So this is my second fic…and I hope u enjoy it….I thought that it would b cool to mix the present w/ the past so I made a underground speakeasy that sells drugs, holds bare-handed fist fights, and gives out alcohol & prostitution as well! It's placed near the more recent times say about 1980-ish and I'm hoping that it won't b a horrible story…so enjoy! NO FLAMEZ PLEASE!

Bitter Rivalry

Chapter 1: Origins

There was once a giant speakeasy that sat upon Times Square. It fed to the needs of gangs, and other scum of the sort that lurked around the streets in the wee hours of the morning. It had made good profits and with time had become well known for the booze, sex, and gore. But little did the public know about the internal affairs that were occurring behind the scenes. A sudden murder had occurred and had placed all of the members on edge. The head manager who had first opened the speakeasy was Nicolai Brackster (OC).

Nicolai was found in a ditch behind the building. He had been mauled, shot, burned, and beheaded all in one night. They didn't know who did it and the cops had no leads. But they were all sure that the motive was to take over the speakeasy since it had prospered so well. Both the sons of the man had felt bitter emotions to each other afterwards and soon everyone was taking sides. Sonic, the more lackadaisical and brash one out of the two wanted them to split the profits where he would receive more than his brother and the other fellow members. Shadow, the cynical and calm one decided that it was time that he up and left. He took his fair share to start his own speakeasy, much to the dismay of sonic, and soon the Saint Maria was raking in more than the Emerald Gang. Sonic had tried to reason for his careless and heartless mistake, but shadow declined knowing all-to-well of the greed embedded in his brother's face. Since then, the bitter rivalry continued.

The Emerald Gang consisted of sonic, his girlfriend Amy, Tails, knuckles, big the cat, and cream & cheese. Their party had diminished of late because of the pressure that was being put onto them by The Saint Maria. The Saint Maria speakeasy consisted of Shadow, Eggman, Rouge, Vector, Espio, Charmy, Nack the weasel, and Fiona Fox. Both the speakeasies lay somewhere close to Times Square, and they constantly fought night after night with each other. Sometimes they even got close enough to kill. But that is what happened in the past, not in the present.

Currently Rouge the bat had been making her way towards the Emerald Gang's speakeasy, trying to hide behind her black trench coat. She was sent to meet her friend Amy, who she had known since the breakup of the original gang. Not only was it to see an old friend, but it was also a great way to get into the Emerald Gang's hideout. It was nearing winter, and the snow had already started to fall on her ears. She shivered and brushed them off. She took her hat and placed it on her head, flattening her ears so it could perch on them. She then proceeded to dust off her white gloves and boots. After she had finished that, she hitched her coat a bit, pulling it up so that no one would be able to recognize her as she stepped in. From the outside the speakeasy looked only to be a motel with a café, but of course you needed certain people or a green emerald pin with and S engraved in it to get it. Rouge took a quick glance about and headed towards the back to where the restrooms were. She knew that there would be a door that led towards the back of the motel that led to the gang's speakeasy.

She lightly tapped on the mahogany door. Then she quickly looked about with her cold eyes, scanning for any cops. A panel slid open, big the cat stood on the other side.

He gave her a menacing glare and asked "what do you want…" She snorted at him and flipped her hair back from her face.

"Don't need to worry big…I'm here by special request" she added as politely as she could before flashing him the green emerald pin. Big was silent for a bit, then he shut the panel and hesitantly slid open the door.

"I guess you can proceed" he darkly muttered as she strolled in, a smug look on her face. He quickly shut the door, almost slamming it on her tail and began his bouncer shift again. Rouge glared at him before going any further.

The speakeasy was large, decorated with blue silk on the tables and a lovely marble bar in one corner. In the center stood a large cage, and currently there were two men fighting inside. She made her way over to one of the tables and seated herself with grace. Some of the men around her gave wolf calls and hoots, but she paid no mind. She merely looked at the two men fighting in the ring. A hand suddenly laid itself on her shoulder. She quickly stiffened and turned to face, Amy.

"Hey" Rouge muttered as she regained her composure and Amy took a seat.

"I'm glad you could make it Rouge…it's been such a long time" Amy whispered as Rouge nodded.

"I know what you mean…it's been quite awhile since I've been to another speakeasy…other than The Saint Maria" she added as they looked up to the caged arena.

"How are you and sonic doing?"

"We're doing ok…but it's gonna be hard to make the bills" sighed Amy before she asked "What about you?"

"Me?"

"Yeah".

