Chapter 13 – Locke and Key.
A/N: Right, the story's now about three-fifth's of the way through approximately; sorry to keep you on tenterhooks as to what the being actually is (especially you Sonicron), but you know what they say – treat 'em mean, keep 'em keen. Keep on reviewing please – hopefully, if the good reviews keep coming, once this fic's finished, I can get started on the next one in the series…
Argh; mean to upload this on Monday (British time) – the site wouldn't let me log on! Sometimes I find myself agreeing with you Komodo – web administrators are the mortal servants of Lucifer himself.
The morning saw a rather unusual situation; Knuckles slept on peacefully, the lines of worry often prominently displayed by a scowl or grimace smoothed out by restful slumber and the touch of a loved one's hand. He offered me his family; Rouge gently caressed one of the red echidna's many dreadlocks, expression peculiarly halfway between a heartfelt smile and deep, penetrating thought about what he had said the previous night; if you want to be, you can be a part – hmm, maybe I should have let him finish that, nah! The bat closed her eyes slowly, an idea that had been half-formed in the back of her mind for some time now solidifying more into a distinct probability with the events of the previous evening. It remained this way for a little while longer, Rouge massaging her partner's shoulder and hair, until Knuckles mumbled and then arose from his dreams. Slowly opening his eyes, the echidna found himself gazing into Rouge's aqua eyes even as his hand subconsciously found her own, immobilising it to stop the gentle sensations that had penetrated his fur.
"Morning Knucks" the bat spoke softly, freeing her hand as the echidna turned away to yawn and stretch fully; when he could finally managed a reply without giving the bat an in-depth view of his tonsils, Knuckles turned back and smiled blearily,
"Morning", throwing back the covers he slid out of bed, sliding his feet into his shoes with pin-point accuracy – the result of over a decade of continual practice. As he readied himself for the effort of forcing his legs to carry his not inconsiderable bodyweight, Rouge suddenly realised something,
"Umm, Knuckles", she couldn't meet his gaze as he turned to look down at where she was still snuggled warmly under the blanket, licking her lips in embarrassment as she realised she had almost been literally caught with her pants down, "I, er, I need you to do me a favour".
"Can't you get dressed first?"
"No, that's just the point", she couldn't stop herself smiling as she elaborated, "I gave my suit to the dry-cleaners, dummy; what am I going to wear?" Don't say it; Knuckles resisted the urge to point out she always had one particular suit to fall back to on the grounds it might get him pounded flat; instead, he settled for laughing quietly as the bat scowled at him with her eyes narrowed,
"So, what will you do now, oh mighty queen of this region of Angel Island; it wouldn't do for her Majesty to wander around in pyjamas". Rouge smiled grudgingly at the joke from the day before last rekindled,
"I'm not going to do anything; my faithful echidna dogs-body is going to do it for me"; Knuckles raised a most sceptical eyebrow as she elaborated, "there's a ticket on the drawer in my room; take it to the laundry room and they should give you my suit – you might need to pay a small fee but…" Knuckles cut her off with a strangled snort of protest,
"Excuse me!" He folded his arms and glared down, looking completely gob-smacked as Rouge hid a smile, guessing what he was going for, "I need to pay to get your suit cleaned – the logic of that is, where exactly?"
"It is", Rouge slyly rose onto her knees, the blanket falling away from her body as she put a seductive twinkle into her eye, "in the fact that, if you don't, I'm going to meet your mother and her boyfriend in these sweet red P.J's, unless you want me to…" Knuckles knew full well what Rouge was capable of in this kind of mood and took off out the door with almost indecent haste,
"I'llberightback"; when she was sure he wouldn't hear her, Rouge collapsed back on the bed laughing; typical Knucklehead – he still hasn't got it into his head that I'm only joking…most of the time anyway.
A short while later, Knuckles was waiting for the bat to finish in the shower; at her shouted command, he had managed to open the bathroom door a crack and, flushing madly and with his eyes closed, hang the suit he had recovered on the back of the bathroom door. Rouge had said the shower curtain was opaque, but he wasn't sure he remembered completely and, well…his insides wriggled unpleasantly as he thought of what he may had glimpsed if he'd opened his eyes. With a click and a rush of moist, steamy air, Rouge emerged onto the main lounge, still towelling around her damp ears to try and get rid of the last traces of moisture; though normally not much of a problem, the biting cold of the winter breezes left her larger and thinner skin surfaces much more susceptible to wind chill than most other Mobians.
"Just you left Knucks; I'll order something to eat", she held up a single hand as he made to point out he didn't think he needed a shower, "you want to look your best for your mum, don't you?" Good point;
"Nice idea, and thanks", he slid over to her as she perused the menu they had used the previous evening, turning towards the breakfast section; she paused as he put his hand on her shoulder, "I'm glad you and her got on so well". She took hold of one of his spurs and shook slightly, worrying it like a puppy with a bone,
"It's a woman thing; mothers tend to like it when their son brings a respectable young lady home".
"Really", Knuckles made a bit of a show of looking confused, "so why did she like you so much?"
