Chapter 12 – A Night Worth Remembering.
It had been a hard, long struggle that had swayed both back and forth; Shadow looked to have had the game sewn up when suddenly Amy had managed to pull the single card she needed for a running flush of diamonds, aces high, to scoop enough candy to break the black hedgehog's stranglehold on the game. Since then, however, she'd had a lot less luck; now she only had a single pair of jacks to go with and the stakes were high, Tails especially seemed to have a decent hand as he was raising by seven. Amy took her three cards and shook her head,
"Nah, too hot for me; I fold, and that's it, no more cards for me".
"Just about broken even Ames?" Shadow enquired, noticing how the pile of sweets next to the pink hedgehog was roughly the same as it had been before the game had started.
"Yeah, finish on a high, that's my motto".
Good, I'm beginning to like the taste of these little parcels of energy; the jelly-beans are especially, fulfilling…that's a word I used to use a lot.
"At least you could", another voice complained; from his position opposite her, Sonic looked over mournfully; absolutely nothing had gone right for him this game and he didn't have a chocolate button to call his own, "I didn't have a chance; rotten fox", he broke off to mutter mutinously at Tails; the kit seemed to have a knack for knowing exactly when he was bluffing and when he was serious. Tails smiled as she shuffled the deck,
"Well, you know what they say about gambling; now it's just you and me Shads", his youthful face glowed with the hint of a challenge as he made his last gamble, "now let's finish this; bet everything blind". Are you serious; for a second Shadow couldn't believe Tails was suggesting that, but then his eyes flicked to the clock on the wall and he realised it was getting on a bit and, after all, it was only sweets they were playing for,
"You're on"; two large piles of candy were pushed into the centre of the table and all four Mobians waited with baited breath as slowly, deliberately, Tails dealt the cards that would decide the victor of the evening.
Nothing showed on the player's faces; it was a completely neutral pair of expressions that regarded each other across the table as Tails colourlessly asked for the number of cards Shadow wanted,
"Two". The requisite pair were obligingly provided and then Tails took three for himself; you could have cut the air with a knife as Shadow drew a deep breath and spoke,
"Dealer first". Okay, just cross your fingers and hope like crazy; the fox swallowed the uncomfortable lump in his throat and slowly laid down his cards,
"I got a flush; six to ten". Shadow looked over and smirked; Tails was suddenly filled with a sinking feeling as the black hedgehog laid down his first card,
"Seven", the seven of clubs, "eight", diamonds, "nine", another diamond; the fox shut his eyes as he realised he was going to be cheated by the smallest of margins, "ten and would you believe it, the jack as well".
"Harsh", Sonic stated as Tails growled in disappointment, though he shook the black hedgehog's offered paw like the decent sport he was at heart.
"Ah well, I guess I had enough popcorn earlier"; Shadow smiled as he flicked a small handful of the sweets back to Tails,
"Call that consolation; I had a jammy deal".
"Thanks". Sonic followed the course of the sweets skittering across the clean table-top intently and with hungry eyes; as always, Amy noticed and pinned two of her remaining sweets with a pair of finger tips.
"Hey Sonikku", he looked up as she pushed one of them forwards and he caught it with a cupped hand, "you're in luck, I'm on a diowww!"
Ahh, what was that? Amy clutched her eyes as a sudden pain flared up from them; it felt like something had poked them both violently, but the strange thing was it felt like it had come from the inside. It vanished as quickly as it had arrived, leaving her a little confused as voices of concern reached her ears,
"Ames", Tails had a paw on her arm, looking at his brother as Sonic left his seat instantly, stalking around the table to her shoulder, "you alright?" She tried to blink her eyes open; the left one was fine, but the right had something pressing against it, something…ah, that was it, panic over.
"It's fine, I just got something in my eye", carefully, she ran a finger along the inside of her lower right eyelid, feeling a soft, flexible something dislodge under the tentative touch and allow her to clear her vision completely, "feels like an eyelash". Sure enough, as she blinked away a few reflexive tears, she could clearly see the characteristic black hair caught on the white tip of her glove. Sonic chuckled as she blew it away onto the floor,
"Stop doing that you; that's twice you've panicked me in a week".
"Ah Sonic", Shadow looked up at his flat-mate with a decidedly devious smile on his face, "I never knew you cared so much". The second they're home you die Blackie; Sonic disdainfully kept his cool as Amy smiled and patted his arm reassuringly; it had been nothing but a little nudge from nature as far as she knew.
