Chapter Text
One of Shadow’s favorite holiday memories started with a little girl and a shrill of excitement.
“Shadow!!!” Maria squealed eagerly, tackling Shadow in a side hug.
The black hedgehog tumbled for a minute, but found his footing. “Maria, what–”
“Look!” Maria shoved a picture book straight in his face. The image displayed some sort of dessert made of chocolate, marshmallows, and crackers. It looked…sweet and strange.
“S’mores!!!” Maria beamed, answering Shadow’s unspoken question. “They’re usually made during the summer for camping, but Mom and Dad always made festive ones with peppermint candies this time of year. Grandfather ordered the supplies brought up from earth, so we can make them.” Her blue eyes gleamed. “Would you like to make one?”
“Of course,” Shadow answered. He’d never had a s’more before, but he was eager for the taste. And it made Maria happy – that was the most important part.
Maria eagerly took his hand. “Alright! But we’d better be quick – Grandfather may be knee-deep in his work, but he somehow knows when we’re up to something.”
Breaking into the kitchens was easy enough. Chaos Control did a bulk of the heavy lifting, with Shadow easily sneaking in and swiping the ingredients. He soon warped back to Maria, clutching the treasures: a box of honey graham crackers, a red and white striped bag of Ghirardelli peppermint bark squares, a bag of marshmallows, and some plain chocolate bars. “Did I get everything?”
“Mhm,” Maria smiled. “Now, all we need is the sticks and a fire–”
Shadow’s eyes widened. “Wait, a fire?”
“Yeah? How else do you–” Maria’s eyes widened in realization. “Dang it! I forgot we’re in space. No fireplaces here to toast the marshmallows with.” She pursed her lips together. “I suppose we’ll have to use the microwave in the kitchen. It won’t be the same, but it’ll work.” She reached for the supplies in Shadow’s hands.
“Hold on,” Shadow started, tapping his air shoes against the metal floor. Ruby eyes gleamed. “You designed my air shoes, right?”
“Right.” Maria’s brows knit together in confusion.
“And they have rocket propulsion, right?” Shadow continued.
“Yes, it’s what helps you move fast.” Maria tilted her head to the side. “So?”
Shadow’s face twisted into a smirk. “Don’t rockets shoot fire when they take off?”
Maria’s face lit up like the sun as the dots connected in her head. “Shadow, you’re a genius! A true Robotnik!” She swept Shadow up into her arms, nearly dropping half of their ingredients. She set him down and rubbed his ears, making the black hedgehog purr. “Now, let’s go make some s’mores.”
They parked themselves in a relatively unused biology lab. Ideally, this room would be used for college biology courses taught on the ARK, if the space colony had any college students or young interns. As of right now, the room was deserted and the lab equipment untouched.
Shadow sat on the counter while Maria laid out the spread of sweets. Next to Shadow, Maria had found some metal tongs in the drawer. “So it’s not going to be just like on earth, but it’s going to be close.” Her eyes met Shadow’s. “Start at a low power. No need to burn the marshmallow on the first try. Burnt marshmallows are more yucky than the protein bars.”
“Good to know.” Shadow extended his left leg, watching Maria kneeling on the floor perpendicular to his position. “Be careful,” he warned her.
“Of course,” Maria answered. “Now, let there be fire.”
Shadow kicked his air shoe on, instantly jutting out a blast of heat. Maria nearly yelped at the sight, but managed to shove the tongs right near the shoes. “Is it at low power?”
“Hold on.” Shadow drew back the power a bit. “Okay, it’s low.”
“Good.” Maria carefully placed the tongs in position, turning them gently. “The key to a great s'more is to rotate the marshmallow slowly, so that it cooks evenly. And when it’s a nice shade of gold, then they’re done.” She lifted her head. “Grab two graham crackers and a peppermint square. We’ll need them soon.”
Shadow obeyed, easily opening the packages and laying the crackers out. “Which side do I put the chocolate on?”
“Doesn’t matter,” Maria answered. “Just pick one and lay it peppermint side up.” Shadow chose the right cracker, patting it down with reverence.
“Tada!” Maria pulled the tongs free, a golden marshmallow cradled in the metal hands. “Nice and golden!” She laid the marshmallow on top of the peppermint and then used the other cracker to slide the marshmallow free. Trapped between the crackers and chocolate, the marshmallow oozed right out.
Maria shoved the tongs back under his air shoes. “Always clean your utensils between s’mores. It’s a good habit.” At her nod, Shadow turned off his air shoes and gasped. Maria’s response echoed behind him.
The cupboard directly across from him was charred from the initial blast. And both he and Maria were so caught up in making their treat that they didn’t notice the smoldering cupboard or the melted contents. Even now, wisps of smoke wafted through the air, mingling with the gooey confection’s aroma.
“Oh, snap,” Maria uttered.
BREEP! BREEEP! BREEP!
Both of them covered their ears as the alarms rang out, signaling a fire. The overhead sprinklers kicked on a second later, dousing them in a rush of cold.
“The s’more!” Maria yelped. Shadow gathered her and their treasures tightly before warping them away, just barely missing the ARK’s fire response team kicking in the door.
“Let me see if I understand this. You and Shadow broke into a lab, set a cupboard on fire, ruined hundreds of dollars worth of equipment, and endangered your lives…..all for a s’more?” Professor Gerald Robotnik inquired, peering over his glasses to stare at the two guilty parties. The evidence of their crimes – the s’more ingredients and the slightly melted tongs – sat next to them.
“It was my fault, professor,” Shadow answered. “I…suggested using my air shoes to cook the marshmallow in such a way that would resemble how Maria made s’mores on earth.”
Maria’s blue eyes shimmered like the ocean below them. “It was my fault for suggesting we make s’mores.”
Professor Robotnik sighed deeply. “Well, considering that neither of you were hurt during your escapade, I suppose some good came out of this. And I’m proud of you for your ingenuity. There is just one thing, though.”
Shadow and Maria traded nervous glances.
“Was it good, Shadow?” The professor asked.
Shadow blinked. “Professor?”
The professor smiled fondly. “Was your s’more delicious?”
Shadow shook his head. “Not yet.” He reached for the s’more and carefully split it in half. He handed one half to Maria. “I want to try it with you.” Maria giggled and accepted her piece. She eagerly bit into her piece, humming at the treat. Shadow followed shortly after.
It was like a party in his mouth. The graham crackers were subtle enough to balance out the toasted sugar and the rich mix of chocolate and peppermint; with the latter flavors harmonizing well with each other. The textures of each piece equaled each other, smooth and rough, sweet and savory. It was the perfect balance.
“It’s good,” he replied, eagerly taking another mouthful. He leaned against Maria, the pieces of their s’more touching. “Thank you so much, Maria.”
“My pleasure!” Maria chirped.
“I’d like to do this again,” Shadow continued. His gaze met the professor’s. “That is, if we can.”
“Oh, I’m sure you could,” the professor hummed. “But there are going to be two conditions. One, no more setting labs on fire. If you make s’mores, do it in the kitchen where it’s safer or do it in a room with more space so you don’t burn anything else. And be sure to do it with some supervision.” Maria and Shadow both nodded.
“And secondly, if you make s’mores,” the professor continued. Then he bent down to their height. “Make one for me, too.”
Shadow smiled. “We will, professor.” He and Maria traded a knowing smile. They were definitely going to do this again.