"What, you…" The resounding slam of the bathroom door drowned out the bat's next exclamation; probably a good thing in hindsight as it was short, sharp and most certainly unbecoming of a respectable young lady.
Lara-Le waited in the foyer of the Promenade, waiting as patiently as possible for her son and his partner to appear from upstairs; she just about managed to look calm and composed and, she hid a smile, much more so than the tall, brown furred echidna sat next to her. Wynmacher, or Wyn to all his friends – which, as far as Lara could tell, was pretty much anyone who knew him, was shifting about nervously and fiddling with the cuffs of his jacket.
"Stop it", as he glanced over, Lara took hold of his hand and restrained it gently, smiling, "don't worry Wyn, I'm sure you'll get on fine".
"Sorry Lara, but er, wow", the taller echidna had a nervous grin on his face as he looked sheepishly at her, "I'm spending the day with the guardian and I'm currently dating his mother; I'd better be on my best behaviour or I'm going to end up sucking spurs".
"Wyn!" Lara glared at her partner even as she fought to iron her lips in a straight line, "Knuckles would never…" He chortled and patted her shoulder,
"I know Lara; if he's anything like you I wouldn't be surprised if he's never used his spurs in his life".
"Flatterer"; Lara smiled as she relaxed more; somehow, ever since she'd met Wyn, she'd felt more, more – it was strange, she couldn't quite name what he made her feel; the nearest she could get to it was 'appreciated' but she knew that wasn't right; Locke had appreciated her too, but that was before…
"Lara?" A large paw waved in front of her face caused her to shudder slightly and come back to herself, "hello in there, are you receiving?"
"Oh, sorry Wyn, I was, er, lost in thought". The brown echidna chuckled gently and nodded forwards, towards the stairs,
"Well, you better start thinking about introducing us, because unless my eyes have gone the same way as my knees I reckon that's Knuckles".
It's alright; from where he was stood the guardian could see there was another echidna, taller and with darker fur than his mother and even himself, sat next to her and seemingly talking away merrily. Much like Rouge the previous evening, he had to grapple down a sudden spike of hot jealousy and anger – who did that stranger think he was going after his mother? He stood still and took a deep breath, Rouge just behind him, waiting to be introduced, letting the primal instinct drain away, beaten by the memories of what his mother had told him the previous evening; he makes her happy – if I should be angry with anyone it aught to be my father. With a slight sigh, Knuckles refocused and smiled as his mother caught sight of him.
"Hey Knuckles", Lara smiled over at her child and stood up, moving over to greet him as the other echidna he assumed to be Wynmacher followed; the guardian noticed with a concerned look that he appeared to walk with a very slight limp on his left leg.
"All right mum", he tenderly embraced her again, stooping slightly to let her hug his neck comfortably as Rouge and Wynmacher watched on; the hold was brief as Knuckles stepped back and regarded the brown furred echidna before giving a wintry smile and extending his hand,
"I take it you're Wynmacher"; the older echidna smiled back and shook, noting the guardian's firm grip as he answered with his normal display of breezy charm,
"Only to my family and my boss", as Knuckles cocked his head confused, Wyn smiled, "everyone else calls me Wyn".
"Fair enough then; Wyn, I'd like you to meet Rouge the Bat – a very close friend of mine". Lucky you; Wyn kept his face blank as he accepted an extended hand from the former government employee, Rouge herself smiling slightly as she accepted the casual once over he gave her,
"Rouge, my pleasure".
"Likewise"; he's a bit formal – nerves maybe? Though she was by and large a loner, Rouge's former employment demanded a rudimentary ability to read people and right now she guessed Wynmacher was sweating bullets, though to give him credit he was trying to hide it. Once the introductions were taken care of, Lara decided to get the ball rolling,
"Well, we'd better get going", she began to move off and was relieved to see everyone following her lead, Rouge and Wyn especially having seemed to hit it off well enough as she headed for her first chosen destination.
So it's true; watching on from his concealed position behind a street corner a raised newspaper, the echidna tasked with verifying the sudden rumours of a guardian appearing within Echidnopolis saw an echidna with the crest of guardianship leave the hotel, accompanied by three others, another two of which he was also familiar with. Biting back a snarl and swallowing his apprehension and anger, the watcher turned to leave, reporting back to the other interested ears that awaited his return.
"Sorry Wyn"; the guardian's voice broke into his companion's thought; Wynmacher looked over mildly as Knuckles did his best not to look down, "I couldn't help noticing – you, um, something wrong with your leg?" To Knuckles' relief the older echidna smiled and spoke back to him levelly,
"Yeah, I had a bit of an accident a little while back but I suppose overall I should be grateful – you know your mother's a nurse?"