That was foolish; the memory was important but to attempt to seize control like that could have ruined everything; I nearly harmed the host. The being seethed and boiled impotently inside Amy's skull as it both berated itself for its carelessness and silently implored the host to relinquish control to it soon.
Unknown to it, there was a second Mobian not in control of herself; Lara-Le was currently laughing helplessly as Knuckles and Rouge blushed, having just been through the exact circumstances that resulted in them admitting their feelings for each other,
"So, so they walked in on you?"
"More like we invited them", Knuckles squirmed as his mother tried to spare his embarrassment but ultimately failed, "well, they heard us talking and there wasn't really much we could say to deny it, so, we thought better now than later". Lara smiled warmly as she choked back any more giggles; she glowed with pride as she realised that her earlier suspicions had been confirmed in the best possible way; Knuckles, you're a lucky echidna. The parent smiled at Rouge as the bat blushed once more, reliving the embarrassment that had resulted from Sonic dropping the news their private conversation hadn't been all that private by telephone from the next room.
"Well, I'm glad", she looked amused as the pair glanced at her surprised, "it looks like you both helped and supported each other all the way through", she fixed her eyes on Rouge and spoke without accusation or malice, "after you stopped trying to steal the Master Emerald at least".
"Well, I didn't really know how important it was back then", Rouge admitted, feeling her respect for Knuckles' mother grow as they exchanged words; Lara didn't seem to mind the her son had a girlfriend that wasn't an echidna – if anything she appeared to be supportive of the pair.
"Don't worry, I didn't either at first; that only happened when…" she caught herself; old, painful memories resurfaced through her as she realised this was it – she couldn't deny Knuckles the truth now; I won't lie to my son – he deserves the truth after so long.
"When what mum?" Lara looked into the concerned, innocent eyes of her beloved son and found the strength she needed to tell her story,
"…When your father introduced me to it".
Father; Knuckles gasped as the full implications of this slammed down on him; in the excitement of being reunited with his mother, the blindingly obvious fact that his father was probably out there as well had somehow escaped him. The echidna leant forwards, voice excited as questions flowed from him without pause,
"My father; how is he? What's he like? Is he…mum?" Knuckles cut himself off as he realised something was wrong; Lara appeared to be on the verge of tears as she looked at him unsteadily, trying to steel herself for what she could say next,
"Knuckles, I can't, I won't lie to you", she took a deep breath as Rouge sensed trouble on the horizon like a great dark cloud, "your father and I, we, uh, we're not together any more; we separated". Separated; Knuckles fell back into his chair, the dream of having a complete family once more lying in ruins as the words were slowly, grudgingly accepted by his logical mind. Rouge quickly reached over and gripped his hand, shocked by this almost as much as he was but knowing how much contact meant in situations like this.
"I'm sorry Knuckles", Lara-Le let tears slip from her eyes as she relived the nightmare once more, "I never wanted to say it, but, we couldn't be, not…"
"Why?" The red echidna's voice was a whispered husk; he didn't want to accept it, but he could see his mother was in more pain than he was and couldn't let that continue. He was struck with a sense of déjà vu; admitting his feelings to Rouge had helped him before in the past, now he could do the same for his mother.
"Tell me mum, in your own time", he stood up and embraced her, speaking softly as Lara-Le cried into the crest that had doomed her son's childhood, "I won't get angry, but I want you to talk to me; it'll help". He released her slowly and she nodded; Knuckles deserved the truth behind his isolation, and she'd never get a better chance to say it than now.
"When we married, your father, Locke, was a loving husband and doted on me hand and foot. We guarded the Master together and, though it was hard, we were happy all the time, together and alone. It stayed like this for nearly a year, then I found out I was pregnant; we were both over the moon, especially when you were born. It was he who named you Knuckles, just said it suited you. He said, and still says, the day you fought your way out of your egg was the proudest day of his life". Lara paused for a second, regarding Knuckles and to a lesser extent Rouge as well; both seemed to be taking it in well enough, but this was were it started going downhill,
"It was when you turned about five that it started; Locke changed, very gradually and slowly", oh no, please, anything but that; Rouge closed her eyes as she realised this story was beginning to resemble the one her mother had told her; they had been abandoned by her father before she was born, but if anything, being abandoned after your child was born sounded far crueller, "he became colder and, I thought, guiltier as well. He swore he wasn't having an affair but before I could confirm it, he came out and said it…" Lara's eyes glazed over, the words from years ago running through her mind and from her mouth again,
She stood up as she heard her husband approach; she turned around. Locke was stood in the doorway, his face cold and mournful as he gestured for her to sit down,
"Lara, I need to take Knuckles".