"Well shadow n' I are doing ok too…but I'm afraid I have to tell him off that he can't be my boyfriend anymore…it's getting on my nerves I think…" Rouge spat out, as she frowned at the last bit.

"It's ok Rouge…you'll find someone who'll treat you decent…but anyway…why don't we watch the fight" Amy sweetly cooed as they soon turned their attention to the nearly finished match. Mobians shouted, as a red echidna gripped his fists together and began knocking a bear back and forth.

Soon the echidna had pinned him and killed him with one swift blow. He got up and wiped his mouth with his arm. Sweat dripped from his body and his white tank top lay stained with blood. His black cargo pants ripped and his shoes worn. He grinned as he pumped his fists in front of him. The gloves on his hands were covered with barbed silver knuckles on them.

"Heh…to easy" Knuckles muttered as he smiled haughtily to himself.

"Who dares take on Knuckles? The master of bloodshed!?" roared the Referee.

"Since when did he join your little group?" snickered Rouge.

"He came to us about a job…he had offered to be our body guard…it was a while after the gang broke up" Amy quietly whispered back as Rouge took another glance up at Knuckles. Knuckles stood, waving his arms in the air amidst the cheers of fans, a grin plastered on his face.

"No challengers?" called the Referee as Rouge stood up.

"I'll challenge him" she cockily stated as she made her way up.

"ROUGE! What are you doing!?" Amy harshly whispered to her.

"Don't worry…I'll put this knucklehead in his place" Rouge snickered as she made her way up.

"What the…." Muttered knuckles as Rouge entered and winked at him. 'You have got to be kidding me' knuckles thought as Rouge placed her left hand on her hip and slouched to one side, expecting something from him. She tapped her foot lightly as he made no move to attack. Rolling her eyes she groaned

"What's the matter? To chicken to come at me? Come on you knucklehead". She smirked at the last bit when his face turned from a frown into a scowl.

"Isn't there a rule somewhere that states that little girls aren't allowed to fight?" Knuckles growled to the referee.

The Ref just shrugged, "Sorry Knux….it's an anything goes kinda fight….either if it's a man….or a woman". 'Shit', Knuckles thought as Rouge took a stance.

"I won't go easy on you…even if you are a girl" he muttered as they circled each other.

"I know that…and I wouldn't expect anything less" she retorted.

With that said, Knuckles attacked with all his fury. But Rouge was calm and –level-headed when fighting and she immediately flew up and out of the way. Knuckles stopped and looked up, only to see the bottom of her white heeled boot hit his face.

"OOF!" he yelled as she sent him sprawling to the ground.

Rouge smirked and stated "Your hotheadedness and brash attitude is a good advantage at times…but it can also cause stupidity during bouts too".

Knuckles rose to his feet and countered "Well at least I'm not a flying rat that looks like she's a cocky, egotistical, self-centered, hotshot!"

She grimaced, 'How dare he insult me! Jerk!' She flung off her black trench coat, and revealed her purple corset matching with tight black denim jeans. Her white boots and gloves ran to her knees and elbow's and had special designs on them. A silver choker strung about her neck, accompanied by a pair of hoop earrings. There were some whistles and howls and I mean real howling when she took her fighting stance once again.

'Whoa…she's hot' Knuckles thought but he quickly shunned it from his mind.

"Fine…if you wanna play stripper" Knuckles chuckled as he ripped off his bloodied white tank top, only to reveal ripped muscles running up and down his body.

'Oouu…sweet' Rouge thought as she blushed suddenly. Knuckles noticed a slight change in her attitude as he watched her quickly wipe off the blush and shake her head.

'NO, NO, NO! Don't think about those kinds of things now! You have to win!' she scolded as he suddenly lunged forward and attacked. She was slightly caught off guard, but luckily her strong wings lifted her up into the air just before his fist made contact with her face.

'Damn…she's fast' he analyzed in his head as she swiftly moved around to the other side of the ring. She suddenly flew up and plummeted down towards him with her legs.

Unfortunately for Knuckles, they met with his face again. He felt his back slam into the wire fence and a foot crushing his lungs. He opened his eyes and glared at Rouge, who stood before with her foot on his chest. Her smile beamed with victory as she pressed down harder.

"Say you give up and I won't leave you breathing through a tube for the rest of your life" she seethed in his face. He didn't budge; he would rather die than admit anything to her.

'He's too proud to admit that he lost...' she thought as he glared up at her, fuming.

