and rested his head on his chest.
"You're hurt" Shadow mumbles softly when he sees the cuts and bruises that were hidden under his partner's blue quills and tan fur now that he was being held so close to him, he could hear and feel Sonic's heartbeating against his ear. He missed that sound and the comfort it always brought him.
"I'm fine, it's just some scratches. I've been hurt worse than this before, it looks like you went through alot more than I did last night. You must be worn out" Sonic says softly as he carries his family to bed and cuddles them close, making sure that all of the pillows were arranged to support Shadow and keep him comfortable so he could get the rest that his body needed.
"Wait, last night? Is it morning already?" Shadow asks, looking confused as he glances to the bedroom window to see the early morning sun shining in "I've been in there all night then, no wonder I feel so tired" He chuckles softly and nuzzles his cheek against the baby's when she begins to stir a bit, having been woken up by the motion of them being moved from the bathtub "Shhh, it's okay. Daddy is just taking care of us, he's finally here to meet you" Shadow smiles down at the tiny infant in his arms, gently stroking her head until she went back to sleep with a handful of his chest fur clutched in both of her small fists.
"She's so beautiful, Shads. She looks so much like you already" Sonic grins at their baby daughter as he very carefully rubbed her little hands until she released Shadow's fur from her grasp and held onto the blue hedgehog's fingers instead "She's so tiny" he chuckles softly before abruptly freezing up again when his partner passed their daughter to him so he could hold her.
"How can you tell that she looks like me already? Her quills haven't even grown in yet, she'll have white baby fluff for at least a month" Shadow laughs at Sonic's reaction to being handed their daughter, finding the enamored look on the other hedgehog's face absolutely adorable. He loved this man so much.
"Because she's a grumpy looking little bean just like you!" Sonic teases his partner, his heart swelling with love when he hears Shadow laugh. He adored his partner's laugh, especially since hearing it was a privilege the darker hedgehog allowed to very few people. Sonic was so grateful to be one of those lucky few.
"I guess you're right about that" Shadow chuckles softly and yawns, exhaustion was finally catching up with him now that he was relaxed and comfortable with his partner by his side. He felt safe enough to try and get some well deserved rest now that Sonic was there to take care of their daughter while he slept, hopefully she wouldn't wake up and need to be fed for awhile. Shadow could feel himself losing his fight against sleep as he struggled to keep his eyes open "Can you take care of her for a bit? I'm totally worn out..." He mumbles tiredly and snuggles up to Sonic's side with another yawn, his eyes slipping shut against his will.
"Of course, you get some sleep now. You really need it" Sonic smiles softly, noticing that his partner had already fallen asleep beside him. His smile falters a bit now that Shadow was sleeping, seeing his partner so upset earlier really shook him. He'd never seen him like that before, he still felt so guilty for leaving Shadow alone for so long and for missing the birth of their first child. He should have been there to support Shadow and comfort him through it. Shadow must have been terrified to have been going through that all by himself, what could he have done if something went wrong? Sonic would never have been able to forgive himself if anything had happened to his partner and their daughter while he was gone, they were so lucky that both of them had made it through safely. He sighs softly and looks to his little girl as she slept peacefully in his arms, completely oblivious to the world around her. No use worrying about all of that now, the important thing is that both Shadow and the baby were safe and healthy. Sonic smiles softly and moves to turn off the lights, being careful not to drop his daughter or wake her up. He settles back against the headboard of the bed with the newborn held securely in his arms as he soon dozes off himself, joining the rest of his family in peaceful sleep.