"Why?" Something in his tone wasn't right, neither was the way he walked towards her, eyes fixed on his son's sleeping form,
"Because, because it's time now, and I have to", his eyes had begun tearing up, a slight sob in his voice, "I need to fulfil the code". Lara brought her arms up to shield Knuckles; this wasn't like her husband, not the caring, loving echidna she knew.
"What code – what are you talking about Locke?"
"The guardian code – the youngest must fend for themselves; Knuckles is old enough now and…"
"No!" Maternal instincts fired up; Lara leapt up between Locke and their son, "have you gone mad – you'll abandon him out there?" He had gone mad, there was no other explanation; she searched his face, a face she knew so well; her blood froze as the determination and pain there reached in and gripped her hypnotically.
"I, I have no choice", tears fell from his eyes as he looked at her, "it's our way; I was left alone before they let me meet you Lara; it must be the same for Knuckles". Her world was falling apart; one of the two echidnas she cared for was threatening, no, promising, to take away the other forever, she couldn't allow it.
"No, Locke", an infantile cry arose as she shouted and Knuckles awoke, "you can't take him; I won't…" A green glow surrounded his hand and she fell away, swallowed in darkness as two words reached her before the light faded completely,
"Forgive me".
Lara wept as the tale ended, the memories gouging her again as she remembered waking to Locke's heartbroken sobs, from one look at his face she could tell Knuckles was gone; she had screamed, begged to have him back and ultimately wept, lost in grief; her son was gone and she could never recover him.
"We, we split up shortly after that; we just couldn't go on together, not after that. I, I'm sorry". She couldn't continue; the tears fell too thick and fast, her head dropping as she couldn't look at Knuckles; she had failed him in letting him be taken. There was a rustling sound and suddenly she was supported, held by another.
"Shh Lara", Rouge had seen enough and her conscience wouldn't let this scene play out any more without her doing something, "it wasn't your fault; you did everything you could to help Knuckles but…" She was cut off as the echidna himself joined in, holding his mother and his girlfriend tightly, not saying a word as Lara purged herself of her shame, crying unstoppably as the truth behind her divorce came into full view in front of the one echidna it had centred around.
My father, abandoned me; Knuckles was unsure what to feel; anger certainly – no-one should make his mother suffer like that, but curiosity also; why had his father been driven to abandon him and in the process wreck his own, seemingly happy marriage? Mostly though, it was sorrow; sorrow for what his mother had felt, sorrow for himself, sorrow even, in an oblique way, for his father Locke, having to do such a thing knowing the consequences.
"He, he cares though", muffled as it was, Lara knew she couldn't let her son only hear half the truth, "he cried all the time, screamed like he was dying when I told him I wanted a divorce. He signed though, didn't try and talk me down; just let me go, even if it broke his heart to do so". I'll be breaking more than his heart; Knuckles gritted his teeth, instinctive anger clouding his mind as he realised his father had betrayed them both; Locke, if that was his name, had abandoned him to the mercies of Angel Island and broken his mother's heart – no-one could do something like that and expect to get away with it.
"He'll pay".
"No", Lara heart her son's growl and it chilled her blood; she could see pure, naked aggression on his face and the thought of him turning it against his own father frightened her, "Knuckles, listen to me; I've spoken to Locke since, we separated", she waited until Knuckles was looking at her before continuing, "I can't say I forgive him for what he did, but I can understand why now; please, I beg of you, when you see him again, hear him out and don't just lash out". The sense of the words percolated through the mist of rage; Knuckles eventually regained full control and nodded at his mother,
"All right", he hugged her again, Rouge having quietly left the gathering by this time as it became more private, "I'll hear him if I see him, I promise".
"Thanks son" Lara let both the other Mobians go and sat back down in her seat; a metallic beeping filled the air and she stood again as though electrified. Knuckles swapped a glance with Rouge; Lara went red as she produced a buzzing contraption that might have been some kind of mobile telephone and raised it to her ear.
"Hello?" Knuckles watched his mother's face drop and her cheeks flame again; he hid a smile as he realised Rouge had been right about something – it really was funny watching someone with red fur blush.