'How the hell! How the hell did I lose! Dammit!' he cursed in his mind as Rouge pushed her foot down harder. The crowd had gone wild and were sending bets out like crazy, no one had ever beaten Knuckles before. No one.

"I…I admit defeat" he managed to choke out as she stepped off him. He grumbled as the crowd lived it up, screaming, cheering, laughing, and crying. Rouge just stood in the midst of it taking low bows and flaunting off her victory. Just as Knuckles was about to get up, a white gloved hand reached out to him, not to attack him but to help him. He looked up to Rouge, a smile on her face.

He took her hand gently and she pulled him up while chuckling "nice match Knuckles…we have to do it again sometime".

"Uh…yea" he replied as she strode over to the other side of the caged ring to retrieve her trench coat. Knuckles tried to avoid staring at her but he couldn't help it, she was strikingly beautiful. As she moved the top swayed from side to side, while the bottom also softly bumped its way out of place as well. Her stride showed a lot of pride and grace as she walked. And her beautiful white locks bounced from ear to ear.

Knuckles took notice of all of this but he quickly turned away when she finally made her way back over to him. She gracefully made it out of the cage by flying over it and circling above the crowd just to show off, then landing by Amy at last. Knuckles pouted as he walked out of the cage as well, crossing his arms and sticking out his lip. Rouge almost laughed, but she held it in and lightly grabbed him by the shoulder.

'Man…he's all sour that he lost…I guess I feel bad for him' she thought as he turned to her.

'What does she want now…is that a look of pity on her face?' but he finally answered with a "What?"

"How 'bout I buy you a drink?" She smoothly talked.

He had a brief look of confusion on his face but he quickly brushed it off and replied with a harsh "I don't need your pity".

Rouge frowned, "I'm not pitying you…I'm just offering a free drink to someone who I think is worth it".

'Great…I pissed her off' Knuckles sighed. "Fine…I'll have a drink with you" he finally uttered as they made their way over to the bar with Amy following swiftly behind.

"Hey…bartender!" Rouge called as Tails made his way over.

"What can I help you with Madame?" he said courteously.

"Can you get a martini for me…and a scotch for your buddy here" she stated politely as Tails nodded and quickly moved away to fetch their drinks.

"So Amy…seen any good movies lately?" Rouge randomly asked to start up a conversation. Even though it was very random, Rouge knew that Amy is a chatterbox and loved to make conversation with anyone she could get.

"Oh nothing special…I was actually planning to see this romantic movie about a boy and girl and how they fall in love and…this…and…that….on…and…on…" Amy stated as Rouge tried to process all of what the pink hedgehog had managed to spill out.

"Hey Amy…I think Sonic's calling you" Knuckles quickly stated as he pointed into a certain direction.

"I didn't hear him…but ok, thanks Knuckles" Amy said as she quickly walked over to where 'Sonic' was calling her to. Finally they were alone.

"She's gone" Knuckles sighed as he slumped down into his chair. Rouge shook her head, a smile glued to her face.

"Here…this is your money for winning" the Referee suddenly stated as he handed it to her and walked away just as quickly as he appeared.

"I get money?" she quizzically stated as Knuckles nodded. They began a small conversation with each other, but it was very reserved and guarded as if they didn't want to reveal too much information to the other.

"You like grapes?" Rouge sputtered when she took a sip of her martini.

"Yea…I just like 'um" Knuckles snorted as he quickly tilted his head back and gulped down the last bit of the scotch. Rouge watched as his red dreadlocks fell back into his face, but she turned away when he caught her staring at him. He smirked.

"So Miss Rouge the bat…would you care to dance?" he mouthed as he gestured towards the dance floor.

Rouge hadn't noticed that they had that before, 'It must've been hiding behind that giant cage' she thought. He outstretched his hand to her and she took it, a small tint of red on her face. They made their way over and began to dance to the rapid heart pulsing beat. Both their eyes remained locked to each other as they danced and soon they were less than an inch away from each other. Once the song was done they quietly made their way back and sat down at the marble bar once more. The awkward silence was killing Rouge, so she decided to break the ice.

"When do you think we'll be able to fight again?" she asked, trying to sound innocent.

He laughed, and replied "Not too soon I hope…I still have to work and let that imprint that you left on my chest heal". Soon they both were laughing. But it was broken suddenly and swiftly by a cold hand gripping Rouge's shoulder. She turned with her eyes wide to come face to face with Sonic. A glower was hardened on his face, and his eyes fell through her body down to her core.

"I'm afraid…you have to leave Ms. Rouge…for you are distracting my employee of his job" he growled.

