Sonic The Hedgehog: The Series - Part 5
Ten years, eight months have passed
Halloween was two weeks away, still time to shop for costumes. Rouge held her daughter's hand, walking through the shop. "I bet they have little witch costumes for little girls, that sound good?" Teal didn't look up. "Teal? The witch costumes are this way!"
The little girl finally spoke, "I don't wanna be a witch, mommy. Witches are scary." Stunned, Rouge was curious. Bats were often limited in costumes due to their wings and Rouge had often preferred to be a witch. Her more revealing costumes had gone into storage long ago, but she still carried the tradition.
Teal's first Halloween was this year. The little girl was finally old enough. "Then what do you want to be?" Rouge asked her child.
The little girl looked up. "I wanna be an ANGEL!"
'Oh dear,' Rouge thought quietly, looking around. Plenty of angel costumes. Not a popular costume for the scary day of the year. But not one that was made for bats. The wings were all solid pieces.
Walking to the counter, Rouge said, "I need an angel costume for my daughter."
"That's fine, we have plenty of- ...oh," the clerk answered, looking at them.
"What's wrong?" she asked.
He explained, "they just don't make them for... people like you, I'm afraid. It's the wings. The only places that make angel wings that fit over bat wings are the movie studios and they cost a fortune. Believe me, I've tried before to get them in. Then there's the fake halo..."
Rouge glanced back. All the angel costumes seemed to be made for humans only. "I'm sorry," the clerk said, "it's just not a popular Halloween costume!" Upset, Rouge left the store, her daughter visibly disappointed.
Home. Rouge was free to let her anger out, tossing a pillow across the bedroom. "Bad day?" Thomas Adriani asked.
"Teal wants to be an angel for Halloween..."
"Wow, that IS bad news..." he jokingly replied.
"It's not that," Rouge said, "but they don't make angel costumes for bats! I... the guy at the costume store said it's the damn wings! And Teal, she's in her bedroom crying..."
Pulling Rouge close, he held tight. "So we make angel wings for her. Big deal." His thoughts changed course briefly. "I see. You're upset that she's not going to follow her mother."
Rouge responded, "I've been a witch ever year since I can remember... I thought, if only Teal picked up the better habits of bats, it'd be one she learned from me." Pausing, she continued, "Teal said witches are scary."
Leaning back with her, Tom commented, "remember what I used to call you when we first met?"
She smiled. "Your 'little angel'."
He said, "maybe I should start calling you that again..."
"Okay, Tom, make you a deal," Rouge offered, "you make us both a set of angel wings... and I'll drop my yearly tradition."
"That's the spirit," Thomas said, cradling her head.
"After all, I'm not a young woman anymore. I'm a mother and should show SOME responsibility and compassion for my child."
"You're not old," Tom replied. "You're only twenty-nine."
Rouge stood, wings out, while Victoria measured them out. Teal did the same. Grabbing scissors, Tom cut open old pillows, spilling out feathers. Sketching out patterns, Vic pinned together sheets of white fabric and traced the cutting outline as Tom assorted feathers by size and prepared the glue. "I need those wire coat hangers," Vic said, Tom handing them over. Bending them out, she cut them into lengths. "Neither of you should try to fly with these things on, okay, Boss? The wires will keep them from sagging but they might get in the way."
Rouge helped sort the feathers and Vic cut out the fabric. Turning to the sewing machine, she sewed in the pockets at the tops for the wires and meshed the halves together. "Gotta test fit these!"
"Me first!" Teal shouted, running over to let Vic drop the cloth wing covers on. Rouge picked up a pair of scissors and cut out the backs of the angel robes, tossing the fake wings aside.
"Now you, Boss," Vic said, Rouge dropping the robes to fit her own wing covers. Content that they fit right, Vic pulled them off. "Looks like my work is done. You three have fun." Grabbing her purse, Vic left as they said goodbye. Uncapping the glue, Tom began the long work of gluing feathers into the cloth. Teal enjoyed this, finding joy in making her angel costume. Running soft sleeves over other wire bits, Rouge fashioned out ear clips for the halos.
Halloween night in Central City was busy. The streets were packed and the residential areas filled with people going house to house. Teal's candy bag was nearly full. Tom's pirate costume was uncomfortable and he just wanted to get home and get out of it. "Why didn't you bring the hook?" Rouge begged.
"Because I'm not carrying that goofy plastic thing all night," he responded.
She commented, "you could have at least worn the eyepatch."
"And ruin my depth perception? Teal, you ready to go home?"
The little bat child looked into her bag. "I got lots of candy! We can go home now!"
The family found the car, Tom hitting the buttons on the tiny remote to unlock the doors. Once inside, Teal threw her bag down. "You're not eating all of that candy tonight, Teal!" Rouge ordered.
Tom added, "she's not eating most of it, period. I want my daughter to have teeth."
Eleven years have passed
Another normal day at the casino. Another normal, average, typical, boring day. Rouge never liked checking receipts or doing the books. Finances bored her, but here she was, stuck at work. It was just another normal day.
Until she heard the whistle. Cocking her head to look, the bat saw the shaggy lump sitting by himself, one of only a few people in the casino's restaurant, empty plates stacked around and the remnants of food in piles. A dirty mess of a loser. Rouge tried to determine the species but wasn't very sure. She wasn't even that sure the man was accustomed to the idea of a bath.
"Flattered," she remarked, "but unimpressed."
"That guy?" Victoria, her floor manager, had seen him earlier. "He's ordered six hamburgers. Just hamburgers. And he hasn't even paid his tab yet. Every time I go over he hits on me."
Grinning, the bat saw a challenge. "Must not have any money on him. I'll handle this." Striding over to the table, Rouge looked down at her target. "This isn't a soup kitchen. Pay up."
"Yo!" The hairy lump smirked. "Wanna bang a real man?"
She laughed inside. He must have meant himself. "Always. My husband's in the office, I'll go see if he's in the mood once I kick you out."
"HA! That human? What's HE got that I don't?"
Her grin twisted into hatred. "I don't know... money, hygiene, manners..."
Bolting up from his chair, the unknown lump of fur grabbed her wrist. "Didn't your mother ever tell you that a good girl puts out when asked?"
"She did," Rouge responded angrily, "but I didn't listen. My mother was a poor teacher." Gripping his arm with her free hand, she squeezed tight, fingertips pressing in on the nerves between the bones. Her attacker winced, loosening his grip on her hand. "Now, either get out or I can have one of our security robots throw you out. Your choice."
The stranger was in no mood to comply. "Lady, you don't turn down a real man like me. I'm gonna have to show you some proper manners. Now... get upstairs and spread your legs, bitch!"
"If you say so," she mumbled, wasting no time in letting a fist fly, busting the man right in the jaw. Stumbling back into the tables, everyone heard the loud crash. Victoria ran off to grab the phone.
Her attacker was not happy. Dragging to his feet, he yelled out, "that's it you cunt! You're a fuck object and I'm gonna rape you then kill you for not putting out!"
Rouge might have been scared, but she had advantages. GUN martial arts training, for one. Her wings also offered a combat skill that most couldn't match. But that was irrelevant. Her eyes caught sight of the bag swinging down. This poor man had been thinking about sex all day and his nuts had dropped down. "You should have worn pants, naughty boy!" A simple kick was all she needed, her skin catching between the hairball's legs.
However, she was angry. Very angry. This man had said he wanted to rape and kill her. Furthermore, he'd insulted her husband. Lunging forth, her foot flew out again, connecting over and over with the guy's testicles, a loud scream echoing out with every blow. A final kick, pointed toe of her high heel aiming straight center knocked him to the floor.
"So much for that. I'll call an ambulance. Never come back." She strode off, confident, though certain there would be a shit storm aftermath and a need to explain to the police.
A loud ringing forced her head to turn. Thomas stood silent, gripping a chair, the stranger in a heap by his feet. "He got up. I think he was going to try and attack you."
Armed men entered the casino, making their way to the kitchen area. The bat girl recognized these men. "I didn't want to call the police," Vic explained, leading the GUN agents in.
"He's over there. Get that... whatever it is out of my building!"
It was night, at least by the clock. Teal was spending time away from home with friends, giving the two some time alone. Tom's head was still spinning. "I don't know..."
"You don't know what?" she asked.
"We don't need to tell Teal what happened."
"She'd only be scared if we did," Rouge said.
His eyes were closed tight. "I'm scared."
Tom's statement caught her off guard. "Why?"
"I hit him with a chair. Hard. I wanted to kill him."
"He tried to assault me, Tom. You only did what anyone would do," she assured him, taking a seat on the couch and holding hands.
"No... I don't feel sorry for it. I know I should, hitting someone so hard with a chair that I probably cracked his skull, but I don't. I enjoyed hitting him. I wanted to keep hitting him and if I ever see him again, I might want to finish it."
Lifting up, Rouge straddled her lover. "I didn't marry you because you're perfect. I didn't marry you for the money or the mansion. I didn't marry you because I wanted some badass macho man who thinks he has to show off. I didn't marry you for the sex. I married you because I love you." Kissing him gently, she smiled. "Now... the best way to deal with this is to get passionate."
Thomas Adriani was shocked. "You're in the mood after someone tried to rape you today?"
"No, I'm in the mood because I'm with the man I love. I want to forget, not be reminded. Help me forget..."
Pulling her close, Tom slipped his tongue in his wife's mouth, hands gripping her ass. Taking him by the wrist, Rouge placed his hand on her breast, moaning as he squeezed. Playing with the buttons of her shirt, Tom slowly exposed his love's chest, pulling her bra aside and pinching both nipples playfully.
Easing both hands down, Rouge unzipped Tom's pants, sliding fingers in the waist and gently pulling them down. Her hands were eager, fingers playing with her man's rod, stiff to the touch. Gripped by sexual desire, Thomas eased her closer, slipping a finger in her panties and gently rubbing along the labia, teasing her clit gently. Rouge was damp, his fingers already sticky with love juices.
Wiggling her hips, the bat eased down, licking her lips playfully as her pussy took her love's cock inside. "Are we going to have sex or make love?"
"Make love," he responded.
"Good boy," she commented. "In that case, I don't want to feel you squirting in me for at least an hour!"
Eleven years, ten months have passed
Knuckles couldn't wait. Meat. That's all he needed. No, actually, it was NOT all ne needed. He knew very well what he needed. Ketchup. THAT was what he needed. The pile of roast beef was practically obscured in the mound of red liquid he squeezed out.
But that wasn't enough. Still not perfect. Seasoned salt, THAT was what he needed. A thick orange powder was sprinkled in place. Now it was perfect. The bread was set in place and the lump- barely a real sandwich by any stretch- was raised to his mouth, awaiting the first bite.
Unfortunately, his carefully planned meal was destined for the floor as his eyes saw past it, through his kitchen window and to the hills surrounding the village. Screaming like a woman dropped into a pit of spiders, he picked up the pace, running as fast as his legs would move. His two sons were in trouble.
"STOP!" Gripping his younger boy by the arms, the echidna finally stopped his brisk run, pulling the kid back from the edge. "STRIKER! He's not trained to glide yet! You coulda got him hurt!"
The kid frowned. "How's Slate ever gonna learn how to glide if no one teaches him?"
"He'll learn from someone who knows how!" Lip twitching in frustration, he simply mouthed, "go play. Stay away from these high cliff edges!" Stomping back to the house, Knuckles found his wife cleaning up the mess. "Aww, crap..."
"I think you got some meat in your ketchup," she joked, wiping the floor. "What was the big emergency?"
"Striker was trying to teach Slate how to glide up on the cliffs," he explained.
"So? I was gliding up there when I was only six, you know! And you learned on your own."
Knuckles let out a weak sigh. "I just don't want them getting hurt!"
Fingers gripping his wrists, Karen pulled him close. "You've been stressed out. I know helping build the new well was a lot of work for you."
"And the new food shed," he added. Keeping the little village in order while it slowly grew was everyone's task, even Knuckles, who only migrated to the echidna village fairly recently.
"Uh huh... come with me." Gripping his arms, she led him to the bedroom, confidently rubbing her love's shoulders. "I know what'll help you unwind. We ain't done it in almost two months. The work's done. You have stuff to do at home."
"You're still wanting another kid, aren't you?" he remarked.
Tossing her shirt to the floor, the echidna girl let herself free. "Sonic and Amy's second is on the way. anyway, you have two boys. I kinda want a girl. Someone that can be a tough woman when she grows up, like her mom."
"If you wanna sit on the egg again..."
Pushing him to the bed, Karen pulled off his shoes, loud echoes filling the room as they hit the floor. "Remember our first time? You humped me like you were about to lose it. That's what I want!"
Grabbing her sorts, Knuckles ripped them in two, tossing the cloth aside. Already tingling, he could feel his cock poking out, sticking up as he fingered Karen's dripping pussy. Tossing her to the bed, hand grabbing at a quill, Knuckles thrust deep inside, gritting his teeth and preparing to screw Karen's brains out.
"You call this rough sex? I get it harder sitting on the dryer! You gotta do better than this!" she screamed, her athletic prowess kicking in. This was exercise for her and if it wasn't hard, she didn't like it.
Forcing his hips, Knuckles thrust as hard as possible, grunting with each push. "OOH! Right there! Keep that pace, tough guy!" she shouted, groaning loud, gripping the sheets. Grinding teeth together, Karen's head tossed back, howling out as her body bucked, muscles tensed with orgasm.
Doing his best to keep pace, his dick pulled out, pushed up against the echidna's clitoris, sperm gushing out and onto his wife's stomach in a white, sticky mess. "Dirty boy," Karen scolded, "you have to get that IN me if I'm gonna have a daughter. Now, try again and this time, do it right!"
Thirteen years, two months have passed
Nightfall. Not even darkness could hide the run-down slum area of this forgotten city. Shadow only hoped he blended in adequately. He wasn't here to make friends. Simply complete his task and leave.