"You met her in hospital?" Knuckles' quick mind allowed him to see where Wyn was going with this,
"Yep, got it in one", Wyn smiled as Rouge leaned in to hear about this, "I was training for a sky-ball game and fell badly, smashed the knee joint completely – my own fault like, it was a decent tackle. Lara was one of the ones who helped put me back together and, well, we got talking and things just went from there". The elder echidna flicked his eyes to Lara before continuing in a conspiratorial whisper,
"Luckily the echidna body responds well to staples and glue". Oh no; Lara span around from where she'd been talking to Rouge and glared open-mouthed at her boyfriend,
"Wyn, you said you wouldn't tell them that!"
"Sorry, couldn't resist", he beamed back as Rouge and Knuckles looked at him expectantly, "you want to say it or shall I?" Shooting him with a filthy look the female echidna gave an impatient wave of her hand, beginning to blush again as Wyn rubbed his hands together in glee,
"Well, after I'd had surgery to try and piece my knee back together, I had my leg in a cast; now that was undignified I can tell you – laid flat on my back with my leg suspended in the air, it was not a pretty sight…"
"I'll vouch for that" Lara chipped in, drawing a baleful stare from Wyn as not even Knuckles could stop himself smiling at the mental image; Rouge was forced into a coughing fit to limit the extent of her laughter,
"…yes, well, as your mother was on the rounds one day I heard this cracking noise from my leg; I look down and see this crack smiling back at me, spreading downwards. Now I'm not a doctor, but I guessed that's probably not a good thing, so I call over to Lara and she takes a look. Just my luck the ward was out of plaster, so there I am watching this thing grow downwards and waiting for the cast to crack open. Just as well Lara's able to think on her feet; next thing I know she's at my bedside with a roll of cello-tape and a staple gun". Lara smiled reluctantly as Rouge teetered on the brink of collapse, her brain buzzing with the sheer slapstick nature of the scene Wynmacher was describing; the way he was able to tell it with a straight face was a gift and no mistake. Knuckles felt his earlier reservations to this rangy, brown furred echidna start to slip away as, smiling broadly, he had to speak,
"So, my mum stopped the cast breaking and saved your leg".
"Well, nearly", Wyn rubbed the back of his head as Lara shook hers and tapped her foot, imagining what she could do to get him to make up for embarrassing her like this in front of her son, "okay, the cast was wrapped up nicely, but just as I was breathing a sigh of relief the bit of string holding it up snaps and down it comes".
"That shouldn't have hurt; it was wrapped in plaster" Knuckles pointed out as Wyn grimaced,
"It came right down on my good one", that was it for Rouge, the bat laughed out loud as Knuckles winced with a smile on his face, imagining the scenario perfectly as Wyn elaborated, "half a hundredweight of plaster plus a leg, and when the leg's one of mine that's no laughing matter. So there I was for three days with both of them up in the air".
"Not for the first time I'll bet; sorry, sorry, but", Rouge bit down on her sniggers as all three echidnas looked over at her with expressions ranging from incredulity to long-suffering experience, "you walked right into that one". Knuckles turned to Wyn, not surprised to see he was chuckling at the bat's quip; if nothing else, the guardian reasoned, he had a sense of humour,
"Forgive my partner Wyn; I'll fish her mind out of the sewer at some stage I promise".
"Don't worry, I've heard worse and anyway, Lara told me a story last night in the car involving you two, a bed and suitable restraints – care to comment on that Rouge?" The bat quit laughing as she rolled her eyes and stuck her tongue out at Lara, who smiled back and decided to call it quits there.
"Well, you met Lara in hospital, I met Knuckles and for the first six months at least we were continually trying to put each other in hospital, but anyway, I just remembered", with a flash of insight the bat recalled something that had crossed her mind the previous evening, "I don't suppose there's an echidna called Teri-Le in your family is there Lara?" The female raised an eyebrow for a second before shaking her head,
"Umm, no, no I don't think so; why do you ask?" Knuckles answered for his partner as she light-heartedly teased Wynmacher for leaving himself open for a joke like that.
"We were introduced to this city by Teri-Le – we just wondered if he was some kind of relation of mine – if so I'd have to go and see him at some stage".
"No he's not part of my family, but Le's not an uncommon name – probably just a coincidence. Anyway, enough of that", she brought herself up short as she came to the first port of call for the day, "we're here".
It was what appeared to be a large store, specialising in clothing for all shapes and sizes. Shopping wasn't one of Knuckles' favourite past-times, but the knowledge his mother had chosen something that Rouge would certainly enjoy for a little while gave him a real sense of joy; his family seemed to be getting on together, and for that he could bear to languish in here for a bit.
"Nice idea mum", he began, not glancing behind him as she glowed with pride; he spoke next to Rouge as she drank in the sight of the clothes shop, "you better start thinking of ways to butter me up if you want anything brought batgirl". Rouge began to formulate a counter before Lara spoke up again, looking at Knuckles hard,
"And you Mr – you're going to pick something to wear too".
What; the look on his face was priceless; Wyn felt himself begin to laugh as he tried to begin an argument already doomed to failure,
"But, but mum, I'm fine as I am…" She approached and shook her head, putting her hand on his shoulder,
"No son of mine's going around in this weather without something decent on; now come on, just play along and this should be relatively painless".
