Prologue
Sonia Hedgehog was a young female, magenta-furred hedgehog growing up under the watchful eye of the Baroness Virginia Wyndermere. She regularly wore her pink hair in a high ponytail. She grew up with a love for the city of Robotropolis and a healthy respect for the city's leader, Dr. Julian Ivo Kintobor Robotnik. It helped that his godson was the kind, sweet, handsome Lord Bartleby Montclair, Duke of Dresden with fur of platinum and hair of gold. She loved how he wore salmon and green together with confidence. And it helped that Sonia had known Bartleby since they were children, finding companionship and eventually true love while she learned to play piano and he learned the ins and outs of running a kingdom. The people of the kingdom, especially Dresden county, were used to seeing them together and it was no surprise to anyone among the royal court when he proposed to her at her birthday party when she turned sixteen. Her life was perfect up until the day she met two other hedgehogs, her brothers.
Sonic was an electric blue hue and he wore only red and white shoes. He was easily the fastest person she would ever meet. And Manic was an emerald hedgehog thief, raised by the Thief Lord himself. And she found out that she wasn't just the adopted daughter of Lady Wyndermere, but the daughter of the queen herself, Queen Aleena. Aleena had been exiled long ago and had abandoned her three children to three different caregivers.
Robotnik wasted no time sending bounty hunters after her, arresting Lady Wyndermere. Before they even had time to think about it, Lady Wyndermere was roboticized. Because of that, Sonia had been prepared to hate the man for as long as she drew breath. She vowed to find her birth mother and put Robotnik in his place. She was prepared to join the resistance with her brothers and do everything in her power to bring him down.
At least until she woke up one morning, three weeks into their training in the Temple of the Clouds. She sat up, putting her hand to her mouth and running for the privy.
Sonic went to the door. "Sonia, I think you need to tell someone that you're not feeling well. This is the fourth morning of you getting sick." The fourth early morning. His sister did not like to sleep in at all. She was always up at the crack of dawn helping the other monks do chores.
Manic laughed. "Yeah, I thought only pregnant women get sick like that in the mornings."
She gasped as she thought of the possibility. She and Bartleby didn't care much for the social convention of waiting. They both knew they were destined to be together. They weren't all that careful either.
Sonic laughed with him. "Well, that's not possible. Right sis?" He asked as she came out.
Sonia sat down on the bed. "It… it… I need to talk to one of the monks." She said. "And I think I need to tell you guys something…"
A short time later, their teacher, Thelonius backed up. "Well, my dear, I think your instincts are spot on. You are pregnant."
She stared at the monk for several minutes of silence while her brothers processed the information. "I'm… I'm pregnant…"
Sonic shook his head to clear it. "When were you going to tell us about this guy, Sonia?"
"Soon, I promise. I was. But not until it was safe. Bartleby is Robotnik's protege and he's very close to him." Sonia explained. "But Bartleby is a great guy and he loves me. I just didn't expect to be thrown into a war."
"Well, you can't fight now. Don't worry. We can hide you in Sanctuary." Sonic said. "It's where the Resistance hides all their kids. You'll like it there."
Sonia shook her head. "It's not that simple Sonic. I have to tell Bartleby. This baby is his and he will want to be part of this. And I still plan to marry him." She looked at the ring she wore around her neck.
Thelonius nodded. "That would be the honorable thing to do." He agreed. "What would you like to do, Princess? The Monks will be on your side, no matter what you decide to do."
"Sonia, how do you even think this is going to work? How did you think you were going to marry Robotnik's favorite noble while fighting against Robotnik?" Sonic asked. "This is crazy."
"I hadn't gotten that far yet but… I know I could stay here or go hide but I don't want to hide!" She shouted. "I want my baby and I want to be with Bartleby. I've already lost Lady Wyndermere… I get to be with him."
Sonic bit his lip. "Sonia, I know you're not used to it but you can't always get what you want. Sometimes you'll have to make hard decisions and sacrifices that you don't want to make. Because it's for the greater good."
"No! If you're trying to tell me that being in the resistance and finding Mother means giving up Bartleby, you can just forget it." She sat down on the bench. "I… I want… I want to go home. I have to tell him. Maybe there's another way to get what we want."
Sonic and Manic argued with Sonia but she insisted on going back to the city. Thelonius promised her a place in the temple if she ever wanted it. They would gladly continue to train her. After saying their goodbyes, the monk sent them home to the city with a spell. They set them just outside of the opulent estate. They followed her to the mansion with its oval breezeway. Many glass windows lined the walls. Manic stopped and smelled one of the rose vines that climbed up one of the trellises. Sonia pulled on the pink rose bell pull and it played Ode to Joy and Sonic nodded, impressed at the musical doorbell.