Marron. That was her name. Rouge's mother, the very woman that Rouge despised. Shadow never understood the matter completely, and in his own way, was beyond understanding. He'd never known the concept of parents, nor had he cared to learn. That was for beings who were born and died. Mortal concerns.
"SO!" He jumped, taken by the sharp, angry voice, chiseled by years of abuse and lack of care by its owner. "You're the one I keep seeing around here. I think you're following me! You have been for a LONG time..."
Marron the Bat wasn't terribly old, but she did little to take care of herself. Cheap booze, cigarettes, and no doubt a few bumps and bruises over the years from men who slapped her around. The ragged, unkempt spikes of fur stuck out all over her head, ears only visible as larger spikes, not an attractive display for a woman. Her gaze was as sharp as the pencil wedged in behind her ear and the pink waitress dress stained with burger grease and mustard.
At least, he HOPED it was mustard. The woman was certainly a sight to be frightened by. Here stood a woman who didn't give a shit, and even her appearance told you. "You ain't here to rape me... I've seen you for years. Did my bitchy little daughter send you?" Coughing loud into the night, she reached for a cigarette. "Nah, the little cunt wouldn't do that. She's too good and too upright to care about me. I only raised the ungrateful cow."
"I'm here because her husband wanted me to keep an eye on you. That's all."
"Her husband. That human? What right does HE have to marry her..." She spat on the sidewalk, any ability to give a damn about her public display no doubt having died years ago. "Marrying her. What? She's too good to be like her mother?" Imitating Rouge, she mumbled, "no, I can't be a whore, I have to fall in love, it means something!"
Cut short by horrendous coughing, the old woman swayed, visibly dizzy from yelling so much. "Are you okay?" Shadow asked, bracing her from stumbling.
"Yeah, yeah... just a little sip or two after work to brush off the day. They won't let me drink on the job. Why don't you be a good little man and help me up to my apartment... or do you WANT me to break a hip?"
Annoyed but compliant, as always, he helped her through the front doors and up the steps. Fumbling out her keys, holding them up to the light to see better, Marron guessed and jabbed into the lock. "Right one first time..." Pulling him inside, she began to smile, shaking off the rough attitude. Cautiously, the hedgehog looked at the little girl, alone, sitting before the television. He wasn't sure if the child had returned the gaze as the aged bat dragged him into her bedroom.
"Kid's none of your business. She's got TV, best babysitter around!" Her purse went flying, landing audibly in a pile of old clothes. Pushing Shadow to the bed, Marron jumped him. "So, if you're gonna fuck me, then fuck me! I ain't in the mood for foreplay, either, I need to unwind!"
"What?" Shadow was stunned by the request. "I'm not here to- HEY!"
Rubbing his crotch, Marron knew that he'd be all hers in a few minutes. "You'd better have a nice, big dick in here..."
"Shit! NO!" he shouted, trying to run, but the old bat had him. Shadow's penis was a handle and she held on tight. Unwilling to allow her nightly sex romp to run off, her hand worked up and down, beating off the so-called ultimate life form until he stopped wriggling.
"Good boy, stranger!" Shoving him back to the bed, the bat crawled up, pinning his furry chest down and turning to face the door. Leaning down, she began to lick on the head. Shadow was bewildered to see Marron's aged, stretched vagina in his face. "Start licking, you dumbass!"
"You're not even wearing panties!"
She laughed. It was a joke to her. "Never do. Well?" Marron waited. Waited. "FUCK! What the hell are you, some kinda virgin or something?" Biting her lip with a subtle grin, she said, "you are! No wonder you're bein' so shy with me! Okay, then I'll get right to the best part and show you how it's done!"
Spinning in place, she placed both hands to the black hedgehog's chest, sitting down on him hard. His mind was running to places he didn't want to be.
Was he being raped?
No. This wasn't rape. He could easily overpower this woman. She was old and drunk. Feeling her slide up and down was great. It felt too good to turn down. Shadow wondered why he had never done this before.
Further thoughts kept pushing in. How many men had this woman had sex with in the past? And perhaps the one thought that disturbed him the most, this was the vagina that Rouge had been born through. One of his few friends. He was betraying her.
However, he didn't care. Such thoughts had to go. They were a distraction from the physical pleasure. Too much pleasure for him to take. This woman was skilled and impatient, bouncing on his cock like a machine.
"Ehr... uh..."
"Don't hold back!" she screamed. "Pop that cork when you're ready!"
Too much. Shadow squirted, a tremendous load gushing out into the bat's wrinkled pussy, taking her by surprise. Moaning and grunting, feeling the cum spill out, Marron simply grinned. "OOH! That's what I call a load!"
"My turn," he said.
"Your turn?" Lifting off, she rolled over, bent over the bed. "You think you're ready?"
Jumping to the floor, Shadow wasted no time in plunging deep, thrusting away like a wild animal. "Yeah, I'd say you're ready! YEAH! Nail me good!"
Gripping her tail, pumping faster, her grunts and screams only added to the encouragement. Ball bag slapping her clit, the hedgehog almost fell to his feet as he came again, sperm filling her like a tidal wave.
Rolling onto her back, Marron complimented, "good job! You ever wanna free ride again, just come back here. You wore me out..." Pulling a blanket over herself, she said, "don't steal anything on the way out..."
Standing back, his mind beginning to rationalize, Shadow waited for the middle aged bat to fall asleep. He waited for his erection to withdraw. Calmly, he opened the door and made his way out of the slum apartment, ignoring the little girl, and through the stairwell to the street below.
The alley was his solitude. Vomit shot from his throat. It had been disgusting. He'd had sex with Rouge's mother. He knew better than that. The woman took advantage of him. Marron had been drunk, but he wasn't. He allowed carnal desire to push aside reason. His virginity was lost but the cost... well, he wasn't ready to pay.
Rouge would not be told about this. Ever. If she found out, he would lose his only real friend. He would also lose the trust of Rouge's own husband. The man who probably had what he could have had, if only he hadn't been so stubborn, been such a loner.
But screw the both of them, he thought. Rouge chose someone else. Tom Adriani, for all his innocence, liked to flaunt his sex life with Rouge.
They wouldn't find out about this, but feeling sorry wasn't something he was going to do.
Fourteen years, three months have passed
"... we'll be here. Love you!" Rouge said cheerfully, hanging up.
Her daughter was looking up at her. "Dad's not home yet."
"He will be," she explained. "He's stuck in traffic."
"The movie starts in an hour. Dad has to come get us so we can go."
Tom Adriani was bored. That was all he was, bored. Cars in front, cars in back, nowhere to go, nothing to do but sit and wait. It would be today of all days for a traffic accident on the freeway out of the city, the day he'd promised to take his daughter to the new fairy movie she'd wanted to see.
The radio bored him. Running the car for the air conditioner was a wonderful way to waste gas, so while he waited, it was best to shut off and roll down the windows.
It would also have to be one of the hottest days of the year.
"I'm sorry, Teal, but things happen sometimes... maybe we can go to the later showing, okay?"
"Okay..." The child was sad. Not that she'd missed the movie, but that her father was stuck somewhere.
Rouge felt it as well. The man she loved was forced to sit and wait in place while emergency road crews took their time. If anyone had a right to be annoyed, it was Rouge. "Teal, go get ready. We're going to go see your father."
He was half asleep when he heard the knock. "Wake up!"
"Huh?" Thomas saw his family standing on the road just inches from the car. "What are you doing here?"
Rouge said, "we got sick of waiting so we thought you might want some company."
"Get in," he offered, unlocking the doors. "We might be here for some time, though."
"I saw up ahead when we flew over," Rouge noted, "they're almost done."
Teal buckled into the back seat. "Can we go to the late showing?"
Taking his hand, Rouge squeezed it. "If we start moving in time, we'll go," he agreed, starting the ignition.
Turning the radio to the light jazz station, the bat buckled her seat belt, the family waiting for traffic to move.
It was night. Content that her little girl was in bed, Rouge returned to the living room, leaning back on the couch with her head to Tom's shoulder. "I slipped," she mumbled.
"Where?"
"Not like that," she responded. "Today. You were out of the house and I started to miss you. Just a few hours. I know Teal was upset but I flew to you because I didn't want to be without you." She sighed, the thoughts of events from the past creeping in. "That night... what happened to you when we first met- I-"
"I know," Tom said, assuring her. "It probably scarred you worse than you thought."
Gripping his shirt, she muttered, "I always wanted to be the strong one. Never wanted to lean on anyone, never wanted to be dependent, but... I didn't think I'd ever have to be put through that. The funny thing is..."
"You wouldn't change a thing, would you?" Thomas knew his wife too well.
She smiled. "Not a chance."
"It's late. We're both tired. Come on, we can cuddle better in bed."
Rising from the couch, stretching out, the bat knew he was right. She was ready to fall asleep. Grabbing his hand, she led her love down the hall.
Fifteen years, nine months have passed
The morning sun always signaled the start of a busy day on the echidna island. Builders returned to their duties, constructing new homes and storage for usage. Tree cutters went out to gather needed lumber while planters maintained the needed task of replacing the trees with saplings. Gatherers were sent out to collect fruits while hunters took their bows and arrows to hunt the meat that would feed the people.
Knuckles, however, was not one of them this morning. After nine days straight of knocking down trees, he had the day off, which he was rather thankful for. It meant spending time with his family.
But first, his day must start, and that meant coffee. Pouring a fresh, hot cup, it rose to his mouth, the echidna breathing in the scent.
The knock had to ruin it. "Who could this be..." he mumbled, wandering to the door. "Clanbor, what do you want?"
"I didn't mean to disturb you," his guest said, "but we had a visitor to the island last night who seemed interested in you."
"Me? Really..."
Handing over a bound stack of papers, Clanbor explained, "he was asking about you but didn't seem to want to talk to you directly. I think he was writing a book about you. He left this with his contact information, and told me to get in touch with him if I wanted to make some money. It doesn't sound right to me..."
Grabbing the booklet, Knuckles muttered, "thanks. I'll look this over..."
Returning to the kitchen, sipping the warm coffee, Knuckles flipped through. About the old tribe, his early life, meeting Sonic and Tails. Most of the details were off, but it was basically all there.
Until he reached the section about the first time he met Rouge. It detailed how, alone on the island and believing himself to be the last of his kind, his encounter with the bat led to a whirlwind sexual romance.
It was unbelievable. It was vile. Most importantly, it was completely untrue. Stunned and horrified, coffee spat out, Knuckles coughing violently as he fell to the floor.
Charging into the kitchen to find her husband spasming wildly, Karen almost screamed. "Knuckles! Are you okay?"
Gasping for air, he shouted, "hell no! Some idiot's writing a book about me!"
"That IS a tragedy," she commented, handing him a glass of water.
"You don't understand!" Furiously, he shoved the papers into her hands. "READ IT!"
Glancing over the words, Karen's mood turned, her eyelid twitching. "I'll be damned..."
The kitchen door swung open, Clanbor standing before them. "I heard you coughing from halfway across the village! I should have warned you before I let you read it..."
Grinding teeth together, he was unnerved and angry. "I'm a dead man! The second that gets published, Rouge is gonna tear me apart! She'll think I had something to do with this! You KNOW how protective she is of the human she married! And I know for a fact we never had sex! Where- where did this moron come up with this?"
Grabbing for the cover page, his lips curled in anger. "I have to go. I've gotta stop this."
"But you promised me you'd be home today!" the boxer protested. "You've been working too much! You have three kids who want to see their father!"
He turned away. "Rouge might not kill me, but she WILL kill the guy writing this book. I need to do something before this turns into something bad. Or do you want people across the world thinking I only married you because Rouge dumped me?"
"Okay, you have a point. Last thing I want is everyone thinking I was some second pick! I know I'm the only girl you ever had, and everyone else can know it, too! Besides, Rouge isn't a bad person but slept with YOU? I don't think she's tough enough for that!"
Digging his spiked gloves out, Knuckles slipped them on and left the island.
Empire City. He'd never been here before but finding the office of one Roger "Quill" Andrews had been too easy. Knocking on the door, he pounded away until it was answered. "Yeah, whadda you- YOU!"
"Yes, ME!" Shoving his way inside, the angry echidna looked around. If his fur hadn't already been red, it might have turned such from his anger. "What's with this idiotic book?"
"Unauthorized biography!" Quill paced in mild fear. "I print what I find out, the book makes a few bucks on the tale of a hero!"
Angrily, he grabbed the hedgehog by the collar. "Listen, moron! Most of what's in there isn't true! I never had sex with Rouge the Bat! I never even liked her that way! She's got a husband and she'll probably break you in two if you tell people- you know what? Fine, go ahead." Releasing his grip, Knuckles grinned. "Rouge has this... well, she seems rather proud of her family and she never seemed to mind letting everyone know she was a virgin before she met Tom. I know, some people didn't want to believe it, with how she acted, but it's true. You print that, I can't tell you what she'll do but I CAN tell you that she will find you. And she's still a government agent, so whatever she does, she'll get away with it!"
Sweating and shaking, Quill was mumbling out some incoherent noise. "Okay... look, I can edit all that out. Fine, so you didn't nail the bat, big deal. It'll sell less copies but I can live with that..."
Shoving the louse backwards, Knuckles said, "you're not smart enough to have made this up. You're not smart enough to open a can of cat food! Where'd you hear all this about my life?"
Quill responded, "I don't reveal my sources!"
Spotting the notebook, he grabbed for it, flipping through. "Uh, huh... I see you circled a name and a phone number. Marked it 'Knuckles source'. My work here is done." Turning for the door, he began to leave, stopping suddenly. "How many copies do you have?"
"Just the one on my computer. I promise I'll edit it right away!"
Striding back to the desk, Knuckles slammed his fists downn crushing the machine under heavy spikes. "I did it for you."