"Oh no, I'm really, really sorry Wyn, but something big came up and", there was a pause and Lara smiled embarrassedly at her son as he raised an eyebrow, "where, I'm at the Promenade hotel, yes that one oh, just a sec"; she covered the appliance with one hand and spoke quickly,
"I might need to go soon; I'm sorry".
"No problem". Knuckles watched on, not amused but mood lightened as he watched his mother talk down the phone to this mysterious Wyn; I might need to ask a few questions here…
The conversation lasted a couple more minutes; by the end of it, Knuckles was just short of laughter, Rouge had retreated to the bathroom to avoid bursting out in hysterics and Lara wanted the earth to swallow her up. She slid the appliance away as Knuckles began,
"So, who was that, Wyn, character?" Lara smiled crookedly; she had wanted to keep that private for now – how could she have forgotten to cancel with him?
"Well, Wyn is short for Wynmacher; he's a friend of mine who was going to pick me up from the hospital, but…"
"Working late were you?" Knuckles grinned as he realised two things; for once he'd managed to catch someone out and secondly that, if his guess was right, his mother had at least started to recover from whatever his father had put her through, "come on mum; tell the truth". Well, at least he's not angry and he's perceptive;
"Okay, I've, um, been seeing him for, well, a while now and, sorry I shouldn't have let you know yet but…" Knuckles calmed her with a wave of his hand and a smile,
"Mum, does this Wynmacher make you happy?"
"Err, yes, he…"
"Then that's all that matters". Knuckles stood up, realising just how late it was and that he might have needed to see his mother home in the darkness. Lara mimicked her son's movement, embracing him one last time as she whispered her thanks.
"Will you need some help to get home mum?"
"No", she smiled as Knuckles released her, "Wyn said he'd drive me when he got here".
"Still on for that ride home is he?" Knuckles smirked as his mother went red again; cheeky little, well big – time to lay down the ground rules; Lara put her hands on her hips and scowled,
"Rule number one Knuckles; never cheek your mother"; her hands shot into his ribs just as they had when he'd been young enough for her to pick up with a single hand – she noticed with glee that it still had the same result,
"Ah, mum nohohoho", Knuckles tried to protect himself as he doubled over, "okay, I'm sorry". She withdrew as he straightened again, suitably chastised by the sudden reminder of who was boss.
"Good, now listen", she smiled again, "I'm not at work tomorrow and neither is Wyn; how would you like to spend the day with us, just going around the city, a sort of, day out?"
"Mum, are you mad?" Knuckles grinned in celebration, "I'd love that, and I'm sure Rouge would too; what time and where?" Details were quickly confirmed and sorted as Lara checked the time; she didn't really want to, but now she had to get back to her own home; at least I'll see him tomorrow. Knuckles led her towards the door and held her one last time as she made to leave, kissing her gently on the lips.
"Bye mum; thanks for telling me, I know it must have been hard".
"You deserved the truth Knuckles", Lara smiled again as she stepped across the threshold of his door, "I'm sorry it had to come as a shock like this, but I couldn't…"
"I understand, thank you"; Knuckles repeated, smiling serenely as Lara-Le turned and began to walk down the corridor of the hotel, heading for the stairs. Knuckles kept his eye on her until she turned the corner and then silently, reverently, closed the door behind him. He turned on the spot to see Rouge just emerged from the bathroom; though her ultra-sensitive hearing had let her catch most of what had been said, she was still looking at Knuckles for conformation of a few facts; before she could speak though, he held up a hand and shook his head,
"Not a word; let's just clear up and go to bed – we can talk in the morning".
"Okay Knucks"; a little put out by this, Rouge nevertheless agreed; this was his time and his place, he should decide what he wanted to do next. Without exchanging another word, the pair of guardians settled down for the night.
It was green before red; as the two guardians went to bed, someone else was just waking up and felt frustrated as it remembered its uncharacteristic mistake; from its memory the being remembered the green sweet that had been passed to the blue hedgehog, just before the red one had; green before red. It was the same before; green caused me pain, the red was able to heal – but there were other colours, more than there should be now. What were they? How does this relate?
To all intents and purposes it seemed that Amy Rose walked into the kitchen of her apartment, albeit rather late at night; but a single glance at the expression of confusion mingled with concern on her normally smiling face would have proved to anyone even remotely connected with her that something was amiss. Using its host's body and the knowledge it had accumulated over the day, the being flicked on the kettle.
The materials needed to produce the drink I tasted earlier should be close at hand. The taste should be milder and less potent, and sweeter as well. Steam rises from the kettle, make ready; one spoon of coffee and three sugars for myself, half a spoon and only one…wait; why do I have two cups ready? Who was I making the other cup for? Hmm, this anomaly must have a cause, but I am as yet unsure what the cause is.