The mink was beside himself with relief when he opened the door. "Oh, my darling! I'm so glad you're alright." He said as he hugged her. "I was so worried. Don't worry, I gave uncle an earful. He knows he reacted rashly and he regrets his actions."
Sonia hugged him back. "Oh, Bartleby… that's good if he does because he roboticized Lady Wyndermere. I am pissed but… I had to come back." Sonic coughed, reminding them of their presence. "Oh, how rude of me. Bartleby, this is Sonic and Manic. They're my brothers. And… I have to tell you something. Something I learned after I met them…" She told him about her mother and their original mission.
"Sonia… I had no idea." Bartleby said. "But it doesn't matter. Except we'll need to add them to the wedding invitations. And we'll find your mother. I hope she'll like me."
"I'm sure she'll love you but Bartleby, there's more…" Sonia stopped him from getting too excited. She looked at her brothers. "Maybe you two could…" She bit her lip.
Manic nodded. "We'll wait outside. Come on, Sonic. Call us if you need us, sis." He pulled on Sonic's shoulder.
"No, I think we should stay with her. She could be in danger, Manic," Sonic pressed but despite his protests, he was pulled from the parlor and outside under the breezeway.
Sonia smiled at Bartleby. "There. Now we're alone. Bartleby, do you remember about a month ago… When we went to see Luke Periwinkle's newest film and we came back here… You put on some slow jazz…" She trailed her finger up his blouse as his arm went around her shoulder. "We laid back on the couch… just like this… and… one thing led to another…"
Bartleby kissed her deeply. "I do remember. I remember every time I've been with you." He felt her take his hand in hers.
"Well… my love…" She placed his hand over her abdomen. "Say hello to your child." The air in the room grew silent.
Just outside, Sonic and Manic stood underneath the breezeway. "Manic, what are we doing out here? We should be in there protecting her! What if he gives her to Robotnik?"
Manic shook his head. "He can't get her to Robotnik with us out here and did you see the way he looked at her? He barely noticed we were there at all." Manic went over to the koi pond that attached to the end of the breezeway. "Wow, look at all these fish." He saw a small bowl of fish food nearby and threw a few kernels in. "Nice."
"But what if… what if he doesn't want to be a dad yet? He could give us up to Robotnik just for that alone…" He protested.
"Whoo-hoo!" The mink's voice echoed from the mansion and Manic laughed. "I don't think that's going to be a problem." He looked up as he heard an airship landing. "Oh crap, but that is." He pointed to two tall figures. One was a gray wolf with sharp gold eyes. He wore red armor with a skull on the chest. His partner wore only a pair of green cut-off pants. His left leg was roboticized from the knee down.
The wolf laughed as he pulled out his gun. "Look what we have here. Two hedgehog brothers, ripe for the picking. Robotnik ordered us to arrest you for treason and terrorism." He laughed sadistically.
The door to the mansion opened and Sonia peaked her head out. "You guys can come in now… Oh no…" She looked at Bartleby standing behind her. "Stay here." She wasn't going to put him in danger. She went outside and touched her medallion. Her brothers did the same.
Bartleby looked out the window and saw what was happening. He heard the bounty hunter announce his intentions again and pushed his way outside. "No!" He shouted, putting himself between his lover and the bounty hunters. "Don't arrest them. Let me call Uncle. Please." He pleaded with the wolf.
Sleet looked at the boy. This was his lordship's favored. He pulled out his communicator. "Your Lordship, we found the hedgehogs."
"Wonderful, Sleet. Bring them in for robotization," The gravelly laugh echoed from the speaker until Bartleby boldly ripped the communicator from Sleet's hand.
Bartleby ignored the indignant response from the wolf. "No, Uncle, no, please. They're with me. Sonia came home. Please, let me talk to you before you do anything. Please." He begged, his voice cracking with panic. He began hyperventilating.
"Bartleby?" The tone was instantly different, calm yet concerned. "Bartleby, stop, calm down. Sleet, forget the hedgehogs and get him inside. I'll be there shortly."
Bartleby breathed a sigh of relief. "Come… come… come in… I'll make us some drinks." He said as he led them inside.
"I'll take care of the drinks," Sleet corrected the boy as he found the bar. He heard the pink hedgehog request just a simple ginger ale. "What, the little princess can't handle alcohol?" He asked snidely.
Sonia gave the wolf a snide look. "No, I could drink you under the table if I wanted but I'm not allowed to drink right now." She said simply. She noticed the orange jackal looking at her strangely. "Hi…"
He waved at her shyly. "Hi… you look… really pretty today…" He said and she remembered the first time they'd met.
She sighed. "Thank you." She got her can of soda and went to go sit on the sofa beside her lover. She let him put his arm around her for comfort. He was so sensitive and enjoyed a nice cuddle after a panic attack. That was okay with her because she liked it too.