"NO! My book... I'm ruined..."
"Better you than me," he replied, slamming the door shut. It was time to find this mystery source.
A phone number and name led to an address in the more upscale part of the city. Linda Howlitzer was her name, though Knuckles hadn't the faintest clue who she was. Tapping on her door, the echidna was promptly greeted by a female wolf, no older than twenty, her eyes lighting up upon seeing him. "Oh, my... Knuckles?"
"Yeah..." He remained wary. "You and I need to talk. You told some writer some stuff about me that isn't true and-" His eyes looked in. The apartment walls were plastered with artwork of him. Generally, it was decent art, but the content of much of it scared him. Several drawings were erotic, and many of them featured Rouge. "What the..."
"You like my art?"
He was in sheer terror. "What the hell is this? HUH? Why are you drawing me doing THAT with HER?"
Linda took offense. "I don't believe this. Of ALL people... I would think YOU would see her as your perfect woman!"
"What?" Turning from the drawings, Knuckles fought to push the images from his mind. "Why? WHY would she be perfect for me? We never got along that well! The first time we met, she tried to steal the Master Emerald! And she tried to strangle me!" We didn't fall in love, and we ABSOLUTELY never had sex!"
"But you go so well together!" she defended, tears welling up in her eyes.
He shouted, "no, we do not! She annoyed me! And she married someone else!"
Linda laughed. "I heard about that. Some rich human. That didn't REALLY happen..."
"Yes, it did." Knuckles was sick of the sensible approach. This woman seemed unbalanced, and with an unbalanced mind ran the risk of dangerous behavior. Woman or not, he would have to be ready for anything. "You don't even know me! You don't know any of us! I have a wife! I have THREE KIDS!"
"You and Rouge have more in common and you should have been with HER!"
"ReallY? Name something we have in common if you're so sure!"
Stumbling, Linda finally blurted out, "you're both treasure hunters!"
Cocking an eye, seemingly confused, he asked, "treasure hunter? Since when? Finding the broken pieces of the Master Emerald isn't treasure hunting! I was just getting back what I'd lost! Anyway, Rouge wasn't so much a treasure hunter as she was just a thief!" He added a mental 'weirdo' as a final comment, careful to keep it silent.
"But- but she was the first woman you'd met and-"
"That's NOT how love works!" He was livid beyond reason at this point. "People don't fall in love and see romance the first time they meet! And what's this deal with you obsessing over my love life? Don't you have one of your-"
He paused. Something about one of the drawings caught his sudden attention. "Hey... she doesn't have a tattoo on her arm. That much I do know..." Looking back at his host, he said, "funny, looks like the tattoo on your shoulder. You're not drawing her, you're- oh... that's just messed up!" Knuckles was even more disturbed. "You're drawing yourself having sex with me and you're making yourself look like her! That's more messed up than I thought!"
"I-" The wolf girl turned her head. "Big deal. She has the perfect body. Little miss stuck up perfect, always has to do those interviews and show herself off with her man. Acts like she's the hottest thing on Earth and her man is so perfect. And YOU! We'd be great together but you have to be with someone else!"
Content that he could handle this woman if she tried anything, he asked, "what happened to you?"
"Jerk left me. Decided he wanted some girl with a bigger chest and less fur!" She pushed her glasses up in annoyance. "Then I saw you in some old news stories and thought you were a great guy but you were already married. I made up my own version that I like more. That's all. Some guy said he was writing a book about you and he paid me for details. Hey, it's your own fault for turning down the perfect woman! You two would have been so great together!"
Knuckles was too angry to be sympathetic. "That's NOT how love works. Rouge and I... we weren't meant to be that. And what's it to you? Both of us ended up happy and I know I wouldn't leave Karen. If that's TOO HARD FOR YOU TO DEAL WITH, TOO BAD!"
Pulling the artwork from the wall, the wold began ripping them up. "You're a jerk. I wasted two years on you."
Walking away, he simply said, "good. Go outside and get a life if your own. Stop trying to live mine."
Twenty years, four months have passed
Teal grabbed her purse. "Bye, daddy!" she yelled.
"You have fun, Teal. Don't be gone TOO late, okay?" Tom shouted back.
She answered, "I won't!" as she opened the door and headed for the city.
Rouge entered the living room. "Teal leave?"
He replied, "yes. She's going to the movies. Just you and me tonight."
Rouge sat beside him, head slowly burying into his chest. Closing her eyes, she let out a tiny, almost inaudible moan. "Birthday boy..."
"Not for three days," he scolded, "I still have my thirties to look forward to until then."
"Can't I get an early start?" she begged.
"That depends," he said, "can I start ragging on you for turning 40 right now?"
"Fat chance," Rouge bit back. "I still have a couple years."
The doorbell began to fire repeatedly. "Who in the HELL could that be at this hour?" she complained, springing up.
"Can't be Teal, she has a key," Tom pondered, following. Approaching the door, Tom paused, sniffing the air. "... is that cigarette?"
Throwing the door open, Rouge drew back in fear. "Hello!" was the cry of a shrill, old woman.
"...mother?"
The haggard old bat stood in the doorway, wrapped in a cheap red coat. "Darling baby girl! Never once called your poor, old mother, did you? A wedding, money and you didn't think about me even ONE TIME!" The bat swaggered into the house. "WHOA! You must be the husband! Please, call me Marron!" Patting Tom on the butt, she commented, "or call me anytime, okay?"
"MOTHER! How dare you?" Rouge was fuming.
"Oh cool off," Marron demanded. "Can't even say 'hi' to the woman who raised you? Figures..."
Tom leaned in close to his wife. "Can I smack her, please?"
"No," Rouge replied, "because I am going to hit her!"
As they couple talked, Marron spotted jars of fruit on a nearby table. She picked one up. "Adriani Rouge Fruit Company... little brat has her name on this? Means it's mine!" she mouthed, pocketing a jar.
Rouge turned to her mother, handing over a small wad of money. "You don't need to be here, take it and go!"
"What? Can't I get caught up with my little girl?" Marron scolded, eyeing Thomas once again.
Rouge replied, "you were never in my life. Now get out!"
"You can't talk that way to me, you little bi-" Marron's insults were cut silent with a hard shove, the old bat landing on her butt on the steps outside.
"Get off our property and DON'T COME BACK!" Rouge screamed with an anger that made Tom's skin crawl. Without a word, Marron flipped them off and left.
Rouge fumed. It had been an hour and she was still angry at her mother. Tom left her alone. The doorbell again rang. "I swear if that's her I will...." Running for the front door, she opened to find a police officer. "Yes?"
"Mrs. Adriani? Can you identify this?" The cop held out a jar of fruit with their label on it.
"Yes, it's one of the brand we produce..." Looking at the stack nearby, she noticed one missing. "... my mother must have taken it. I don't want to press charges, just-"
"I'm afraid you don't understand... the woman we found carrying this is..."
Tom joined them. "What's going on here?" he demanded. "That old bat isn't pressing charges for being shoved, is she, because if she is I'll-"
The cop hesitated. "I'm afraid the woman we found this on is... we were called into the liquor store on Tenth Avenue. Paramedics were too late, she just dropped in the store. She died before we even got there. I'm sorry."
Dropping to the floor, Rouge's eyes watered. She was shaking horribly. "Mommy..." "I'll leave you two alone..." the cop said, leaving.
Picking his wife up from the floor, Tom carried her to the bedroom. She clutched her hands around him like steel, bawling horribly, makeup running onto his shirt mixed with tears. The bat couldn't even speak.
Two days had passed. Rouge stood with Thomas by the lone grave marker. Shadow was nearby. "Did you tell your daughter?"
"No," Rouge said, "Teal doesn't need to know. She never knew her grandmother anyway. Never knew how horrible she was..."
"But you still did this for her?" Shadow asked.
Rouge's head bent down. "You wouldn't understand. She was horrible, but she was still my mother."
Walking away, Shadow responded, "you're right. I wouldn't understand..."
"We're still having Tom's birthday party tomorrow. I need to put this behind me and function normally. Please... please be there." He walked off.
"You sure you want to do this tomorrow?" Tom asked.
She responded, "I have to. That woman didn't care about me. I-" She let tears roll down. "I did what I felt necessary but we had no love between us. I'm not going to let her death consume me."
Tom's birthday party was busy. The main hall of the manor was packed with employees of both the fruit company and the casino, along with old friends. Amy watched her two sons gather food from the buffet table. The Chaotix mingled with people they hadn't seen in years while Knuckles kept his family together in the crowd.
Rouge drowned out the crowd, putting on a happy face to hide behind. Knuckles was talking to her but she wasn't listening. Until something sent a spark of anger to her brain, something he had said. She wasn't listening too carefully but it had angered her. Turning, her face twisted into evil. "GET OUT!" she screamed, surprising everyone nearby. "I SAID GET OUT! All of you! Get out of here!" Eyes turned, the entire party stunned.
"What'd I say?" Knuckles begged. She gritted her teeth, fists squeezed tight.
"Musta been something BAD to piss her off, moron!" Karen scolded, dragging him away.
Knuckles replied, "whatever. I'm glad I never ended up with her!"
Shadow forced Sonic and Amy to leave. He only chose to comply with her orders. Shadow knew why, of course, but no one else did. "Way to stick up for her, Shadow!" Sonic yelled.
"Rouge's loyal little yes-man!" Amy barked, both giving Shadow angry looks.
In minutes the house was empty. Teal looked at her mother. "Mom? What just happened?"
Rouge didn't say a word as she grabbed their hands, leading them to the couch to sit with her. Tom on one side, Teal on the other. Her arms wrapped around both of them. "I just want to be with my family."
Twenty years, nine months have passed
The casino's atmosphere was annoying, if Rouge could pick one word to describe her feelings. Coming here to work on the books was bad enough. Her mother was dead and for all she cared, this place could fall apart. It was merely a building. She wanted to be home with her family.
Sipping quietly on a glass of orange juice, her irritation increased as some fur wad sat next to her, flashing a cheap smile. A wolf, most likely, trying hard to look important but the bat could see how cheap his imitation suit was, how cheap his attitude was. No doubt a chronic loser type who lost every game he'd ever played but still acted like a winner.
"You look depressed, little lady..."
"Piss off," she mumbled, avoiding eye contact.
"Aww... come on, whatever's got you down, I'll cheer you up," the wolf said, "I'll take you out on the town, we'll go dancing, fancy restaurants, and back to my place where I'll show you a very nice time!"
What restraint Rouge had for such types broke like twigs under foot. These men, hitting on her like they were worth something. She was a married woman. She was a public figure. People were supposed to know she was married. Without even slight hesitation, her hand reached up, grabbed a handful of fur and arched down, slamming her unwanted guest's head into the counter. The restaurant patrons were both shocked and impressed by the sight, as none of them had ever seen a man's head bounce off a hard surface like a rubber ball.
Falling to the floor, struggling to scream in pain, blood pouring from his mouth and nose, the poor man was a victim to the wrath of a woman angered. "You want some of me? HERE! Have my foot!" Swiftly, kicking the stranger in the ribs, the assault continued. "Maybe I should rip my clothes off? Tear my tights up so you can nail me like a slut?" Screaming louder, blood rage in control, Rouge The Bat wanted to kill this man.
How dare he hit on her, that was all she needed to justify this brutal assault. Unsatisfied with simply kicking a man while he was down, she cut loose with her fists, punching wildly as security robots pried her off the crying lump as she screamed to be released.
"BOSS!"
Victoria was frightened but kept control. "Get her out of here and call an ambulance!"
Wandering into her bedroom, further depressed and almost broken, a woman beyond confused, Rouge wanted to sleep. Instead, she found her husband waiting for her. "I heard..."
"Asshole was asking for it. Treating me like some whore..." Shuddering at the thought, the bat girl grumbled, "he's lucky I didn't kill him!"
Tom shook his head. "If you'd killed him you wouldn't be able to live with yourself and you know it. I talked to the Commander, he's taking care of this, but..."
"But?" she asked.
"BUT he said if you keep this up he might not be able to help you. Beating people up like this isn't something they'll tolerate."
Eyes clenched tight. "How's the asshole doing?"
"Stable... three broken ribs, severe concussion, six teeth missing. He'll live, anyway..." Thomas Adriani sat on his words. "I'm paying all of his hospital bills. Baby..." Taking his wife's hands and pulling her close, he finally said, "I'm starting to get worried. Teal's scared that you might be losing your mind. You hated your mother but you've been a mess since she died."
"You're..." Rouge was honestly scared. "You're worried that I'm going crazy..." Sitting beside her human lover, all Rouge could say was, "I need help... she's been dead three months and she's still driving me crazy! And this time it's because she left me without giving me a chance!"
Lifting her in his arms, Thomas remarked, "if you let her do this to you, then she's getting her way."
"Damn... she is."
"Come on," he said, "you'll feel better after a nice, hot bath..."
Braced upon her side, elbow pressed to the ceramic coating of the oversized tub, the bat kept her leg balanced in the air as Tom worked his hand gently over her sex, palm teasing the soft clitoris while two fingers prodded within, carefully touching all of her sensitive spots. Her anger, her fears, all frustration were gone, for now, as her body wriggled in pleasure.
Muffling his wife's gentle screams, Thomas leaned in with a soft kiss, Rouge returning the favor as water rocked against her body, breasts tingling in the heat. She was more than ready and Tom was barely surprised when her muscles squeezed down, clamping onto both fingers tight, her breath filling his mouth with muffled cries of delight.
"Better?"
"That helped some," she complimented, smiling in the dim light of the bathroom's romantic atmosphere. "Now, let me," she said, gripping Tom's hardened cock, peeling back the foreskin flab.
Stirring the coffee, Rouge felt somewhat better this morning, though while she felt anger the day before, now all she could feel was remorse. The man may have been a jerk but she'd tried to kill him for it.