"But…" Rouge glanced upwards; thank you Lara – I've been trying to get him into a decent clothes shop for as long as I can remember; Knuckles felt a hand on his other shoulder and glanced around with a sinking feeling to see Rouge smiling at him in a manner that made his knees go weak.
"Don't argue with your mother Knuckles; it's not good for you and hopeless to boot. Now come on", she exerted a push on the reluctant form of the echidna, "let's go". Knuckles dug in his heels, desperate to buy some time as the two females dragged him inexorably forwards,
"Hey, wait a sec, I'm fine as I am, I don't need any clothes; Wyn, help me out here". The other male held up a hand and laughed slightly at the struggle unfolding before his eyes,
"Leave me out of this"; he followed on, slightly behind the main group, chuckling as the guardian was virtually frog-marched into the store by the combined pressure of his mother and his girlfriend.
"It's true", the figure spoke softly to another echidna, almost lost in the darkness of the room he was sat in due to his fur colour; only by his enhanced senses could the speaker pick out his host, "the guardian has arrived in the city".
"As I suspected", the answering voice was deep and powerful, much like the echidna who answered the younger observer, "you know what you have to do?"
"I do".
"Are you sure you want to Locke? I know you still feel…"
"I know my own mistakes", the younger echidna snapped back, heedless of the slight growl his raised voice caused, though to his credit he managed to rein in his emotion before continuing, "I owe Knuckles the truth, and, I would like to see my son again".
"Then go sixth-son, and with haste", there was a rustling from ahead of Locke as the other echidna turned the pages of the book he was reading, scanning it for clues, "the time is here, we must speak with Knuckles to try and find the truth".
"As you wish grandfather", Locke turned to leave before a slight trip of curiosity pricked his interest, "has anyone else had any luck with…"
"No sixth-son, we have not", the vice was angrier now, as though explaining something to an obstinate child, "that is why we must talk to the guardian – we need all the information we can get". Locke inclined his head and turned to leave, hearing as he did the same line he and the others here had repeated together and individually ever since the shift had occurred,
"From destiny ascending, the gem of blood calls the child of thorns to release that which was bound and culminate the cataclysm".
"Get the feeling we've been diddled here?"
"I know what you mean"; Knuckles shrugged and reclined further back in his seat, waiting outside the changing booths for both Lara-Le and Rouge to re-emerge in the clothes they'd been eyeing up. The jacket Knuckles had been pretty much press-ganged into trying on was currently resting on the back of his chair; though he didn't want to admit it, the rough leather jacket had proved surprisingly comfortable against his fur. Plus; he had to hide a devious smile from where Wynmacher was glancing up at the unmoving curtains of the booths, worst comes to worst, I can always stash it in my cabin – mum'll never know. He broke off his thinking as the clinking of the metallic rings holding the curtains up slid long their pole and Wyn let out an appraising whistle,
"Very nice, both of you". Though he'd be the first to admit he wasn't exactly a follower of the catwalk fashions, Knuckles found himself agreeing with the elder echidna's statement. Lara-Le was dressed in a green dress that looked a bit like a sari, the colour of the material mirroring the bottle green of her bright eyes. She shuffled nervously as Wyn smiled and nodded his approval, blushing under his generous eye; however, Knuckles' attention was focussed elsewhere – Rouge had chosen a slightly different type of dress and stood in front of him expectantly, waiting for the verdict he would surely deliver as soon as he stopped trying to catch flies with his dropped jaw.
The bat was wearing a long dress the shade of dawn's deepest blue that highlighted her natural physique perfectly; whilst highlighting all the positive characteristics nature had given her, it was demure enough to be considered sophisticated and most certainly elegant. Rouge chuckled as its dazzling effects seemed to have robbed Knuckles of the power of speech and she gave a slight twirl, showing the cut-away back that, incidentally, allowed her wings the freedom they needed to flex; the main reason the bat hardly ever wore garments such as this was that they forced her wings uncomfortably close to her back – staying in a dress all night was absolute murder on her shoulder blades.
"Well, what do you think?" I should really say something here;
"What, err, umm", Knuckles tried, desperately tried, to find the words that could encapsulate how utterly divine Rouge looked at that second, but there was nothing, no language in his repertoire that could even come close, "you look…err".
"Terrific?" Wynmacher suggested casually from the side-lines, watching on in amusement as the younger echidna was tied in knots by this new side of his partner.
"Yeah, that's a good word" Knuckles gabbled desperately; not the right one though, what the hell could I say? Rouge smiled as the echidna in front of her began to regain some of his self-control; she'd expected something like this to happen, one of the reasons she'd chosen this particular dress to show off in – Knuckles was so cute when he was overawed.
"That dress suits you perfectly Rouge", the bat looked over as Lara inspected her new dress casually, "you've got the figure for it", she gently tapped the side of her head with a single finger as though trying to remember something, "there was a time when I had a decent figure, now how long ago was that?"
"Don't be silly Lara; you've got a wonderful body".
"You would say that".
"Yeah", he put on a sly, shifty smile, "because I want to see more of it".