Under remote control, as it were, Amy lifted the kettle and poured the recently boiled water into the cup of ingredients; the being took a sniff and Amy smiled; the smell of the resultant steam was quite refreshing. The being sat at the kitchen table, waiting for the cup to cool a little, all the time thinking, remembering, puzzling what was so important – green before red?
He couldn't sleep; Knuckles was bone-tired and his emotions were scrambled like someone had shoved them through a blender, but his eyelids resolutely refused to close. He tried breathing exercises, to logically think through why he couldn't get himself to sleep only to find there was no reason. The bed he was in was both larger and more comfortable, a hundred times more comfortable, than his own and there was just no comparison when it came to the pillows. I should be asleep; the echidna furrowed his brows; it felt like something was missing, there was a vague need for something he couldn't quite put his finger on. He rolled over again, trying to see if it was more comfortable on his side, but even as he did it he knew it was a futile gesture; he may as well turn himself on his head for all the good it would do. What is it; there's something I want but can't name, I…; there was a sudden sound and Knuckles sat up in bed – to see the thing he needed stood in his doorway.
"Umm, Knuckles?"
Is this really the right thing to do? Rouge smiled shyly as she stood before the door to Knuckles' room; she'd had a long, hard fight with her conscience, reasoning that he had said he'd speak with her in the morning, but in the end that had been found wanting. She had some questions she needed answering, and she needed him to answer them now. Breathing lightly and feeling awkward and embarrassed, Rouge mustered her courage and slowly pushed the door open, the slight creak it made hideously loud in her ears, almost drowning out her furious heartbeat. She peeked in to see Knuckles begin to stir; she almost bottled it there and then, but no, she needed her answers and only Knuckles could grant them to her. Standing in the doorway, suddenly cold despite the fact she was wearing quite thick pyjamas, the bat whispered into the semi-darkness,
"Umm, Knuckles?" There was a shuffling and the echidna sat up to regard her; she was suddenly extremely grateful for the late hour and the lack of light obscuring her blush, "heh, sorry, but I…"
"Can't sleep batgirl?" Knuckles finished her sentence for her and smiled ruefully; he threw open one side of his blanket and, just as she had the previous night, patted the side of the bed gently, "I know how you feel, I can't either; come on in". Whew, thank goodness; Rouge smiled back at her partner as she walked over the thick carpet and sat down on the edge of the mattress, swinging her legs in as Knuckles threw the blanket back over the both of them. The resultant combined warmth was delicious, but even more so was the sense of belonging; the fact that in a rapidly changing environment, both treasure hunters could rely on the other for a feeling of stability. Rouge hitched herself a little closer to the echidna as Knuckles looked up, heeding the fact that she probably hadn't come here just for the companionship, though it was welcome and nice.
"Knuckles…"
"Rouge…" Both Mobians paused, looked at each other across the pillow and started to chuckle; comic timing at its most perfect. Fortunately, at least in her eyes, Rouge managed to recover first,
"Ladies first, I think you said earlier", she reached under the cover and held the paw nearest to her, "how does it feel Knucks; you can tell me, I've had family issues in the past too". The bat saw him face the ceiling and close his eyes, though more importantly she felt his hand return the gentle hold,
"I feel so confused".
"About what?"
"Too many things", he sighed quietly, confiding to his closest friend, "first it was just there was something wrong with the Master Emerald and then I find that somehow, my entire race has reappeared for some reason that must be connected to the Master. We get here and I have to register, so I originally feel like a criminal – then things start to get really interesting", Rouge saw his eyes open even as his tone became more forceful, "my mother finds me and we pretty much get on, then she tells me the reason I've been alone for so long", there was an edge of anger that Rouge fully understood in the guardian's voice now as he spoke on, "my father abandons me, and just for good measure breaks my mum's heart in the process, but it's okay now because she can understand why he did it. If I saw him in the street I don't know if I'd break him in half or talk to him".
"I asked myself that for years Knuckles; if I ever saw my dad I mean", Rouge interjected as Knuckles took a deep breath, relieved that he could now speak about these feelings rather than storing them away as he would otherwise have done, "I could never decide – you'll only know if you do see him".