"Boss..."
"Huh? Vic! What are you doing here?" The bat girl was taken to see her employee in the kitchen doorway.
"Your husband said you really needed help but I thought I could do better than some therapist. I've known you longer," the fox explained.
"Oh... well, come in. Teal's off to work, so..."
Vic said, "yeah, she doesn't need to hear about this. I kept it out of the local news, rumors might spread though. Anyway..."
"I'm staying away from the casino," the bat interjected, "for some time. You can run the place without me being there and I can hire an accountant to do the books."
Victoria wasn't fond of the idea. "You're locking yourself in the house... I can't stop you."
"Vic, my mother... I'll never see her again. That was ruined between us and can't be fixed. I want to spend what time I can with my family."
Shaking her head, the fox went on, "you already alienated your friends and they don't know why. Your own daughter doesn't know why you're behaving like this..." Vic thought, 'and your husband doesn't have the guts to tell you you're wrong,' but kept it to herself. There was no need to make things worse. Rouge was defensive of her husband much like a wild animal may defend its territory. Vic didn't want to find out of fangs may be involved.
"I know... but I just can't talk about it..." Taking a sip of the coffee, deciding it was too hot, the bat girl, frustrated over the whole situation, asked, "am I a bad person?"
"No... maybe just messed up by a bad person. Then again, I never met Marron so I only have what you told me to go on."
"Tom went to the store... stay a bit, we'll talk until he gets back."
The hospital room was quiet, solemn, a sad reminder of bad things. Watching through the doorway, Rouge Adriani felt like crying.
"Hi," the wolf greeted. "I didn't expect you to visit me."
"I'm sorry I put you in here," she grunted, "I really am."
Laughing, coughing amidst aching ribs, the wolf replied, "nah, it was my fault and I probably had it coming for a LONG time..." His lisp was terrible, no doubt a result of several teeth having been left behind on a restaurant counter.
"I beat the hell out of you and that's all you have to say?" Genuinely confused, the bat wondered if this was real or if she was hallucinating the entire episode.
"I didn't look for a ring, I never do. My pickup crap never works but I stuck with it. I'm surprised it took this long to get my ass kicked. Been slapped, had drinks poured on me, and a lot of women who didn't want to make a scene... you, though... you wailed me like a punching bag."
"Well, I used to be an agent with G.U.N.," she remarked.
"Ah, yeah, that'd do it..."
Turning away, the bat went on, "look, I'm glad you're okay. It- my mother died a few months ago."
Body aching too bad to move, he replied, "that sucks. Never a good thing."
"I didn't get along with her," Rouge responded sadly.
"Even worse... you never connected and now you can't. Sad world we live in sometimes..."
"Funny," she mused, "you're not the jerk you were yesterday."
Keeping as still as possible, ignoring the slight pains of talking, he replied, "getting beat up'll do that to a guy."
"Listen, I know a dentist who does teeth replacement. I've already arranged for you to meet with him."
"That's okay-"
"He's been paid," she added, "so don't turn this down. I left his card with the nurse to be put with your personal items. Just call him when you get out."
"Okay, I'll do that... your husband must be a lucky guy to have you."
Rouge smiled. "He is... and I'm lucky to have someone who puts up with my shit most of the time."
Twenty one years, one month have passed
Rouge leaned against the pillar outside, looking over the fruit fields. Summer's sun cast a light over everything that grew, the backbone of the family fruit company. "There you are," Thomas Adriani said, Rouge's head turning. "Doing anything special?"
"Just looking," she said. Opening the large bedroom door, she led him inside. "I've given it a lot of thought," Rouge said, "and I want to keep trying. I want another child before I get too old."
Resting on the bed, he took her hand. "I'm with you." The two began to cuddle, Rouge gently smelling her husband's scent. Before either could get in the mood, however, the knock at the door stole their attention. "Mom? Dad?" It was their daughter, Teal.
"Yes, sweetie?" Rouge asked.
Teal explained, "I'm going out now, be back soon, okay?"
Rouge sighed. "Okay, Teal, just be careful out there..."
"Love you, mom, dad," the girl said, leaving her parents be.
Tom remarked, "Teal thinks we're paranoid. You sure you won't tell her the truth?"
"Later. Right now..." Rouge thought about her mother. "My mother's gone. Teal doesn't need to know the details yet."
His lips pressed to the thin fur of her forehead. "We have the house to ourselves... want to get a fire going in the fireplace? Put out the spare mattress and..." She let out an approving groan, like a wild animal about to get what it wanted.
"Good, Sharon, that was good!"
"Mommy, can I quit now? I'm TIRED!"
Karen the Echidna waited for her daughter to punch the sparring glove again. "Just a few more and we'll quit, okay?"
"But I'm tired NOW!" the little girl protested.
"Come on, Karen, ease up on her, she's only seven!" Knuckles suggested, watching the sparring match.
"Hey, I had to do this when I was her age, you know!" Karen shot back. "But... oh, well.. okay, honey, we're done for today. Go clean up."
The little echidna girl ran off. "Don't push her too hard, she has plenty of time to train," Knuckles said, looking his wife over. "And you need a shower. Seriously, is that sweat or did you hose down?"
Looking down, Karen noticed the sweat. "Yeesh... guess I do. Hey, where are our two sons, anyway? They missed sparring!"
Knuckles replied, "Striker's helping in the mines. Slate wanted to go Central City for some reason."
"Typical..." Karen muttered. The 38-year-old echidna grabbed a towel, wiping off. She had the body build of an athlete, a trained island boxer who never gave up training, even through three kids. A quick glance at Knuckles, her life mate, led to dirty thoughts. "Sharon will go watch cartoons... the boys are gone... shower time!" Grabbing Knuckles by the quills, she dragged him down the hall. "You need your exercise, too, stud-muffin, don't let me down!"
Slate waited for his date to arrive. A hand wrapped around his shoulder, the echidna turning. "Hey." Teal greeted him as she always did.
"Teal... I didn't think you'd show."
"Why not? Not like mom or dad ever ask where I'm going anyway, they trust me," she said.
"Did you tell them?" he asked.
"No. Did you?" He shook his head 'no'. "You know the past between my mom and your dad," Teal stated.
Slate replied, "yeah, and what happened at your mom's birthday party two years ago..."
Teal remembered it well. Knuckles had said something that forced Rouge to explode in anger, kicking out all the guests. Any attempt to discuss the event with her led nowhere, as neither Rouge nor Tom would say anything. Knuckles couldn't even remember what he'd said to her to bring out the anger. The two had gotten along fairly well over the years, despite their past. Everyone had assumed bad blood between them had somehow resurfaced in Rouge's mind.
"And you know how dad is, he kisses mom's ass too much to stand up to her on this. Or much anything." Teal didn't hate her parents- she loved them dearly. However, she had always seem them so wrapped up in each other and the family that they would often ignore anyone else, to the point that old friends were driven away.
Shadow was the only one who kept contact.
"Even Shadow won't stand up to her about it," Teal sighed. "Shadow... he says he never wanted to be with mom, but I know he did. He's too quick to do whatever she says to help out. Even babysit me in GUN."
"How's that going, anyway?" Slate asked.
"Eh, well enough," she answered, "but the commander and Shadow still make sure I get garbage assignments. And you remember I told you how hard I had to argue with mom to even let me join the group."
Grabbing Slate by the waist, Teal kissed him hard. "Hey... who cares? It's not their choice who we date, is it? Come on, night's young... mom and dad will have the old mattress out, curled up in blankets by the fireplace when I get home anyway, asleep, like they always do... won't matter how late I'm out. Mom especially won't mind, nights are a bat's thing..."
"She, uh, let you leave the house in that?" he asked, blissfully staring.
"What, this?" The low jeans and small pink shirt let her belly button show while the shirt's material did little to hide the fact the girl was the daughter of Rouge the Bat. "Hey, who's my mother, after all? At least you look... don't touch, now..."
Ivo Robotnik watched the small robots clean the floors. A small smile was barely visible under the mustache.
His days as a madman were long gone. Now, an old man, he made machines that helped people.
Entering the main lab, he found his lead researcher. "Tails!"
"Please don't call me that, Dr. Robotnik," he replied.
"Sorry... yes, Miles... you should have gone home hours ago," Ivo explained.
"Can't," Tails responded. The 28-year old fox was busy working on new projects
Ivo sighed.
Sweat dripped from her body, the fireplace warming and illuminating. Slowly wiggling up and down, she breathed hard. The orgasm was over. Collapsing, she latched onto Tom's bare chest. "That feel like the pussy of a woman who's about to turn forty?" she teased, kissing him.
"Yeah? That feel like the cock of a guy in his forties?" he replied. Sticking her tongue out, Rouge leaned in, Tom's lips grappling with hers. His cock brushed against her thighs, wet and hard.
"Wow..." she commented. "Still stiff as a rock!"
"Get on your side, I wanna be in charge."
Licking her lips, she rolled over. "I'm game."
On his side, Tom pulled her close, inserting himself. Kissing her forehead, he began to thrust slowly. "I've always wondered if you can scream loud enough to break glass..." Her upper leg curled around Tom, hand grabbing his ass. Her toes curled, relaxing her body to enjoy the feeling. Rouge could feel her vaginal muscles contracting, clamping his dick with full force. She only hoped she could squirt. It always felt incredible and Tom loved being soaked by her girl juices.
Opening the mansion doors, Teal headed for her room. As she expected, her parents were in the living room, the gas fireplace still burning. Curled up, naked, asleep, draped only in a sheet. Rouge was nuzzled against her husband, even under the sheet the outline of a wing wrapped around them was clearly visible.
Teal would have thought the sight to be rather romantic, if not for the fact they were her parents. Even so, seeing them so much in love at their age made her happy. She hadn't recalled them ever fighting, no arguments, no hitting, a very happy couple.
The old storage pod rested underneath the ocean, wreckage from the Egg Carrier. Inside, the glow began, intensifying as the machine activated, long dormant, programming initiated. Self diagnostic functions ran, built-in repair systems working to repair minor faults.
Content that all was well, the machine swung out a hand, sharp fingers shattering the heavy glass container. Water rushed in, no concern to the machine. The thruster in its back engaged, carrying the metal monster to the surface. Breaking through to air, it surveyed.
It had much to do.
The Next Day
Central City Mall was busy to the point that even Sonic found it to be fast-paced. "Where did she go..." Searching each store briefly, he finally found his wife, carrying two more bags. "How much stuff did you need, anyway, Amy?"
"Stop whining, Sonic... hey, Rouge may have a stick up her rear end, but she has a point. When you hit your 30's and you still look this good, may as well flaunt it..." she teases, playfully closing the bags.
"Hey, come on, what'd ya buy?"
"No, no, Sonic..." She placed a hand on his forehead, pushing him away. "Not yet. Wait until tonight, my speed demon..." She laughed as they left the mall.
"Hey, where are the boys?"
She replied, "they wanted to stay at the arcade. They know not to stay too long."
Walking down the street, they were watched. The figure jumped out, grabbing Amy. "YOU!" Sonic shouted, horrified.
"No," Amy shrieked. "We destroyed you!"
Metal Sonic twisted her arm. "Do not attempt anything, Sonic the Hedgehog. Or I will kill this one!" Engaging the rocket boosters, Metal Sonic flew high into the air, Amy his hostage. In the air, it knew, Sonic couldn't follow. The hedgehog tried, attempting to keep below them, but the robot flew high, free of buildings, allowing it to escape.
Enraged, Sonic screamed out. His heart raced, panic in his mind. Running, he hit top speed, still simple at his age. He didn't know where he was going, his mind simply wanted to find help. Outside the city and going, he continued running. The mansion approached. Stopping short of hitting a wall, he pounded on the front door.
Rouge opened it. "Sonic... I have nothing to say to you."
The look on his face grabbed her attention. "Sonic? What's wrong?"
"AMY!" He shook. "Amy is... Metal Sonic took her!"
Rouge remembered the robot. One of them, anyway. "Another one? but-" she went silent. "I'm sorry, Sonic. I don't go on adventures anymore. I can't help you. I'll call Shadow, it's all I can do. You can rely on GUN, but not on me."
"Shadow, yeah, good idea!" he panted out.
She continued, "one more thing. Just because GUN will be helping you, doesn't mean my daughter will! You hear me? If my daughter is injured in any way by this, I swear... that robot will be the least of your worries! And you should go see Robotnik. He says he's changed, but how do I know what the old fool is really up to?"
She slammed the door. His problems weren't hers. Grabbing the phone, she dialed. Rouge knew how to get directly through to Shadow's GUN communicator.
Sonic raced, Robotnik's lab near. He would have strong words for his old nemesis. The smoke was strong, black in the air. Halting, he saw the lab, smoldering. Rushing inside, he saw the damage. Doors torn through, robots ripped to pieces by clawed hands. Lights smashed.
"TAILS!" Sonic saw his old friend.
"Sonic... please don't call me that."
"Right... Miles... what happened?" he asked.
Miles struggled against the beam across his leg. "A Metal Sonic attacked us. The defense guns didn't do any damage." Reaching down, Sonic lifted the beam off his friend's leg. "He took Robotnik. Look..." Miles pointed to the trail of red droplets.
"He's injured?" Sonic asked.
Standing, Tails grabbed the old cane, his knee throbbing. He answered, "most likely. It also downloaded a lot of old data from the computers. What I want to know is, where did this Metal Sonic come from?"
"You mean you don't know?"
Tails shook his head. "We built a few empty units of the old robots for museum displays. No electronics. Made of scrap metal. This thing..." He picked up a mangled bullet. "... was made of the good stuff. There's something else..." Tails paused. "Little Planet. It will be in the sky in two days."
The door opened, the old man thrown inside. Amy watched the crumpled body shake. Metal Sonic closed the room off, leaving its two prisoners alone. "Eggman?"