"Wynmacher! Not in front of the kids". There was a snort of laughter from the booth Rouge had re-entered to change back as Knuckles grinned broadly, liking Wyn more as the day went on; anyone who made his mother laugh as often as he did had to be worth respect in his eyes,
"Trust me mum, I've heard and probably said much worse", when a pair of curious glances fixed on him he elaborated, "it's the best way for us to get our own back on the rest, especially Sonic".
"Who's Sonic?"
"A friend of ours", Rouge's disembodied voice floated over to them and, at those words, Lara felt her hopes for Knuckles rise even higher; he managed to have friends during his exile – he can't be as cold as the others if he had contact, "we'll tell you all about him and the others when we're done here".
"Good, I'd be glad to hear about them, now", she fixed Wyn with a steely glare, his attempt to look innocent quashed immediately as she uttered her next decree, "after that little comment you better figure out a way to weasel yourself back into my good books".
"Already done", he smiled cheerfully, "would a four person table at my restaurant qualify?" Lara pursed her lips a little before giving a reluctant smile,
"Just about; now I'll quickly go and get changed and we'll head there next, it's nearly time to eat as it is".
"You work in a restaurant?" Knuckles raised an eyebrow; from his build, he had assumed Wyn had a more active job that that, though, he reasoned, his leg must have been a hindrance in active pursuits. The brown echidna nodded as Lara retreated to get changed back into her normal clothes,
"Yeah, I'm a chef; I help service the most well-known place to eat in all of Echidnopolis". With a dramatic flourish, Rouge exited the changing area and threw herself into a seat next to Knuckles, the dress she had tried on folded over one arm.
"We'll be the judges of that I'm sure", she turned to Knuckles next, "so, what do you think of this?" The echidna looked smug as he leisurely folded his arms behind his head and gave a self-satisfied grin,
"I think you need to start pleading if you want me to get it for you batgirl". Sensing an opportunity here, Wyn stood up and quickly excused himself,
"Just keep an eye out for Lara, I won't be long. Got to get something for myself while there's a bit of a lull". As the younger Mobians nodded and Rouge began the long, torturous road of convincing Knuckles that he really did want to treat her to that really, really attractive dress, the elder echidna shook his head and quickly headed for where he needed to go.
In another part of Echidnopolis, Locke approached a building he knew all too well, preparing himself mentally to fend off the demons of his past, the memories that flitted in and out of his mind like cruel, spiteful imps. The past is a ghost that haunts us forever; a grim, bitter smile twisted the echidna's face, the cares and worries of fighting and eventually losing the battle of duty against emotion etched plainly on the skin under his red fur, making him look far older than he actually was. Still, his duty was not yet fulfilled, if anything it had just become more important over the last few days; something was dangerously out of balance and if he could do anything that may help to redress the situation, he would do it, no matter the cost to himself. With that thought in mind, Locke strode up to the door in front of him, the key that would unlock it already in his hand; with the barest of quivers, he inserted the steel key and turned it slowly, the sound of the bolt sliding back within the lock echoing in his head. This is it; I wait here for them to return – with a push and effort of will, Locke opened the front door and stepped inside the hallway of his old home. Though he had been here before since he had lost Lara-Le, under the circumstances that had recently arisen, the cauldron of memories bubbled up by entering this place was more potent than most; a tear slid from the corner of his eye as he remembered the true cost of his folly.
"So, let me see if I'm getting this right", Lara-Le dipped half of her bread roll into the spicy gravy and juice that had been left after she had eaten the mussels Wyn had ordered for her, "Sonic is a blue hedgehog who can run really fast; he can break the sound barrier if he really tries hard", at Knuckles' encouraging nod she continued, "he's also got a younger brother, but they're not technically related because he's a fox who has two tails and can use them to fly for short periods of time – that all good?"
"Yep, that's right so far; I'll have to get hold of our photo album to show you them when I go back to my cabin – I know neither of you will have ever seen a hedgehog or a fox before". Knuckles raised his glass to his lips and nodded his mother to continue as he tasted the light white wine Wyn had taken the liberty of ordering to accompany the meal.
"Okay", those two sound amazing enough, but this is what I'm really having trouble with; Lara smiled as Wyn watched on, trying to remember this all without taking notes on his napkin, "now there's also a second hedgehog called Shadow, who's a lot like Sonic but is black and has red eyes; he lives with Sonic because he has amnesia and the doctors say this is the best way of encouraging his memory". Rouge looked a little forlorn at this; though she was the first to admit that Shadow as he was now was a far cry from the cold soul he had been, which in her eyes was a massive improvement all round, she occasionally found herself missing the old Shadow who had been her team mate.