Sonic and Manic accepted the glasses Sleet gave them but put them on the coffee table. "Sorry, we don't trust you yet." The wolf shrugged. He wasn't offended. He wouldn't drink anything they gave him either.
It didn't take long for the middle-aged scientist to arrive at the mansion. Bartleby eagerly let him in and asked him to sit with everyone else. Sleet wasted no time supplying him with a snifter of brandy.
He glared at the three hedgehogs. "Bartleby, you're going to need to explain why three fugitives are in your living room."
"Sir, please. I beg you to hear me out. Sonia has done nothing. You… you roboticized Lady Wyndermere for nothing." Bartleby said sharply.
"Then how did Sonia find out about her brothers?" He asked, directing the question to the hedgehog.
She sighed. "It was an accident. We met in a bar. Bartleby and I were bored and stressed out from planning the wedding. We went out. Bartleby was with me that night."
Several moments passed before he pushed. "Your brothers are still fugitives. They need to be roboticized. Your mother is my enemy. I should be quick marching you all to the roboticizer."
"No, Uncle, please! Stop this!" Bartleby shouted. "Sir, please. I love her. Let them go. Or… or you won't get grandchildren."
"What?" Several voices asked together, including Robotnik.
Bartleby smiled. "Sonia… Sonia and I are having a baby. If you roboticize her, you'll kill our baby. You're the closest I have to a father so naturally, you'd be his grandfather. Or her, could be a girl." He sat down beside Sonia.
Robotnik sat looking at his godson for many long minutes before he gulped down the rest of his drink. "Bartleby… I thought you and I had that talk." The old man sighed deeply. Suddenly, everything was turned upside down even though his victory was within his grasp. He just needed to roboticize the hedgehogs and Aleena would fall.
"We did. And you said not to do anything until I was a hundred percent sure," Bartleby reminded him. "And it was Sonia. Come on, who else was it going to be? I have loved her since childhood."
"A hundred percent sure means you've just walked down the aisle and shoved cake in each other's faces." The scientist countered. "And what about the rest? Protection, diseases?"
Bartleby shook his head. "No worries on that front. Sonia and I are completely faithful to each other sir. We knew we were meant to be from day one. But sir, this is why you can't roboticize her. That and she's innocent. And her brothers aren't responsible for any of this. Please. Aunt Maria wouldn't want you to do this."
Sonic watched the exchange between the mink and the tyrannical despot. The red and black eyes flared. "Who is Maria?" He asked before Robotnik could reprimand Bartleby for his emotional blackmail.
"Maria was Uncle's wife. Your father killed her," Bartleby explained. "That's what started all of this but she wouldn't want you to do this." He begged. "You know that, sir." Bartleby looked around and found a photograph sitting on the mantle. "Look at this picture. Aunt Maria, Father, Mother… and you. Look how happy you all were."
Robotnik couldn't help looking at the picture. Manic subtly stood up and went to look at the photo from over his shoulder. "Wow, you were thin in that picture. And young and you had hair. A mohawk."
The old man looked over at the hedgehog. "Thank you for reminding me that I'm old. Bartleby, this is very manipulative of you."
"Is it? Aunt Maria was a good person. You always said so. You said that she believed in forgiveness and generosity of spirit," Bartleby explained. "Hasn't this feud between you and Aleena went on long enough? And isn't this the perfect chance to offer her an olive branch?"
Robotnik considered it. "What about Sonic? He bombed many of my factories this year. Many people were hurt." He saw green eyes go wide. "What? Didn't you think what you were doing might be dangerous?"
"Uncle Chuck assured me there were no innocents to be hurt." He explained. "If innocent people were hurt then I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."
Manic shook his head. "The resistance doesn't like your factories because they're making a mess of our city. Have you breathed the air? Sonic would never hurt someone on purpose."
Bartleby nodded. "His uncle could have lied to him, sir. Try giving him the benefit of the doubt. If you need to justify it to the nobility, tell them that I have bought them all a pardon. Please." He hugged Sonia close, caressing her stomach lovingly. In a manner that Robotnik remembered doing to Maria when she was alive.
Robotnik sighed. "I think… We will need to… speak to your mother." He said to Sonia. "Is there a way we can contact her. We need to address the immediate situation first and then we can discuss the war. Until we get the chance, you and your brothers will be on house arrest. Here with Bartleby. Sleet and Dingo will be your wardens." He looked at the bounty hunters.
"Sir, with all due respect. If the hedgehogs are considered caught then isn't our job over?" Sleet asked. "We are not babysitters."
The old man stood up and hissed. "Then you should have caught them before they could get to Bartleby. Too bad for you, I can't seem to say no to that boy."
Sleet was about to protest when Bartleby chimed in. "Uncle, if he really doesn't want to work for you then don't force them. Of course, it's a shame. I was prepared to offer you a substantial salary for your services. And when the time did come for you to move on, you would have a credible reference."
