Hey! Thanks to Boss Teal and Key321Key for reviewing the last chapter and to everyone who's favourited and followed.
This is mainly a bit of a filler/explanation chapter and a 'setting up' chapter.
Hope you all enjoy and see Chapter One for the disclaimer.
In preparation for going home the next day Tom and Maddie called a 'family meeting' for the first time. Sonic was sent to get Knuckles and Tails and explain to them what it was while Maddie and Tom went over what they were going to say.
"It's simple." Sonic was saying, trying to keep the irritation out his voice as he led Knuckles and Tails to his and his parents room. "They're just going to go over the rules and stuff for when we're back home."
"But what are the punishments?" Tails asked, anxiously. "If we mess up?"
Knuck;es let out a low hum of agreement.
"Well, it tends to be grounding, time outs or sometimes depending on what you've done, stopping you going to something you wanted to."
"And that's it?" Tails pressed.
"Yeah, what were you expecting?"
Tails shook his head. "...Nothing."
Sonic looked at him a little strangely and knocked on the door.
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"So, first up, welcome to the family." Maddie smiled.
Tails beamed and played with his hands. Knuckles - as usual - remained expressionless.
"So, when we get back tomorrow theirs's so rules that we all follow. Number 1 - privacy. We all knock on bedroom doors and bathroom doors before we enter them. That's so we don't accidently walk in on someone doing something private. Number 2 - bedtime is at 8:30 for Tails, 9:30 for Sonic and 10 0 clock for Knuckles-"
"What!?" Sonic threw his arms out in outrage. "He's not even that much older than me! You're what?" He asked Knuckles. "15?"
"I have been alive for 17 summers." Knuckles said.
Sonic - and Tom - did a double take. Maddie didn't look that surprised.
"Okay, so you're a few years older than me." Sonic admitted.
"Number three - no fighting inside the house." This was a rule that Maddie came up with, remembering the many arguments she's had with her sister growing up. "This mainly applies to physical fights - we don't want the furniture broken. Number 4 - arguments inside the house. We would prefer you not to argue, but that's not very likely - remembering my own upbringing - so if you feel the need to argue with each other we'd like you to take it into the basement where you can yell at each other without it disturbing the neighbours."
"What are neighbours?" Knuckles asked.
"The people living around us." Tom clarified. "Number 5 - food. We eat at the table together as a family. The times will change depending on what we're doing, but it'll normally be about 6/7 o clock. We don't normally have seconds. Number 6 - leaving the house. You can leave the house, but you have to tell me or Maddie where you're going so we know where you are. That's to keep you safe." Tom exchanged a glance with Maddie before ploughing on. This was where the new family dynamics would come in. "Sonic and Tails you can also tell Knuckles when you're going out if me or Maddie aren't there and he's looking after you-"
"-Hold on!" Sonic looked startled. "Why's he in charge? I've been on earth the longest, I should be in charge! He doesn't know that much about earth, where's the logic!?"
"He's the eldest." Tom said, firmly. "And we think the most mature. But you're right, he doesn't know that much about Earth, so you can help him out. But he will be in charge of looking after you both when myself and Maddie are both out. You can handle that, right Big Guy?" Tom asked Knuckles, who nodded solemnly.
"I shall look after the younger ones with my life." He swore.
Tom held his good hand up. "Hopefully that won't be necessary. Now, the final rule, number 7. Punishments for breaking any of the other rules."
Tails tensed. Maddie noticed this and stored it away in her head.
"If it involves either breaking things deliberately or in a rampage, probably grounding would be what we'd go with. If you break something accidently no punishment. Going out without telling us - or Knuckles - will be grounding. As for any of the other rules, we sit down and talk about it, either as a family or individually depending on the circumstances."
Tails wanted badly to ask the one question running though his head, but didn't want to risk upsetting his new family. Thankfully Knuckles had no such qualms. "There will be no physical punishment?"
Tom and Maddie were both temporarily speechless.
"...No." Maddie said, finally getting her wits about her. "We don't...hit people. Or aliens. Not in this family."
"Unless it's self defence." Tom cut in. "Then fill your boots."
Knuckles looked confused and Sonic translated. "You can hit someone if they threaten you."
"But not family members." Maddie said, hastily. "Under any circumstances."
After that they outlined where everyone was going to sleep. Sonic had generously agreed to share his room with Tails. Maddie and Tom had made sure that he knew this meant he was going to have to either get rid of or move half his stuff. He'd said that was fine.
Tails was clearly delighted, unable to even speak as Sonic laughed and clapped him on the back.
"And Knuckles is going to have the spare room."
Knuckles clearly didn't understand what a exactly 'spare room' was, but understood he'd be having space to himself and thanked them.
"And any problems we talk them out." Maddie reiterated.
Of course it wouldn't all be smooth sailing...
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Hey! So I've seen a few fics where Knuckles sleeps in the basement, but I realised looking at the Wachowski's house, they've got to have a spare room if not two. So the set up I've got means that they have a room left over for Jojo if she ever comes to stay. So that's the idea.