"Yes, though on the whole losing his memory was probably a good thing – he had a lot of pain in his past" she explained delicately as both Lara and Wyn glanced over at her. Fortunately, Wyn was able to recover first and carry on the observations he and his partner had made during the discussion over their meal,
"So now we get to Amy", I like the sound of her; never gives up from what I can tell, "she's got a massive crush on Sonic and chases him all over the place, though she's recently stopped that on the advice of her workmate. She also has a massive hammer that she carries around with her", I'll believe that when I see it; of all the things he'd so far heard, Wyn was positive this was just a little white lie Rouge had told to try and impress Lara, "and has a close friend in the shape of Cream, a little rabbit who can fly and lives with her mum Vanilla".
"She also knows a cat called Big, for obvious reasons", Rouge raised her hand over her head as she strove to make the other two echidnas realise just how well the purple cat was named, "he likes to fish and lives out in the wilds with his pet frog, though if the fish up here are all as nice as that one, he may well consider moving". As if to emphasise the point, Rouge took her last mouthful of the smoked catch she'd ordered from the menu and smiled broadly, feeling comfortably full as a waiter moved in to collect the empty plates,
"You and your friends need anything else Wyn?" There was a collective shaking of heads as the brown echidna glanced around; the main course had proved exceptionally filling, far too much for any of the party bar Wyn himself to even consider the prospect of dessert.
"No thanks Jose; I don't know, us chefs go to all that trouble to make a decent meal and would you believe it, no-one even makes it to the pudding course".
"That's because we're not all bottomless pits" Lara reminded him as the waiter moved away, smiling at Wyn's sudden discomfort as he left to fetch the bill. Knuckles glanced outside and, seeing as the wind was picking up, offered his new jacket to Rouge.
"Here, you might need this out there", she followed his gaze enough to see a few flakes of snow drift down into the swirling breeze; it looked chilly, but she reckoned, he'd need it more than she did,
"Nah, I'll be fine", she smirked as she saw exactly what he was offering to her, "aren't you glad your mum forced you to buy a jacket now? I told you before Knucks, mum knows best".
"And don't you forget it young man" Lara chipped in, smiling as Wyn was reminded about something; reaching down into one of his own pockets, he took out something wrapped in a paper bag and pushed it across the table to Knuckles.
"Here".
"What is it?" Knuckles was feeling acutely embarrassed here; he didn't often receive gifts anyway from his close friends except on his birthday and special occasions such as the recently passed Christmas. A present from an almost complete stranger, for no apparent reason at all, was something completely out of the blue for him; he wasn't sure whether he aught to be grateful or abashed as the item slid free of the bag.
"Consider that a security measure", Wynmacher offered as Knuckles turned the wallet over in his paw, "keep your card and cash safe – there's been a lot of improvement, but this city still has occasional problems with vandalism and theft, hence why the EST exists". Knuckles found his tongue at the mention of Echidnopolis's other protectors,
"So I gather, still, they seem capable; I registered as a spike yesterday and I met Remington there, so", there was movement out the corner of his eye and a sudden suspicion flared up in his mind as he saw Rouge chuckle at the mention of the constable, "what's so funny batgirl?" The bat managed to rein in her mirth as she smiled back,
"Oh, nothing"; I liked Remington as well; he's got good taste in puzzles and the gum was refreshing – just hope he's got a sense of humour. Lara watched on before seeing the conditions outside start to worsen; the snow was starting to fall and settle in a blanket of whiteness and snowflakes whirled around in the sharpening breeze. As Jose brought the bill, she leant forwards,
"After this we best head for home, my home I mean", she elaborated as Knuckles' face fell; he'd really enjoyed going around with his mother and her partner and didn't want to have to quit because of the weather, "we can just stay there until the snow clears up; worst come to worst I've got two extra beds". There was a rapid agreement to this idea of Lara's and the bill was quickly settled, the foursome wanting to reach the comparative sanctuary of Lara's home before the storm closed in.
Sheltered from the storm that was springing up outside by the four walls he had once called his home, Locke waited from them. There was nothing to betray his feelings as he simply stood at one of the windows and kept watch, awaiting the return of the one he had been forced to abandon, an the one who had left him as a result of that. For a second, his slate grey-blue eyes slid closed, the malignancy of the memories of that terrible day still tormenting him, nearly fourteen years after they had played out before him like an awful pantomime. With me as the chief villain; the irony of the analogy was not lost on the scientist as he stood, unmoving, steadfastly refusing to acknowledge the slow, burning sensation of strain in his legs – admitting to such a weakness was unfitting for one with guardian blood in his veins.
The snow and the howling , flensing wind combined to create an eye-watering walk home; though Lara's house wasn't a half-hour walk away under normal circumstances, it certainly felt a lot longer. As they walked, a sudden thought struck Rouge,
"Admit it", Knuckles looked around to see the bat smiling and whisper in his ear again, "momma knew best, didn't she?" Knuckles put on his best sarcastic tone,
"If you're referring to the jacket, you know perfectly well I've faced far worse without the benefit of clothing…"
"Save perhaps a nappy"; Rouge laughed as Knuckles went beet red under his fur; great, she's seen that photo – another indent of embarrassment in the great pasticine mould of my life.
"…well, hey, you were a baby once as well you know?"