The old man turned upright. "Amy... it captured you as well?"
She shied away. "What does it want with us?"
"I don't know," he replied. "It didn't say a word."
Sonic entered the GUN headquarters. His two sons followed behind. Entering the commander's office, he was greeted by the sight of a middle-aged man in glasses. "Sonic. We have no word on the location of Metal Sonic," the Commander stated. "Seems the machine has a built-in radar blocking field. Rising from his desk, he said, "please, follow me."
Leading Sonic into the conference room, he found Shadow waiting for him. E-123 Omega stood near the back of the room with Knuckles and Karen both waiting. Their older son, Striker, was with them. "Zoom. Boost," Striker greeted Sonic's kids.
"Yo, where's Slate?" Zoom inquired.
"Him? He's at the lab helping GUN soldiers clean up the mess."
"We still have no idea as to why Metal Sonic captured Ivo Robotnik," the Commander pointed out, "only possibilities. The fact the doctor was injured seems to indicate that Robotnik wasn't willing to go. My initial reports show that there was only half a pint of blood loss at the scene, no doubt a small puncture wound... however, Robotnik is an old man. Same age my father was during the Black Arms invasion..."
"It took Amy to get to me," Sonic said. "Eggman? That, I don't know..."
"What's this about Little Planet showing up soon?" Knuckles begged.
Sonic explained, "Metal Sonic... one of them, anyway, kidnapped Amy on Little Planet when she was only eight."
Shadow elaborated, "the planet only shows in the sky a few days out of the year. But what could be on that planet that it would want?"
Knuckles sighed. "Standing around here won't get us anything. Better go out and start looking. Nice to see we're ALL here to help," he said sarcastically.
"DROP IT!" Karen threatened.
"What?" Knuckles looked angry. "One of my boys ran off to clean up garbage and that arrogant bat can't peel herself away from jewels to come and help up- OWW!" He went silent as Karen grabbed his tail and gave it a sharp yank.
"Enough about her! One more word and you die alone!" Karen wasn't willing to argue about Rouge. She was almost certain that Knuckles wasn't totally innocent of anything when she flipped out on them.
"That's enough of that," the Commander said. "I've hired the Chaotix Detective Agency to assist in the search and you have GUN's full support, Sonic. I don't want to even RISK this machine attempting military action against this planet."
Teal kicked the chunk of metal in anger. "Great! We have an actual situation here, and thanks to my mother, I get to clean instead of actually helping!"
"Your mother's just worried about you," Slate assured.
She shrugged. "I had to argue with her for to hours to even get her to agree to this! Joining GUN and following in her footsteps was a big deal for me... and I don't get to do anything! I might as well quit..." She continued collecting debris and tossing it into the garbage containers. "Mom was a top agent... and I have enough rank to be boss of this garbage can!"
At his work terminal, Miles Prower typed furiously. "Find anything?" Teal asked.
"Not much... seems Metal Sonic accessed some of the doc's old files, though. Impressive little...."
"Old files?" Slate asked.
Miles replied, "yes. Old stuff from before Robotnik gave up the evil stuff. We had them specially password locked with a program that changes the password every hour. The only way to even find out the current password was to input my own."
"A password to get the password?" Teal was impressed.
Miles continued, "I can't tell what it accessed without opening the file. Unfortunately, cracking my password wouldn't take too long for an advanced AI like that..." Typing in his password, followed by the second, he opened the old files. Typing away furiously, he found what had been accessed. "Uh oh... probably scanned everything in quick succession but stopped at this one..." The file detailed a space station Robotnik had nearly finished before the Cthulhu incident. The station still remained in space, untouched.
"You needed all seven Chaos Emeralds to defeat this thing before..." The Commander led them to the vault. "I'm authorizing all seven to be unlocked and handed into your care, Sonic, so that you can stop this thing. We KNOW that bullets aren't working and I want a quick and clean end to this incident."
They stopped at the large metal door. As the Commander prepared to enter the unlock code, they heard yelling. Teal flew towards them. "Don't do that! You can't release the Chaos Emeralds!"
"Agent Teal, I don't care who your mother is, this is my final decision! Now stand down!"
"But you don't-"
"It's what Metal Sonic wants you to do!" Miles shouted. They turned to face him. He explained, "Robotnik built a device on his space station that can suck the Chaos Energy out of your body, Sonic. If you go super and he gets you inside of it... at least I know where it might be right now."
"So I go up there and deal with it on my own terms!" Sonic's fists shook.
"And go into its own turf, alone... that's also what it wants, Sonic." Tails shook his head. "You'd have no backup. Metal Sonic could disable the teleporters to the station and transport ships would take too long to get anyone else up there to help you."
"I can't go fight him then..." Sonic's face turned, anger to sadness.
"No, you can't go. It's why we have to get him to come here."
Metal Sonic slammed its fists into the console. The press conference had ruined its plans, GUN stating that the Chaos Emeralds were to remain locked away. Opening the cell door, it entered, grabbing Robotnik. "You had a great plan, to drain Sonic the Hedgehog of the Chaos Energy. I know why, for I found your plans on this very space colony!"
"Leave him alone!" Amy shouted.
"SILENCE!" Metal Sonic wasn't concerned with the woman. "As I was saying, Doctor, the Dark Gaia sleeps within the Earth's core, but you abandoned your plan to release it!"
Robotnik was quick to defend himself. "I learned that trying to deal with such dark gods was foolish..."
"The power it holds is worth the risk but now I must find a way to force Sonic the Hedgehog into delivering such power to me. And it must be soon. For I have calculated a two percent chance of disaster. Splitting the planet open holds risks of total destruction. I must be able to relocate to Little Planet if that happens. Not even this space station would survive in the event of failure."
Closing the door, it entered the teleporter, headed for Earth below.
Central City was rocked with explosions. Metal Sonic was going to force Sonic into the open and it had little time. At the lab, Tails watched the news. "Okay, kids, Metal Sonic is down here. Time to teleport up there and save your mother." He led Zoom and Boost to the teleporter room. "Remember, get up there and patch me in to the computers. I may need to crack the codes to the prisoner cell doors to get them out. Make it quick, I want to get them out of there while that thing's down here!"
They entered the teleporter, Miles activating the beam to send them above.
Metal Sonic was disinterested in Shadow's challenge. "You are of no concern to me, black hedgehog. You are not my target. Begone!" A flying kick sent the machine flying.
Standing, it felt bullets tapping its hull as Omega fired upon it. "Current weaponry is ineffective," Omega reported.
Picking up a large chunk of debris, Knuckles threw it, the concrete fragmenting against the robot. "What's this thing made of?" Knuckles asked, watching it stand free.
Uninterested in the attack, Metal Sonic fled. It was going to find its intended target. From above, Teal watched. Pulling back the slide on her pistol, she flew down. "Hold it!"
"I have no interest in you." it said. She fired.
Suddenly angry, Metal Sonic approached. "Very well, if you life forms insist on standing in my way, then I shall eliminate you, one by one. I have no time for interference!"
A rock hit it. More followed. Turning, the robot saw Rouge, an angry mother. "Teal! RUN!" The child did so as Rouge raised a shotgun, firing. "How dare you try and hurt my daughter!" Emptying the chamber, she tossed the gun aside and flew towards it, feet planting a solid kick. The force knocked it back into the open road. Rising, it had no time to react as a car ran into it, impact sending Metal Sonic flying. Within the vehicle, Tom Adriani popped the doors. "Get in!" His wife and daughter secured, Tom hit the gas. Turning a corner, he stopped as Rouge exited.
The trunk popped as she pulled out three large bat-shaped objects. Standing beside her, he helped activate them. "And to think, I didn't want you to keep high explosives stored away..." The bombs floated, hovering away as they got in the car and drove off.
Metal Sonic watched three objects approach slowly. By the time its internal sensors realized what they were, the bombs exploded, one by one, sending fire and shrapnel at point blank range. As the cloud dissipated, it rose from the ground. Internal diagnostics ran. Self repairs would take some time.
Regrouping, the team was working on a plan. "We need high explosives and anti-tank rounds, neither of which is very safe to use in the city," the Commander said over the radio.
"Then we must draw it away," Shadow said. "
We have it on satellite cameras, it's moving. You should follow." The Commander was busy working on a military course of action, mobilizing troops and weaponry in the event the situation worsened. Several city blocks had already been destroyed.
The car stopped nearby, Rouge looking at everyone. "Teal was almost killed!" She send Shadow her angry stare. "I blame you. You didn't keep her out of this like you promised!" She grabbed the radio. "Do you hear me, Commander? My daughter doesn't work for you anymore! And you!" Her gaze was aimed at Knuckles. "One word and you'll be eating through a straw!" The bat walked off. She would have none of their adventure.
On board the space station, the kids waited as Miles hacked his way into the systems. "There... I'm locking out all teleporter access until you're ready to leave! That way, if Metal Sonic tries to come back, he'll be stuck here."
"I found them!" Zoom shouted, spotting the monitor. "But I don't know where that is..." The monitor was unmarked.
"You two get to the cell block. I'll work on hacking access to all cell doors. Be ready to get them out of there!" Tails punched away at the keys, slowly working through the complex computer network.
Metal Sonic found the teleportation pod. Inputting the destination, the message sent it into a fury. Locked out. "They have ruined my plan... then I shall create another plan."
"Mom, I was only trying to-"
"Enough, Teal!" Rouge was angry. She wasn't sure who she was angry at, but she was angry. Tom drove home, the car straining against the fresh dents and possible engine damage. His thoughts led to two places- one, that he needed to talk with his wife, and two, that he had to plan something.
Zoom pounded on the cell doors. He heard an answer. Tails could see him waving, the security camera network feeding back to him the message. Quickly, he hacked the security codes and unsealed all doors. "MOM!"
Amy looked up. "Zoom! But-"
"No time, we have to go!" the boy said.
"I'm hurt..." Robotnik struggled to stand, his bandaged leg failing.
Boost offered his support. "Metal Sonic's on Earth. Tails figured out where he was hiding and beamed us up here to get you!" Zoom replied, "we have to get back to the main teleporters."
Rouge peeked in her daughter's bedroom. The teenager was asleep, no doubt having cried herself to sleep. She sighed. Rouge felt like she was failing her little girl, her attempts to keep the family close only straining on Teal's mind. Returning to her bedroom, Rouge expected to see Tom in bed. Instead, he was sitting at the small table, scribbling notes. "Tom?"
Setting the pencil down, he turned. "That robot tried to kill Teal. I want it dead."
"Tom, you don't have to worry about this. GUN will-"
"You and Teal get to play the hero. It's my turn. And I'm not waiting for it to destroy half the city or who knows WHAT else... this has to end..."
"It'd be suicide to try and face it," she said.
Tom responded with a hint of anger, "I'm not getting anywhere near the thing. You hate the others so much, let them do the hard parts." She sat beside him. "Now, you're the military mind in this house, help me work on this plan..."
Morning fell over Central City. The GUN base camp was active, trying to find Metal Sonic's whereabouts. Sonic sat with his family, glad to have them back.
"No sign of the target," a troop reported to Shadow.
"Why not? No contact whatsoever... what is Metal Sonic up to?" Shadow pondered the question. The robot had simply vanished. "It can't be on the space station, all teleporter access was locked out. Unless it flew..."
"Not likely," Miles said. "I had the place locked down, all hangar doors and other access. It can't get in."
The feminine shape approached, walking with a confidence reserved only for someone with skill and experience. Rouge was dressed in her old combat outfit, pink heart plate shined and ready. "I need a gun... NOW!" Without pause, a trooper handed over his rifle.
"Oh great, the bat's here," Knuckles remarked, turning his head.
"Like you've done anything," she shot back. "I know why you haven't seen Metal Sonic." She pressed a remote switch, three bat-shaped spheres floating in the air. "I used some of those."
"After I hit it with my car," Thomas added. "It's been damaged."
Tails processed this. "Wouldn't be enough to destroy it, but if it were damaged, self-repair systems would need time."
"Miles!" Robotnik waved his arms. "I need you over here!" Tails ran towards the old man. "I need to access my old files..."
"Why? We dealt with your space station and- wait... if you built this thing, then you should have detailed schematics in your old files..." Tails brought up remote access to the lab's files and opened the needed records.
Working quickly, Robotnik found the document. "Here we are... tell me, Rouge, what type of bomb is that?"
Cradling her rifle, she explained, "high explosive with a limited blast radius. Made to concentrate the damage to a small area."
Robotnik said, "of course. This unit was made to resist puncture damage with a sturdy outer hull. However... the bombs likely caused enough vibrational force to interfere with the internal structure. It was made to withstand external damage, but concentrate that internally..."
Tom waved Shadow over to him. "See my car? You're going to drive it straight down that metal monster's throat!" Cocking an eye, Shadow was curious. "I'd do it myself but if I jumped out, I'd probably break every bone in my body... Reaching in, he flipped a switch, the seat, steering wheel and pedals all moving inward. "Lets Rouge drive."
"The explosion from this vehicle won't be as powerful as those bombs..." Shadow commented.
Tom explained, "this car? It won't blow up from a forward impact. Pin that toaster to the wall for me."
Knuckles sulked. "We still don't know where it is. Some plan, Rouge!"
The bat looked him dead in the eyes. "So go draw it out, you moronic ant eater! Or do I have to do ALL the work?" An angered look from his wife kept Knuckles silent.
"Why waste time with that?" Everyone looked at Tails. "It'd be easier to get his attention with a public announcement," he explained, grabbing the radio. "Commander, this is Miles Prower. Listen to me very carefully..."
The hiding place was suitable to repair. It would strike soon. When Little Planet appears, it planned to make its way there and find one of the numerous pathways into the past. When that happened, Metal Sonic could return to Earth many years before and defeat its enemies before they existed.