Sleet looked at the mink incredulously. "How substantial?" He wasn't necessarily greedy but he also wasn't a chump. He liked his independent lifestyle, running his own business.
Bartleby smiled. "Why don't you and I go talk?" He asked, gesturing for Sleet to follow him.
Robotnik glared at the hedgehogs. "Don't be mistaken. You haven't won anything. And if you step out of line, so much as an inch, I will roboticize you and I will enjoy it." He sneered at them. Although, he also couldn't help thinking of what it would mean if they didn't step out of line. Within the year, he would have a tiny grandchild to play with. Aleena's grandchild. He found a book on one of the many shelves and sat down to read it.
In his office, Bartleby served Sleet a glass of whiskey. "I'm sorry for Uncle's behavior. He means well but he is strict beyond reason sometimes. Fortunately, he rarely refuses me."
Sleet nodded. "He's an asshole. He wants us to give up our own private business to be his patsy."
Bartleby nodded. "I know and I'm sorry. He is insistent on you because your reputation is so stellar but I'm also in regular danger and the resistance is a whole other issue to deal with. He needed you to agree to an exclusive contract on those grounds. I'm sorry that he made his offer so forcefully. But, I think you fail to see the benefits of this. You and Dingo will maintain your independent status. You just won't have time for any other clients. You may need to hire additional help just to guard the two of us sufficiently. And I am prepared to be a patron even after the time your protection is no longer necessary. Not to mention, your brother's leg. It needs regular care and I know that's expensive. You'll be working for the man who invented it."
The wolf couldn't help hearing the logic in the young man's words. "But we are still independent? We're still contractors?" He asked as the young mink placed a document in front of him.
"This is what I am prepared to offer in exchange for your services. This is job security for you and your brother." Bartleby explained.
Sleet thought about the offer and read through the contract. The mink was offering them a great deal that they couldn't get working on their own. They would have to do several clients to get the same amount Bartleby was offering. "You have me over a barrel. Fine, but he has to stop being an ass to us. He's been threatening us from the start."
Bartleby nodded. "Don't worry, I will deal with it. I promise, he listens to me. He's a good man, he means well. He's just a prick about it."
Finally, Sleet extended his hand. "Fine, we'll take the job." It was just too good to pass up.
In the living room, sitting a good distance from their adversary, Sonic glared at his sister. "Good job, sis! Now we're stuck here. We're prisoners because of you." He snapped as he flopped down on the couch.
Sonia sighed. "I'm sorry guys. I just… Look, we'll figure this out. We just need to get a hold of Mother somehow."
"I'm not going to let him near Mother. He wants to roboticize her as much as he wants to roboticize us." Sonic declared. "We're prisoners here because of you and I will not put Mother in that danger."
Sonia sniffed. "Sonic, you're a jerk you know that! Do you think I like this any more than you do! Do you think I wanted to be involved in this at all! It's not fair but guess what! Life's not fair!" She shrieked before she started crying.
"Enough hysterics and bickering!" The gruff voice snapped from his chair as he flipped another page. "Don't make me send you to your rooms."
Before they could turn on him for interfering in their fight, Bartleby reappeared with Sleet. "Alright, Uncle; Sleet and Dingo are now your official bodyguards under their independent company of Lobos Brothers Incorporated. I will be paying them ten thousand mobiums a week."
"Well done, Bartleby. You've always been better at bargaining than me." The old man admitted with a fond smile. He looked at the hedgehogs. "You get your mother here to talk and we will see what happens from there."
Before Sonic could put his foot in his mouth, Sonia nodded. "I don't know how to get in touch with her but I'll figure it out."
Robotnik nodded to her. "Good. Bartleby…" He stood, prepared to leave. "Tomorrow morning, I'll bring the equipment so I can do a sonogram and I'll give you some prenatal vitamins that she'll need to start taking. You, hedgehog, no caffeine, no alcohol, no hot tub. No shellfish or raw fish of any kind. Cooked fish is safe." He laid out a list of restrictions. "And you should get to bed early. You'll need plenty of sleep." He patted his godson on the head and left.
Bartleby looked at Sonia and smiled. "I promise, he means well." He reassured her and wrapped his arms around her. "Now, how about we have some supper and I'll show your brothers to their rooms."
Sonic knew he couldn't argue without upsetting Sonia again but he was so angry. He knew he should have just taken Sonia to Sanctuary. Now they were prisoners. Robotnik clearly despised them and would look for any reason to roboticize them that Bartleby would accept. What were they supposed to do now?
AN: Okay, I'm giving one more try at something big. This time I'm toying with Robotnik STILL being evil but he loves Bartleby. For all intents and purposes, Bartleby IS his son. In his heart. The concept is that even an evil person can love someone and sometimes love can change someone.