"Yeah, but I don't let my photos fall into the wrong hands", the ex-spy punched him lightly on the shoulder as he huffed in embarrassment, "don't worry though, as baby snaps go that wasn't too bad". Knuckles replied with a smile that made the air whipping at them seem like a desert draught as Rouge inwardly wondered if Lara had a family album somewhere; now that would be sheer dynamite.
Luckily for the guardian, just before Rouge could start to really get going with her gentle teasing, Lara inadvertently saved her son's bacon by calling out from the front of the group,
"Hey you two, this is it". Thank goodness; though he hadn't admitted it, the cold was really starting to get to Wynmacher; his bad leg suffered terribly in the freezing weather as it caused the damaged nerves to start throbbing after a while. Still, he mused, nothing a good half-hour in the warm environment of Lara's domicile couldn't cure – if nothing else she really enjoyed having the central heating on high. He moved slightly ahead of her and politely held the gate open, waiting for the rest to file past and basking gratefully as the warmth of Lara's generous smile chased away the nagging ache of his knee. She reached for her key and shouted over her shoulder,
"Okay, now who wants a…" her voice died as she failed to unlock her door; turning back around to see the key twist impotently, Lara felt the heat leech away from her body as in one horrible instant, she knew why.
Her door was already unlocked, and worse than that, only one other person she knew could have possibly had a key.
Lara removed the key slowly, with almost extraordinary care from its lock, breath taken from her as in the back of her mind she cursed herself for not thinking that he'd have heard of Knuckles reappearing in Echidnopolis. She was still for a few seconds, trying to think through the fog of panic of what she should do now; I can't let Knuckles see him straight away, I don't even know what he's after…argh, I need more time.
"Lara", Wyn was perturbed by her unusual hesitance and stepped forwards slowly, "something wrong?"
"Wyn, I, er, I need you to wait here, and you Knuckles, there's something I have to deal with first, inside", she turned to face the trio, trying to put a brave face on her internal trial and tribulation, "I shouldn't be long, just a few minutes; sorry to keep you out in the cold like this but"; she twisted the door handle before her nerve failed her completely and shot inside, closing the door behind her, unable to look at the faces of those she felt she was abandoning as she drew on whatever mental fortitude she had left to face her ex-husband once more.
"What's up with mum?" Knuckles felt a surge of concern for his closest family as Lara jumped inside, Rouge was trying to put herself in the female echidna's position and guess what could have spooked her like that. However, of the three, Wyn was the best placed to make an accurate prediction – with a sudden breath, the brown echidna realised that Lara hadn't unlocked her door and realised that someone must have come calling. And don't I just know what about; his eyes darted to Knuckles instinctively and he breathed a sigh of relief as he realised the guardian hadn't caught the glance. Wyn wasn't sure what to do; he could tell Knuckles his suspicions but that could do more harm than good in the long run, especially as he didn't know what the guardian felt towards his father.
"I'm not a hundred percent sure, but I reckon we should just sit tight and wait; I don't think Lara will be long". As the other two nodded and stood closer together, the older echidna turned back to the door, expression creased in concern as he hoped that, whatever happened inside and regardless of whether his suspicions were correct or not, Lara would make the right choice.
She knew, she instinctively knew, just where he'd be; heck, she even knew how he be standing, what he'd be wearing and probably what tone of voice he'd use on greeting her. I'm doing this for my son, nothing more; that thought gave her the courage to push open her kitchen door, her eyes falling naturally on the male echidna already in the room, his main body obscured by his long, white coat and only his spines, the same deep red as Knuckles' own fur, standing out like blood trails as they fanned out over the white material. As always, her first impression of her ex-husband could be summed up in one word – clinical.
"Hello Lara". Even his voice; the same haunted, chilled voice he'd had since the divorce and maybe just slightly before it as well. She inclined her head, remembering in the nick of time that, though he still hadn't turned to face her, he could still see her by the reflection in the kitchen window,
"Locke", she took a step forwards, politeness and maybe a sense of foreboding prompting her to ask a question she already knew the answer to, "why are you here?"
"I need to speak to the current guardian".
"His name is Knuckles, Locke", her face split into an ugly sneer as she reminded her former partner, "in case you'd forgotten, you named him". Seemingly stung, Locke finally turned around to face her and despite herself, a tiny flicker of pity lit up in her heart as she regarded the man she had once loved.
If Lara could remember rightly, Locke had been twenty one when they'd married, twenty three when Knuckles had been born and should have been forty one now; however, looking at him as he was she was hard-pressed to believe the facts. She knew by his own admission that guardians aged physically much more slowly than normal echidnas did; judging by his face and physical appearance, Locke hadn't aged a day in the all the time they'd been apart. However, when she looked closer, she realised it was the old saying that was true; the eyes are the window to the soul. Her former husband's eyes were as startling blue as the ice around her home but, she barely repressed a shiver, they were twice as cold as outside; the eyes of someone who had suffered far more than anyone his age should have; the eyes of an old man in a youthful body. It was for that reason that pity, however faint and fleeting it may have been, had tugged at her heart – for a single instant she remembered that Locke had loved her, had broken down completely when she had demanded a divorce and had never really been the same; indirectly, she was the reason for his old age. Then she recalled what he had taken from her, the callous, cowardly way he had failed to tell her the truth about the role of a guardian's wife and hurt her grievously because of it, and her heart hardened once more.