Radio communications were monitored. The broadcast caused the robot anger. The news was reporting that it had been destroyed. Checking internal systems, repairs were only at eighty-three percent. Suitable for what it could do for such a horrendous judgment. It would show them that it was not defeated.
Tearing through the tunnels, it erupted from the manhole cover, hoping to lay waste to the populace and draw Sonic to it.
It saw no one.
GUN had the city under lockdown, all citizens to remain in their homes. All it found were empty streets. At the base camp, Miles monitored all citywide security. "Found it!"
"Then let's go!" Sonic shouted.
"WAIT!" Miles said, halting him. "Sonic... I know you want a big adventure, but this isn't about you. Rouge's plan makes sense! We take this thing down quickly and with minimal damage."
"But it-" Sonic paused mid-sentence. "It.. took Amy from me..."
Tails placed a hand on his old friend's shoulder. "I know. It also kidnapped Robotnik and injured him. It also tried to kill Rouge's daughter. It's leveled several city blocks and will do more damage if you don't stop this thing! But running into a ball and flying at it won't help. And you don't need the Chaos Emeralds. We have the means right here. Now.. get going. I'll watch from here."
Sonic stepped towards the others. Knuckles, Karen, Zoom, Boost, Slate, Striker and Rouge were ready. Shadow started Tom's car. "You know what to do," Rouge said. "Distract it long enough for me to get my bombs into position to stun it. Shadow will do the rest from there."
Without a word, they left.
Grabbing an earpiece, Tom threw off his tie. "Okay, Rouge's orders," he addressed the soldiers, "you're to be ready in case their plan goes to crap! Understood?" Sitting beside Miles, he said, "I'm her eyes on the ground. I can work better from here."
"You're not worried about her?" Miles asked, puzzled.
Tom replied, "it was my plan. I made sure neither of us would be in danger. It's the others who get the hard part."
Tails sat, thinking. "Ordinarily I'd be appalled by something like that, but... actually, I'd probably do the same thing if I had a family. Not like they aren't all capable."
Metal Sonic was attacked from all sides, rammed into by blurs moving quickly. It wanted Sonic but the rest were too distracting. They refused to stop, seven opponents unwilling to give it a chance to create a strategy.
Studying the battle, seeking patterns in movement, it begun to work. Processing was slow due to previous system damage, but it would have to formulate a plan. The rear jets were offline and escape was impossible.
The bomb went off, sending it into the street. Rising, it saw the second bomb approach, exploding before it could run. The third followed. System efficiency was down to sixty-three percent. Pulling upright, it had no time, the car slamming its body, feet scraping pavement. As Shadow reached the end of the road, he jumped out, the car slamming into the side of a building, Metal Sonic pinned.
Flying downward, Rouge confronted the being. "Normally I'd mouth off, but this is personal." The butt of the rifle slammed its head, working loose a piece of its hull. Prying the sharp nails of her gloves into the opening, Rouge tore the metal plate off.
"No begging?" she taunted.
It eyed her. "I do not beg." Shrugging, she aimed her gun, firing into the exposed circuitry. Electric sparks and burning smoke was released, the lights of the eyes going dead.
Tossing her weapon away, she helped Shadow to his feet. "Good luck with the clean-up, Shadow..." The rest gathered around, watching the bat walk off. For Rouge, it had been personal, and she didn't wish to stay around to celebrate. The others could feel good about winning. She only wished to return to her family.
Teal stood at the edge of the city, watching the cleanup. "It didn't do too much damage. It won't take them long to repair the city and dad's paying some money out to help."
"They rebuilt after Black Arms, Chaos, and those other disasters," Slate said.
She replied, "that was before our time."
"Your mom bugging you, isn't she?" he asked.
"Yeah. She won't talk about that party two years ago. She wouldn't let me help fight Metal Sonic and she's being overprotective. Slate, I'm sick of dating behind their backs..."
"You wanna call this off, then?"
"NO!" she shouted. "That's not what I mean... no, I think I have an idea. Just hear me out on this."
Metal Sonic's inactive hull was taken to GUN headquarters. The Commander took interest in the damage. He peered into the open cavity of the robot's head. "She tore this thing open and killed it..."
Wiping his glasses, he made a command decision on the spot. "I can see why my father let Agent Rouge do whatever she wanted... he was probably frightened of her. I'm making this an official order. If Agent Rouge asks for ANYTHING, she is to receive full cooperation."
"Sir? the troop asked.
"You heard me! Anything she wants. I'm not going to risk making her mad."
Rouge had only managed to change clothes when Teal called, asking her parents to meet her in the city. The rental car stopped in front of their favorite restaurant, closed down for repairs. "She must be inside," Tom said, stepping out. The couple entered, looking around. Teal was nowhere to be seem. Rather, they saw Knuckles and Karen sitting at a table.
"Knuckles." Rouge wasn't happy. "We're leaving," she said, grabbing Tom's hand.
"Figures," Knuckles replied, "first Slate doesn't show up and now you."
Rouge headed for the door. In a blur, Teal blocked her path, keeping the door shut. "TEAL! What's going on?"
"Mom, please..."
"No, Teal, I am not staying here and talking with this idiotic, stubborn echidna. WE are going!"
"Like I'd want to talk to you," Knuckles shouted out.
Slate entered the room, walking towards Teal. "Dad, you're gonna listen to this..." Taking Teal's hand, the two teenagers made sure their parents saw.
"Slate? You and... her?" Karen asked, stunned.
"Yes, mother, me and her. Is that a problem?" Slate stated defiantly.
"Yes, it IS a problem, son!" Knuckles was angry.
"Like your kid is good enough for MY daughter, Knuckle-dragger," Rouge screamed, boiling. "You were never good enough for me, so why should your son be good enough for her?"
"SHUT UP!"
Teal has screamed too loud, straining her throat. Rouge's sensitive ears reeled. "MOM! DAD! You used to be friends with Knuckles and his family. And Sonic, and Robotnik, and the Chaotix, and the others. Then you threw it away two years ago! I WANT TO KNOW WHY!"
"Yes, dad," Slate agreed. "Teal and I are... in love. And if we have to date without your blessing, we will. Not like you've done anything to make things right!"
Kneeling, Tom looked Rouge in the eyes. "Rouge... this has to end. I've supported you through this but enough is enough! You have to tell them."
"Tom, I..." She went silent. "I don't know if I can."
"It doesn't matter if they understand, babe... your daughter thinks you're going crazy and your old friends think you're selfish. They have to know what really happened."
Squeezing Tom's hand, she made her decision. "Knuckles... you remember the talk we had on Ark, right after the Biolizard and we thought Shadow was dead?"
"Yeah... said you were going to stop stealing. You were back at it three days later."
She continued, "when we returned to Earth I visited my mother. She acted like she didn't even know I had left home... it made me so mad that I just broke down and went back to what I knew."
Taking a chair, Rouge sat. "It was about two years ago. Mom came to the mansion. I- I wanted her to say that she loved me. But all she did was hit on Tom and she..." Eyes closed, the memory stinging her. "I gave her some money hoping it might reach out to her but- but she wouldn't let up and I... I pushed her. I pushed my own mother out the front door. I pushed her and told her to get out of my life."
"Grandma came to the house? Why didn't you tell me?" Teal was shocked. "At least tell me where she lives so I can go meet her!"
"You can't, dear, your grandmother-"
Tom kneeled beside is wife and said, "Rouge's mother died less than an hour later. The police visited us and gave us the news. They only knew to come to us because she'd taken one of the jars of jelly we keep to hand out to guests. That was only days before my fortieth birthday party. We had a small, quick burial and thought it would be best to have the party."
Teal begged, "why didn't you tell me?"
"Because your grandmother was a horrible, uncaring person!" Rouge shouted, her voice strained with sadness. "I only wanted her to love me but she only wanted money. And the last thing I did was to shove her to the ground."
"Dad," Slate piped up, "you said something to her to make her kick everyone out."
Knuckles tried to remember. "Yeah... I remember now. I told her she had such a wonderful family... it must have sent her over the edge."
"Rouge..." Amy entered the main dining room. "I... I had no idea."
"None of you did, and I'm sorry," the bat apologized. The pink hedgehog gave Rouge a hug. She faced Knuckles. "And I'm sorry I flirted with you back then, too. I knew you weren't interested."
Knuckles defended himself by saying, "maybe if I hadn't been so stubborn and proud of my heritage, maybe if I'd bothered to understand you better. Maybe if I could have seen you as a person and not a threat to my duties..."
"It's probably for the best," Rouge said, squeezing Tom's hand. "I think- no, I know... I made the right decision." Looking over at her daughter, Rouge spoke, "Teal, you hooked up with the echidna. You outdid your mother on that one... go on, you two be happy. Just... don't do anything you might regret, okay?"
"You mean... yes, mom, I know..."
Slate said, "don't worry, I'll be a perfect gentleman with Teal!"
"You'd better," Knuckles shouted, "if you do anything to hurt her, you won't have to worry about Rouge, because I'll break your neck, boy!"
"HEY! Things are back to normal now!" Karen shouted. "What say we get plans made for a celebration party! Make things right, you know?"
"Sounds fun," Amy said. What do you say, Rouge?"
Smiling, Rouge responded, "yes, we will... thank you, all of you."
Shadow watched the cleanup. "Shadow?" Turning, he found Rouge. "Shouldn't you be helping them?"
"They told me to take a break," he explained. "I heard about the conversation you had with the others. So they know what happened." He sighed. "If it matters, I do sometimes wish that I could have been more open to you, that I-"
"Please stop, Shadow." Rouge had cut him off. "I had a genuine interest in you, but that was twenty years ago. I found Tom. He was the first one who appreciated who I was. The first who ever understood me. But now..." She sighed, knowing she was about to say something very cruel. "Look at you! You haven't aged ONE DAY since we met. And I'm getting older. I'm in shape, I still look good, but I'm older. I'll be forty soon. I'll grow old and die, probably with Tom, while you'll still be the same then as you are now, as you were back then..."
Turning away, she seemed almost resentful, but it was the truth. That's in the past. I love Tom. I... I've always been by his side, he's always been by mine. I've never even THOUGHT of cheating on him, or leaving him... we have a child. What we have together, what we do- forget that, what Tom and I do together is none of your business anyway. But, Shadow... you're still my friend. And please, take care of Teal, she needs an ally in GUN. I know you will stand by her side, and by the side of my family generations from now."
"Yes," he said. "I will."
Robotnik sat on a bench in the park. "Doc," Sonic greeted. "Amy's off with the others and the boys are helping the cleanup. Thought I'd check to see how you're doing..."
"Sonic... to think I once almost destroyed this planet." The old man enjoyed watching the birds. "To think one of my plans was almost used by a machine. I have spent two decades making things right. I have no family and the Robotnik name dies with me. But I believe my grandfather would be proud of me." The old man pulled bread fragments from a bag, throwing them to the pigeons.
Rising from the bench, Sonic left his old enemy alone. Tails was standing nearby. "You know why I had to cut your adventure short, right?"
"I know, Ta- Miles..." Sonic was sad that the days of big adventures were behind him.
Miles spoke, "those days are gone. I have an actual lab now with government funding and the best resources. I don't have to make things out of leftover parts in small labs. I like saving the world the easy way. And I know a hundred years from now, when none of us are still here, I'll leave something behind that can help keep the world safe."
Sonic looked out into the city. "Until then, old friend... I'll be here. I'll keep this world safe as long as I'm alive."
Twenty one years, four months have passed
Joints popped as the echidna stretched. The day's work was far from over, but in what brief rest time he had before the plane left, Knuckles was ready to allow some degree of rest. Sitting down, he flipped through the small pile of mail. Nothing important, he set it back down.
No.
Grabbing the stack once more, he pulled out the envelope, sent from an off-island address. 'Why do I know that name?' he thought, opening the flap and pulling out a card. He was surprised to see a single wedding invitation.
"What'cha readin'?" It was his wife, Karen.
"I remember her. That goofy girl who had that fantasy about me a few years ago."
Eyes cocked wide, she asked, "who?"
"That Linda.... the wolf girl."
She remembered. "The one who pretended she was Rouge and fantasized about you? She's better not still be doing that or I'm gonna break her myself!"
"I don't think so," he explained, showing her the card. "I have to fly to Central City with that shipment of oranges and we won't be due back until the plane refuels. Maybe I should go see what's up."
"Be careful," Karen murmured, feeling a bit uneasy. "She fantasized a sex life with you. And she fantasized she was someone else... like Rouge was even good enough for my little hunk... I don't trust her."
Grunting, he let his frustration show. "Like it or not, Slate's dating her daughter, so cut it out. I don't need to start trouble with them or Slate's gonna disown us."
"I know..." Sighing loudly, Karen plopped her butt on the couch. "Just that Rouge always had an arrogant temper. Maybe if she'd told us her mother'd died instead of going all psycho... and she just found out she's got a sister. You're not telling her about this, are you?"
"Hell no!" Knuckles shouted. "I didn't tell her when this happened, I'm NOT telling her now. She finds out someone was drawing pictures of the two of us screwing and she'll wave it over my head until the day I die. I will NOT give her some disgusting flag to wave in my face." Pausing, he finally said, "at least her daughter doesn't act like that."
Karen knew what he meant. "Definitely takes after her father's side."
It would take two hours for refueling and pre-flight maintenance and inspection before they would return home. Enough time for Knuckles to head to Empire City and visit the wolf. The address on the envelope matched the one he'd visited years before, so finding the apartment hadn't been a challenge.
It was knocking that was the challenge. Standing before the door, his fist raised, he simply stood in spot, hesitating. he could walk away, toss the invitation, be done with this silliness.
Still considering his options, the door opened. "Knuckles?" The wolf was standing before him. She looked different. Better clothes, different grooming, and the tattoo had been removed. Furthermore, the creeping sense of isolation he'd felt from this room was no longer present. The walls were free of artwork and light was actually entering from the windows.