"And hopefully I won't". The guardian sighed as his anger dissipated and he was left with uncertainty; it was pointless to think until his brain hurt, because he knew he'd only see the answer if he saw the problem first. He was quiet for a few seconds before Rouge saw him smile; she then felt the mattress she was resting on quiver as he laughed quietly,
"What's so funny?"
"I can't believe mum's got a boyfriend", Knuckles shook his head as the absurdity of that seemed to sink in a bit, "that just doesn't make sense to me". Rouge managed to bite her lip to stop herself smiling as she saw a genuine opportunity here,
"Let me guess", keep the voice business-like – laughing could be disastrous, "if anyone should have a boyfriend it should be you?"
"Yeah", Knuckles then thought about what the bat had said carefully and his cheeks flamed, ""what, no, I meant…" Too late!
Rouge burst out laughing, gently punching the echidna's muscled shoulders as he glared various curses at her silvered tongue,
"Hahaha, classic", the bat mocked, "I'll never be able to see you and Sonic side by side in the same way again". Oh, dear God no…eeuuuwww! Knuckles cringed at the mental image the bat implied and rapidly deduced one thing,
"You die batgirl", he twisted to face her and lashed out; with her legs entangled in the blanket he caught her before she could spring away; she struggled gamely as he drew her in closer to him, quickly deciding on the best way to get his own back; Rouge felt both his arms snake over her wings and froze as he gently pinched the edges of her ears; this could get extremely painful if she wasn't careful. For a second she was completely motionless before, realising he was just holding her, she whispered,
"Knuxie, please don't pull".
"I wouldn't do that", he looked at her reproachfully before grinning evilly, "not when I know a much better way of freaking you out". Before she could second-guess him he started gently moving his pinching fingers and thumbs in a circular motion over the super-sensitive skin of the bat's ears; Rouge gasped and writhed as her mind was flooded with sheer pleasure and she fought to stop her resistance melting like butter on a hot plate; with his arms around her there wasn't even a chance of retreat; she had to either resist or collapse, and with each passing second collapse was looking more attractive.
"Ahhh, K,Knuxie, st,stop".
"Now why would I do that?" he chided, chuckling at her ambivalent expression of pleasure and would-be fury,
"B,because, ehehehe, I want to, to ahhhssk you someth,thing".
"Ask away". Rouge broke from the haze long enough to plan her question; asking, it, however, with Knuckles still driving her crazy with his gentle massaging of her ears, was a different matter,
"Why did yoohhohou, let meehe, me stay w,with you to,to,twoohhooo?" Much to her eventual relief, the echidna stopped teasing her ears and, as she recovered, looked at her questioningly,
"What do you mean Rouge?"
"I mean", I think I know, but please, please tell me I'm right; the bat looked him dead in the eye, "I was going to leave you and your mother in private; why did you stop me like that?" Knuckles smiled at her gently,
"Rouge, do you remember what I said to you on the first day you came onto this island properly?" She shook her head honestly; he'd said a lot of things and he'd repeated most of them several times; they were mostly to do with safety and thing she should and should not do to stay safe on Angel Island. Knuckles tightened his hold a little as he saw her answer and reminded her of, in his eyes, his most important declaration of that day,
"I said that whatever was mine is yours as well", he continued as realisation shone into her mind like a solar torch, "I've just found out I have a family; I know it's not perfect but, if you want to be, you can be part…"
Knuckles never had the chance to finish; Rouge had heard only the first part of his reasoning and needed to hear no more. Similarly to the start of the day, two pairs of lips locked fully and the two Mobians shared their passion ferociously; Rouge desperate to thank the echidna for offering, no, he was giving her something, something she had lost through no fault of her own and feared she would never recover; a family to belong in. As the kiss ended, Rouge threw both her arms around Knuckles and drew herself in close, eyes starry with tears,
"Thank you Knuckles", he held her comfortingly in kind, stroking her wings as he had so many times before; feeling it and even more grateful, the bat continued, "I, just…thank you…" she couldn't finish what she wanted to say, but there was no need – of all the Mobians alive in the world, Knuckles was possibly the only one who could truly understand what she was feeling,
"You know the pleasure's all mine Rouge". Their embrace lasted, even as consciousness slipped away; in each other's arms, Rouge the Bat and Knuckles Echidna finally knew peace enough to sleep deeply and without discomfort.
The green was first – this much is certain. The green gave birth to the others, the brighter ones, then was the pain, and then the red, the red that should be mine. But the others are mine also, mine and another's; they were fashioned but not completely. Much is remembered, but still more forgotten. No matter; time is plenty before morning comes.