"I did, and it was and is a good name", he completed his inspection of her face, realising that once more she was happy and, unlike last time, it had nothing to do with him or his actions; he hid the pain that caused behind a veneer of neutrality, "but until he recognises me as his father, if he chooses to, I can't use it".
"You're afraid he'll reject you", Lara put her hands on her hips as the irony of the situation wasn't lost on her, "why's that Locke; afraid to get hurt – you didn't seem to be last time". The darker hued echidna drew a deep breath at the grim reminder,
"If he did reject me, I wouldn't blame him; I take it you told him?"
"If you mean I told him that you abandoned him to fulfil your damn obligations to the guardian code, yes I told him that. He deserved the truth".
"I was expecting nothing less"; this will be even more difficult than I feared; Knuckles will probably hate me, but then again, he should – after my actions, hate is all I should expect; Locke gave a small, weary smile, "I would explain to him what those obligations were, and why I had no choice in my actions". You had a choice, you just couldn't bear to make it; Lara hid her contempt as she tried to confirm her suspicions,
"So why are you here Locke; this isn't just some social call is it, you're after something, I can tell. What is it?" I won't lie to you, not again; for a split-second, his expression softened and a tiny hint of colour infiltrated the otherwise clear tone of his voice,
"I came to offer an invitation to Knu…the current guardian", he caught himself just in time as his former partner narrowed her eyes, faint danger signals now flashing up in her mind, "myself and the others would like to speak to him at Haven; we have much to discuss…"
"No".
"Lara, please".
"No", she repeated, more forcefully this time as she saw the hidden meaning in his words and came out and said it, "you took him once, you won't do it again, not while I'm here". Locke gave a deep sigh and tried to keep his temper; losing his cool wouldn't help the cause now,
"That isn't true and you well know it Lara-Le; even if I did want to take Knuckles I doubt I could. You must understand, things are badly out of balance and if we don't pool our information with the guardian's we could all be lost", he was breaking through, but he had to speak the truth as well; dropping his mask of scientific precision, the former guardian spoke softly, looking deeply into her bottle green eyes, the same eyes that he had lost himself in so many years ago, "and, I would, like to see my son, face to face, not at a distance as I have for years". Internally he breathed a sigh of relief as he saw her grant a tiny nod that spoke volumes to someone who knew her as well as he did,
"Alright Locke, you may see him, but listen to me now", her entire posture changed from one of reception to one of bloody-minded maternal desire to protect her child; she didn't even have to raise her voice, her body language did all the shouting for her, "if I even suspect at any stage this is some kind of trick, no matter how many powers that blasted green stone gives you I will make you suffer". Nothing you do could come close to the suffering I inflicted on myself Lara, through my own stupidity and cowardice;
"I swear it's just a talk; nothing will happen, I promise". Lara turned to leave, to open the door to the others waiting outside, Locke likewise turned back to his original position before her voice stopped him; it wasn't maliciously said, but the sheer, undeniable truth in the statement crashed into the former guardian harder than any form of verbal abuse could have,
"You only ever swore by two promises Locke; you no longer follow your promise to the Master Emerald, and you broke your promise to me".
The front door quivered again and, as Wyn had suspected, it was Lara at the door; from just one look at her face he could tell his earlier suspicions had been right. Her whole stance spoke of the same exhaustion she always seemed to feel when she'd spoken to her ex-husband; Wyn had only ever spoken to Locke once or twice, and even then he doubted they'd exchanged more than a dozen words. All he did in these circumstances was just be a rock for Lara; she had to deal with her past, all he could reasonably do was support her in the present.
"Knuckles", please, let this be the right thing to do; Lara shut her eyes for a second, fortifying herself to tell him, "there's, um, there's someone here to see you". The guardian saw the look of worry and angst on his mother's face and tensed, unconsciously readying his body to fight and protect her from whatever might be threatening her before even his quick mind could contemplate who the mysterious visitor could be.
"Someone for…" Lara watched as his eyes flared like a pair of twin purple supernovas as he figured out the likely identity of the visitor, "I see. Well, let's deal with this", he bunched his hands into fists and he flicked a glance at the Mobians surrounding him, "come on; I don't want you all standing in the cold – whatever he's got to say for himself, he can say it to all of you". The others held their piece as Knuckles pushed the door open, Lara whispering directions in his ears as he stopped next to her for a quick second. The red echidna focussed so much on his goal that he actually didn't notice his mother put a restraining hand on Wyn's chest; only Rouge accompanied him as he pushed open the kitchen door and took in the form of Locke.
"Hello father".
A/N: If you've picked up on the little hints I've been dropping, you might be able to guess who's showing up next chapter – we get to meet Knuckle's family on his father's side! Brotherhood madness! Yay!