"About this..." he greeted, holding out the card.
"Oh, that. Come in. Coffee?"
He responded blandly, "no. I'm in a hurry."
"I'm getting married. After you left me the last time, I changed a lot."
"I can see that," he mumbled.
She continued, "it wasn't easy. Actually, for a month after that, I stayed in here, crying. Tore up my drawings and ripped up my stories. Then one day I just went outside for some reason. I stopped wanting to be the bat and started being myself."
"Hmm..." Knuckles remembered leaving that day. Chewing her out and walking off without a thought to what she might do.
"It was stupid, I know. All I knew about Rouge was that she had everything. Except for you, but I guess she wanted something else."
"Don't say anything but I didn't really want her, either."
Turning her head slightly, Linda asked, "why was that?"
He responded dryly, "lots of reasons."
"I know about the Master Emerald and that stuff," she pointed out, "but what else?"
Staring her down, he simply answered, "it doesn't matter. Not to you, not to her, not to anyone."
"Fair enough. Just that I got into all that, maybe part of me still wonders what really happened. I based everything on a fantasy. I know I shouldn't be thinking about it anymore, but still... anyway, I didn't think you'd actually show up at my wedding but I sent it anyway."
"We'll see," he said, turning away. "I have to go. Good luck with your life."
Having returned to Central City, it was time to leave, and that seemed to let him down. Slate was probably here, with Teal, but he couldn't stop by and see his own son before his flight left. He could technically stay and return on his own, but there was still work to be done before the day's end. He had no choice but to return to the airport.
"Asshole!"
The shout confused him. Pausing, Knuckles spotted the source of the insult. Some dirty ball of hair, of some species the echidna couldn't begin to guess, had insulted him for no reason. It was clear the man hadn't bathed, nor even had proper shelter, and the bald scar on his forehead looked as if it hadn't even been properly bandaged when it was still fresh.
It wasn't important. Stepping forward, Knuckles resumed his walk.
"I called you an ASSHOLE! What are you going to do about it, you worthless turd?"
"Nothing," he responded angrily. You're not worth it."
Unwavered by that, the hairball shouted, "and you're not worth the dirty whore you go home and screw, either!"
Growling now, he'd been willing to shrug off personal insults. But his wife was different. "You leave Karen alone, you bum!"
"Or what?" The furball was swaggering wildly. "You're some loser with a small weiner!"
Rushing forth, the echidna sent his fist downward, kidney punching the stranger. Crumpling to the ground, whimpering in pain, the hairball went silent. Still feeling the anger, Knuckles stomped down on the furball's crotch.
He laughed. The joke was on Knuckles. "Some nasty whore bat took those from me a long time ago because she wouldn't put out like I asked! At least they don't hurt no more!"
"This will," Knuckles remarked, foot to the ribs. Walking away, he still had a fight to catch. However, he considered what the man had just said. 'Bat? He didn't mean...' The idea was perhaps too strange. He knew Rouge would be capable of something like that but not typically prone to such violence unless she was threatened or her family was threatened. 'Maybe... still, might wanna keep that in mind as another reason to keep on her good side.'
Twenty two years, two months have passed
Rouge moaned as Tom kissed her naked flesh. "Birthday girl..."
"Not yet, Tom," Rouge scolded. "Not for three more hours. I still have my youth for three more hours."
Kissing down her arm, Tom remarked, "afraid of turning forty? I thought you'd be taking this like a fine, mature woman..."
"A woman has pride in her youth." Leaning back, she enjoyed his gentle touches.
"You don't look a day over twenty five," he commented, kissing around her belly button.
She said, "I'd have preferred eighteen..."
"You didn't have that little six pack when you were eighteen," he joked, noting the slight bit of muscle she showed off. Working down slowly, he waited as his wife parted her legs.
"My pussy held up?" she begged, hoping it was one part that had retained its youthful look.
"As nice as it did the first time," he said, kissing around it.
She laughed at her thoughts. "I'd have thought after more than twenty years of sex, and a baby, it'd be all stretched and baggy."
"Thought you did that leg exercise?" Slowly easing his middle finger inside, he took note of the tightness. "Damned if it isn't tighter now than when we first started doing it..."
"Muscles are muscles, Tom," Rouge remarked, "and a workout is a workout." Pulling the skin back to reveal her clitoris, Thomas paused, Rouge's anticipation building.
"Don't feel bad about turning forty. Lots of women let themselves go. You didn't. Now, when I get done licking you, we're going to make love for a few hours. Sound like something a used up old woman would be doing?"
She growled, saying, "smooth talker... hey, wait." He held off. "Tom... you still willing to try and have another baby with me?"
"We're going to have another kid, yes. It's not too late." She found it strange that he said 'will', but not 'try'. Spitting directly onto her, Tom's tongue began to glide up and down, gently but forcefully pushing through the skin, the tip flicking her clit hard.
She screamed out in pleasure. "YEAH! Oh... do me with your tongue!"
Taking Tom's hand, Rouge stepped from the bathtub, the couple drying off. "Party's gonna start in two hours. I'd have made it a surprise party but you'd be expecting it anyway, so what'd be the point?" he said, grabbing his robe. The ringing phone took their attention. "I got it." Stepping into the bedroom, he answered the phone as Rouge grabbed her deodorant and perfumes, gently applying them. Looking in the mirror, she liked what she saw. A mature, older woman with a youthful vigor and a well-maintained body.
She took note of the spikes of fur around her neck. Rouge had always kept them neatly trimmed. Perhaps, she thought, she might let them grow out a bit and change her look some.
"... no I don't want to press charges..."
Rouge's ears picked it up. Stepping into the bedroom, she asked, "what was that about?"
Tom explained, "Police. Some teenage girl shoplifted a few things from the store in the office. She ran out and got hit by a car. Broke her leg. I told the cops to let it go. Sounds like she's got enough to worry about."
"I don't care about some cheap jars of jelly anyway." Rouge didn't see the point of giving a criminal record to someone over trivial goods. Or much anything. She'd been an excellent thief at one point.
Kissing his wife, Tom dug out his clothes. "Anyway, lady, we have a party to get ready for. Teal's probably already there and I don't want to keep them waiting too long."
The birthday party was full. Club Rouge had been closed off for a private outing, just friends. Rouge felt a sense of comfort, having made amends with everyone. Even Knuckles treated her better. Presents stacked on the roulette tables, a pile of empty boxes tossed onto the craps table, a cute little joke Victoria had come up with.
As she reached for another gift, her cell phone went off. "Oh, for the love of- hold on, I'll tell them to call back." She answered the call. The crowd watched as her face turned to a look of shock and surprise. She closed the phone. "Tom... that was the hospital. They said my SISTER is there..."
"But you don't have a sister... not that we know, anyway." Tom was a bit concerned. The hospital had probably made a mistake.
"You should go and see for yourself," Robotnik suggested. "The party will await your return."
Tom was asking her something, her mind finally clearing to hear, "which hospital?"
"Central City!" she shouted.
"Okay, we're going. Find out what this is about... Teal, you stay here and keep the guests occupied. We'll be back as soon as we can."
Grabbing her hand, Tom ran from the casino. Teal was left behind to deal with dozens of people. "Huh... okay..." She thought of something to do. "Well then... what did people get my mother?" She looked through the opened boxes and stacks of gifts, selecting one at random. 'Oh wow,' she thought, 'I don't know if I'm old enough yet to see this... or touch it...' Holding it up, the girl shouted, "okay, which one of you sick freaks got my mother THIS?"
Rouge ran into Central City Hospital, Thomas barely keeping up with her. She found a doctor at the main desk. "I'm Rouge Adriani, I was called about-"
"Right, your sister was brought in earlier," the doctor responded. "We had some difficulty identifying her. No ID on her so we ran her blood through the database to see if she'd been here before. We didn't find that, but we did..."
"You matched her to me by DNA. I see... I wasn't aware I even had a half-sister, but I guess with mom being such a..." She trailed off.
The doctor spoke, "I'm afraid you don't understand. The genetic match is complete. She isn't your half-sister. That would mean you share only one parent."
"You mean..." Rouge was dazed. "My father also... that's impossible, my father never stayed around!" Rouge was suddenly angry. "I ran away from home when I was thirteen and never ONCE did that loser show up in my life. I don't believe you..."
"It's possible, actually..." The doctor collected the patient file. "She's only a teenager. Right, she was the one with the broken leg brought in earlier by-"
The police, right?" Tom asked.
"Yes, how'd you know?"
"The shoplifter the cops called about earlier," Rouge blurted out. "So what? You were going to put her leg in a cast and kick her out onto the streets?"
"Of course not," the doctor defended, "if an underage patient has nowhere to go then we keep them until they're well." Rouge closed her eyes.
"Let me see the DNA chart." Without a word, he handed the chart over. Rouge could read DNA comparison reports, it was a skill she'd learned early on in GUN.
The similar markers were no mistake. "I want to see her."
Rouge opened the door. In the bed sat a female bat with white fur, a lock of it grown out and hanging over her face. The girl's leg was in a cast, suspended by a hanging sling. Looking over, the girl asked, "who are you? You're not my mother..."
"I-" Rouge didn't know what to day. She had seen the DNA chart and it didn't matter if the girl believed her. "I'm your sister."
The girl made a disgusting sound. "I don't have a sister and you're old."
"Really? How old was mom when you were born?"
The girl went quiet. Se replied, "past forty. Umm..."
Sitting beside the bed, Rouge explained, "I left home when I was thirteen. I ran away."
"So where is mom? Guess she'll have to pay my hospital bills... or not, like she's got the money. I just wanna go home."
"Mom..." Rouge didn't want to have to recall the memory. "Our mother died about two years ago."
Turning over, the girl grabbed a pillow. "Doesn't matter anyway. Only time she ever paid attention to me was when dad came back. Then he died and mom got like she used to be."
"Don't say that," Rouge scolded. "Mom was... horrible. But she was our mother. Dad... the DNA tests they ran say we have the same father."
The girl replied, "all I know about dad was he knew mom from long before. He showed up when I was about four, thought he was getting too old to run around and he and mom hooked up for a bit. Then dad died when I was seven and mom went back to how she was." The girl seemed to be sad. "I kinda liked dad."
Rouge took the girl's hand. She flinched, but allowed it. "What's your name?"
The girl answered, "June."
"June... you don't have anywhere to go, do you?"
The girl shook her head. "I was only stealing 'cause I was hungry. Then got my leg busted. Probably go to jail anyway when they're done with me here."
"No. You robbed from a store I own. We're not pressing charges."
"We?" June inquired.
"Yes," Rouge explained, "my husband and I."
The girl's eyes widened. "Hey, you're the one who's sometimes in the newspapers! I've seen your picture!"
Rouge waited for the girl to say her name. It never happened. "What's wrong?"
"I... I only saw the pictures. I can't read." June seemed ashamed.
A hand placed on her shoulder. "How old are you, June?"
She answered, "sixteen. You?"
Rouge seemed hesitant to blurt out her age, but answered, "I turned forty today. You're the same age as my daughter, actually."
"Oh, damn," June said, "I have a niece who's my age."
"You want to stay with me?" Rouge's eyes seemed to almost beg.
"I don't have anywhere to go."
"Then it's settled. When they release you, you're going home with me."
June asked, "you even have room?"
She laughed. "Plenty of room. Let me call my daughter and tell her to get ready."
"But what about all these people?" Teal shouted into the phone. She sighed. "Okay, mom, I'll tell them..." Clicking her cell phone shut, Teal had to get everyone's attention. "Hey! Listen!" No one could hear her. Running to the security room, she activated the intercom. "Listen please! Everyone is to go to the mansion immediately! The party is moving!"
Tom stopped the car at the front door. Rouge opened June's door, helping her stand with the crutches. She helped her sister to the front door. Tom opened it, finding the main hall filled with people. "Teal got everyone here, looks like," he said.
June looked into the crowd. Rouge said, "everyone... meet June. She's my sister."
Teal opened her bedroom door, allowing June to walk in. "Guess you'll be staying in my room for now. I'll get a spare bed set up in a minute."
June sat on the edge of the bed. Her leg hurt and the painkillers weren't doing much good. "Your dad is human..."
Smiling gently, Teal thought of something to say. "Uh... yeah, he is."
"Nice house... so, nice party. Rouge has a lot of friends, I guess."
Teal wanted to ask something that had been on her mind. "Was grandma really as bad as mom says?"
June didn't seem to be paying attention, but finally answered, "yeah, I guess so. She never hit me, but there were times I wished she would... just so she'd show me that she knew I was there."
"I think mom had some issues with wanting to be accepted. It's probably why she latched onto dad like she did when they met," Teal replied.
"How'd they hook up?" June inquired, curious as to the history.
She explained briefly, "dad was sick. Mom saved his life, got him to a hospital in time and it kinda went from there. I think it worked out best for mom, too, I know she had some problems with guys back then."
June wasn't too interested in family history at the moment, and Teal could tell just by looking at her. "Right... bathroom's there," she said, pointing to the door. "I have a date later, so if you need anything while I'm gone, just ask mom or dad. But knock first." She paused, a bit embarrassed to mention it. "They, uhh... like to get romantic, so just knock first."
"Gotcha. No servants? This is a mansion, you got to have servants, right?" June was surprised to have seen no maids or butlers.
Teal answered, "never had them. Mom and dad like privacy. We just have cleaners come through occasionally. But if you need anything, just find one of us, okay?"
Grabbing the radio, June fiddled with the knobs. "Mind if I listen to something?"
"Go ahead," Teal replied. "I mostly like rock and mom's into girly, upbeat jazz stuff. Dad... doesn't seem big on music. So try the radio if none of my stuff is what you wanna hear."
"Tom..." Rouge lay on her side. "You ever think you might have a brother or sister you don't know about?"
"Never gave it much thought," he said. "I know I'm an only child." Sighing, he hit on an unpleasant thought. "But I wouldn't put it past dad to have fooled around. Not like my parents were ever happily married to begin with."
Rouge's head was spinning. It was still much to take in. Laying down, Tom kissed her gently. "You're going to talk with her, aren't you?"
"I'll let her rest first. Her leg probably hurts. And I don't know what to say yet. It's too much for me. My sister is the same age as my own daughter. But I don't want to treat her like a teenager or a kid!"
"You're worried that she might run off, aren't you?" He held his wife tight. "You won't let that happen. I know you."
She crawled on top of him. "Tom... I'm stressed out. I need comfort." Rouge kissed him, gently, firmly, then rough. Pulling back slightly, her tongue still on his lips, Rouge pulled her blouse free of her skirt. "I don't want to get too wrapped up, okay? Quickie?"
Gently undoing each button, Tom pulled her blouse open, tugging down on the bra. "lock the door."
She ran to the door, pushing in the lock button and returned to bed. Tom sat against the headboard. She tried to straddle him, but he stopped her. "That'd take too long. Back to me." She complied, sitting across his lap, legs parted, wings flattened out. His hand went down the front of Rouge's skirt, fingers through pubic fur, downward.
"I feel better already..." she muttered as he began to rub gently.
Tom's right hand cupped her breast, gently pinching and pulling on the nipple as his left pushed through the folds of skin. Her left hand grabbed his right. Rouge loved rubbing their wedding rings together whenever they were intimate. But she could feel it, his dick getting hard, straining on his pants. "I'm not being very fair to you, am I?"
"How so?" he asked, kissing the back of her head.
Rising, she turned to face him. "You're pleasing me, making me feel better and I'm just sitting here and enjoying it... look at you, Tom! Look at this..." Reaching down, she unzipped him, yanking his pants down just enough. "I want to make love. Fingering me is nice but I want this."
"I'm an idiot," he said, "you're fertile right now and I completely forgot."
"You're not an idiot," she assured, "I'm just a bit selfish at times... but I am fertile. I just-" She paused, gently easing down onto him. "- I just get so carried away and right now my mind is a mess. Right now I just want to do this and forget about all that, even for a few minutes..."
Without response, he simply kissed his wife, the woman he loved, the woman he had been with for twenty two years. Rouge closed her eyes, taking his hand, wedding rings connected. Her wings closed around them as she began to ease up and down, lost in the pleasure. Time lost meaning. Rouge simply sprang up and down, gaining speed, her lips never leaving his.
The bat was too enthralled with the act to even notice how close she was to orgasm, and was practically shocked when she came, vagina contracting tight as her husband ejaculated with her. She enjoyed that, always had, feeling his sperm firing off inside of her. Rouge moaned through the kiss, her voice straining, her lungs trying to pull air in.
Relaxing her wings, he pulled back. "Feel better?" he asked. She grinned. Looking at the clock, Rouge noted the time. It tad taken them seven minutes. "Wanna get cleaned up?"
"Not now. I want to sit here." Leaning forward, Rouge Adriani kissed Tom's neck.
"Kinda wish you would have pulled your panties off first, but oh well."
"Oh... they get too much down there?" She felt a bit stupid. No doubt her panties, even pulled aside, rubbed against him.
"Not too bad. You were rather wet so it wasn't too rough on me. You want to cuddle now?" She hugged tight. It wasn't enough to have sex. She wanted to sit and enjoy it after, two lovers still basking in each other's presence. Pulling her hand up, he rubbed is wedding ring against hers as his free hand took her head, gently caressing an ear. "Love you, Rouge..."
She moaned. "Love you, Tom, always..."
Teal entered the house. Night was about to fall and her date was over. Slate understood that she needed to cut it short, given the family situation at home. She found her parents in the living room, a table set up with June's leg propped up. "Teal," Tom greeted.
"Dad. I, uh... already ate, actually." The steak sat, taunting her. "Screw it, that looks delicious!" she shouted, running for the plates and grabbing the roast meat.
"Eww..." June remarked. "Meat."
"What?" Teal defended. "Oh... you're like mom. No meat. Hey, not my fault I inherited dad's digestive system." Teal wasn't ashamed to have certain advantages over other bats of her lineage.
Rouge scolded, "be nice, Teal."
The girl sheepishly apologized, "sorry."
"I found some old books on learning how to read, but they all looked like baby books." June picked at her bowl of fruit.
Teal said, "but I was a baby..."
"Teal, June wants to learn how to read. Can you help her?" Rouge smiled.
"Uh... sure. If I don't get called away by GUN for something-"
"I already notified them you need a vacation from work for family business," Rouge explained.
Teal cut her steak. "Just as well... it's been quiet. I'll see if I can buy some educational books made for older people, not the baby books I have, okay?"
Tom looked over at his wife. He could see it on her face, a desire to get to know her sister. "Teal, why don't we give them some time alone?"
Rouge spoke, "you don't have to-"
"You two talk, okay, mom?" Teal grabbed her plate, following her father into the kitchen.
"So... sis, what'd you wanna talk about?"
Rouge closed her eyes. "Tell me about my father. Please..."
Twenty two years, three months have passed
Teal stacked the books. Educational materials that had been purchased to aid in June's literacy lessons. Her leg was healing well and she already had a basic reading level. The girl carefully wrote sentences, learning basic sentence structure and pronunciation. "You're getting better at this," Teal complimented. "But, uh... well, I guess I know why grandma didn't teach you, but why didn't grandpa teach you how to read if he was around?"
"He couldn't read," June explained. Finished with her work, she handed the papers to Teal so they could be reviewed. June's eyes noticed something odd. "Wow... you have five toes on each foot."
Her curiosity piqued, Teal looked down. She wasn't wearing socks. "Yeah, one of those things I got from dad. I usually forget that mom only has four toes on each foot."
Marking the mistakes, Teal finished and set the papers down. "Basic mistakes, spelling, but you're getting a lot better."
Grabbing a book, June tossed it aside. She didn't feel like reading more kid's books today. "You going out on a date again?"
"Yeah, I'm meeting Slate in an hour. What about you, ever have any boyfriends?"
Looking away, June seemed to shudder. "I- I don't want to talk about that now."
"I didn't mean anything by it," Teal said apologetically.
June replied, "don't stress. I just- I'm not interested in one right now. Sis gonna be busy tonight?"
Letting out a gust of air, Teal answered, "mom's on her fertile days right now, so they'll be locked in the bedroom all night."
Picking up the radio, June commented, "guess I'll leave them alone then. I can get around on my own good enough. You go have fun."
Rouge was on the bed, knees down, her head flat and arms cradled behind her ears. Licking her lips, she moaned loud, screaming her head off. Being taken from behind was rather rare for her as Tom preferred to look her in the eyes, but she was able to talk him into it on occasion. While she missed the passionate kissing and eye contact, this position put her g-spot into place to be hit the hardest while her lover was thrusting, an act which Thomas did with practiced experience.
Her screams only encouraged him, hands gripping her butt, occasionally giving her a light spank and stroking her tail. He asked, "you ready?" It was his word that he was about to finish.
"YES! I can't hold it much more! Fill me, bad boy!" Rouge screamed, the force against her g-spot finally past the limit. The bat squirted, her liquid spraying Tom's balls and legs. With several hard, sharp thrusts, he jizzed, pumping every last drop into his wife.
Catching her breath, Rouge was exhausted. Her wings were stretched out, toes curled tight, and her lungs were sore. She could feel the sweat all over her body. Regaining some degree of composure, she rolled onto her back. Climbing onto bed, Tom lay beside her, just as sweaty as she was. She grinned, grabbing is dick. "Still a bit hard... hmm, been a while since I titty banged you. Actually..." She thought about it. "At least five years. I owe you."
"Sure you want to waste any?"
Licking her lips, she said, "if I do get pregnant we'll be taking a break. Might as well go all out with the kinky stuff!" Rouge slowly stroked him for encouragement.
"When you put it that way..." he commented, gently straddling her stomach. The sweat was lubricating, dripping between her breasts as she parted them to let him in between. He slid on her stomach, the sweat and spray from her pussy doing nothing but allowing him to slide easily, which he liked.
Her double-d breasts pressed tight on his penis. Rouge knew that by pushing in on them even slightly, she could control how intense this was. Her eyes moved down, watching as the tip slid in and out, poking out from between with each gentle push. "Tom, I ever tell you that the little hole in the end is just too adorable?"
"You're only saying that 'cause that's where it comes out. This is going to take a while, you know that?"
She replied, "I don't care. This feels pretty good." Rouge couldn't help it. Feeling it sliding back and forth between her tits was amazing. However, it offered no real reeling of love.
Tom wasn't into it, he was still recovering from sex. "Want to get in the tub instead?"
"Yeah. Well, better wait a bit, okay?"
Rolling off her, he said, "let the sperm sit a bit and see if it swims up?"
"Just lay here and cuddle with me." He did so, forehead to hers. "Tom, do I still really look young?"
"I think you have a couple wrinkles started, but don't worry about it."
She let out a weak sigh. "I knew I wouldn't be young forever. But it's okay. As long as I'm with you I don't mind getting old."
Shadow had stopped by briefly. His communicator was dead and he needed to contact GUN. The Adriani mansion was the closest outlet he knew of. Walking on her crutch, June was in the kitchen. The girl was thirsty and bored. Being unable to do much with a broken leg was driving her crazy. Rouge watched her step entering the kitchen, avoiding bumping into her sister.
June looked through the doorway. "Hey... I know him."
"Yes, that's Shadow. An old friend. You might have heard about him on the news," Rouge explained, grabbing two empty cups. "He's leaving soon, though."
"No," June spoke, "I mean... I'm sure of it."
"Sure of what?"
June recognized the black fur with red streaks and the shoes. "I was about eight at the time. He came over to the house and met with mom."
"Shadow? Oh... Tom had him check up on her every so often, that was probably it."
"No... Rouge... I know he had sex with mom. He stayed a bit then left but I heard them. Another one of her revolving door sex partners..."
Rouge was breathing erratically. "June... please tell me it wasn't him. Please..."
The girl replied, "I- no, it was him. Those spikes, that same look of darkness and sadness. I know he saw me, too, he looked right at me. I was playing in the living room when he came by and he looked right at me. It's the same man..."
She was angry. Furious. Stepping into the living room, she smacked Shadow hard. "You! You... how could you?" Shadow was prepared to strike back. He had no idea what caused this, but then he saw June, the bat girl, grown up but it was her. "You slept with my mother! You knew I had a sister and you ever told me!"
He became defensive. "You acted as if you didn't care about your mother."
"What about me?" June was angry. "I have a sister, a rich sister who coulda got me away from that mean old woman and you let me stay there!"
"You son of a bitch!" Turning, Shadow saw Tom. "I told you to keep an eye on Rouge's mother to make sure she was doing well, NOT to go screw her! Bad enough you did THAT but to keep THIS a secret? Get out of my house!"
Shadow was stunned. His secret was out, and it was too late for him to understand why this was a big deal. Fear had overridden his ability to become angry. Running from the house, he brushed past Teal. Curious, she went inside to find her mother crying and shaking. "What happened?"
"Shadow did something bad," Tom responded.
"What? He hurt mom?" Teal was scared.
"No, Teal," Rouge muttered. "He did something worse..."
Shadow had spent the day nervous, thinking about his actions. He was afraid. Rouge had invited him to talk. Slowly, he opened the door to their mansion. In the living room, he found them, waiting. "Shadow," Rouge greeted. "Please, we need to talk about this." Sitting, he looked at them. "Shadow... what's done is done. Sometimes I forget what you really are. You're from the Black Arms, a race that I don't believe ever knew what love was. But somehow I believe you're better than they were."
She took a sip of her orange juice. "I believe you can understand love but it's not something you fully understand yet."
He sighed. "I had regrets about us, and when I went to visit her that day... she came on to me."
"I see," Rouge said.
"Mom was pushy about that kinda stuff," June spoke, "in a bad way. I think she could get any man she wanted, as old as she was."
"That's what happened. She grabbed me and..." Shadow didn't want to go on.
Rouge said, "it turned you on to have a woman touching you. I know that, with what happened to Maria, you're afraid to form a bond with anyone. But when you saw my mother, she just wanted sex and nothing else. But there's June. You should have told me about her."
"I didn't know she was your sister," he defended. " She was someone else's kid for all I knew. Your mother never told me who she was."
Tom sighed. "Probably wouldn't have much mattered. The courts never would have taken custody away from the mother. GUN could have influenced things but it might have taken years."
Rouge was still angry inside, but she let it go. "I don't even know how the Black Arms treated their children. Guess we won't know, since they were wiped out. Shadow, I have something to say that might hurt your feelings."
He said nothing. "The day after I brought Tom home from the hospital, I had a nightmare that he had died, and you were there, coming on to me. And it scared me. Funny as it sounds, Tom taught me that it's more than physical attraction. A LOT more... as much as I liked you, now, I don't believe our personalities would have matched too well and I stand by what I said a few months ago. I'm getting old and you're not. I kept thinking I should treat you like a normal person, but you're not normal. You don't work that way."
She walked towards him. "But don't think you're alone. I understand you now. Please don't be angry. I'm still your friend no matter what."
He turned. "I'm sorry I let you down. I'll try better in the future." Without a word, he left the mansion. Rouge let him go, knowing he would need time to think.
June grabbed her crutches. "That's done... anyway, I'm going to bed."
Hobbling off, June left them alone. "You handled that well," Tom remarked, proud of his wife. "But... you had a dream like that?"
"Please don't remind me about those nightmares I used to have..." Sitting beside him, Rouge rested her head against his chest, listening to his heartbeat.