Amy stood behind him and she silently mouthed a quiet "I'm sorry" to her.

"Take her out…or I will take her out of her personally" Sonic hissed as his gaze turned towards Knuckles. Knuckles took it, and grabbed her and left. He escorted her out, gently but swiftly. Once they were outside he looked towards her, an apologetic look on his face.

"Sorry 'bout this" he quietly muttered. Rouge stood stiffly, then she suddenly tensed up.

"You know what…it's okay…I guess I'm not welcome here anymore" she huffed as she jerked at her coat and began to briskly walk off.

'Stop her…do something' Knuckles's mind argued. He suddenly reached out and grabbed her hand. She turned around swiftly to strike him but was caught off guard by his pleading eyes. He let her arms drop to her side and then quickly took out a pen and scribbled some things on it. He grabbed her hand and placed it inside, he then folder her fingers over it.

"Whenever you need someone to talk to…call me" he quickly whispered as he suddenly pulled her close and hugged her then retreated swiftly back into the motel. Rouge lay stunned, she almost let her hand drop open but she stopped it. She glanced at the numbers on the note, then she quickly stuffed it into her pocket. She turned about and ran off into the street.

Chapter 2: Dissention In The Ranks

Knuckles had made his was back inside and rammed straight into Sonic. He growled, he wasn't in the mood for this now.

"Did you take her out?" Sonic demanded.

"Yes…I did as you ordered" Knuckles managed to say through gritted teeth.

"Good…now get back to work". Knuckles watched as he led Amy away to the back room, stroking her lovingly and giving her kisses.

'Ugh…I'm not gonna be able to sleep tonight' Knuckles groaned as he began to dismiss people out.

It was about 4 in the morning when Rouge had left the Emerald Gang's speakeasy and she knew that Shadow would be angry. She flew down to the little store that hid the speakeasy and she went through the back entrance quietly. She hoped that everyone was asleep, but unfortunately luck wasn't on her side. Nack the weasel snuck up behind her and pulled her to the floor by her wings. She fell with a scream and smashed into the cold floor.

"Nice to see you back at this hour" a cold voice spat. She froze, Shadow.

"Now…where have you been hun?" he growled as he stroked her hair. She batted his hand away a glare fixated on him.

"Why should you care where I go to? It's none of your concern" she mumbled as she picked herself up off the floor and made her way to the bar.

"We were just a little concerned…that's all Rouge" muttered Nack as Shadow made his way over to her. She took a giant gulp of liquor before feeling a pair of hands snake up her body.

"Not now Shadow…I'm not in the mood" she seethed as he pulled her tightly to him. She could feel his white long-sleeved shirt against his back, and his black pants against the back of her thighs.

"What's the matter? I thought you liked this?" he teased angrily as his hands made his way to her breasts. She swiftly pushed him off of her and slapped him in the face at the same time. Shadow touched his cheek where she slapped him, and turned back towards her.

"Baby…come on…let's have some fun huh?" he whispered in her ear as she shuddered.

"Get the fuck away from me Shadow, I don't need this crap right now" she spat as she pushed him away.

"Don't make me force you" he harshly whispered as his lips crashed down onto hers. Repulsed by his actions and tasting the alcohol on his tongue, Rouge kneed him in the balls. "Fuck!" Shadow screamed as Rouge dashed away from him, behind Nack. Suddenly Nack was shoved to the side and Shadow's hands landed on her shoulders. He threw her into the wall and she rolled over the bar counter and crashed into the alcoholic beverages. He then picked her up and dragged her to the bed.

"NO GET AWAY! I DON'T WANT TO BE YOUR GIRLFRIEND ANYMORE! HELP!! HELP!!!" she screamed as the door shut, and muffled sounds were heard. Nack shook his head with dismay as Fiona entered the room.

"They at it again?" she chuckled as Nack gave a glare.

"What!? Jeeze sorry!" she muttered as she walked over to the broken bottles.

"Now we have to go pick up that shipment…or else we won't have any alcohol to serve tonight" she sighed as she kicked around some pieces with her foot.

"But at least that won't be my problem".

Knuckles awoke from his slumber. He had a nightmare, about Rouge. He sat up and held his hand to his head, feeling a pulsing migraine. He also couldn't sleep from the loud banging noises coming from Sonics' room, obviously he was having a fun night/day. Knuckles sighed and got up, slipping on some jeans and a white front button down long sleeved shirt, tied up his dreadlocks and then he stepped out of the motel room. He decided to take a walk to clear his mind. It was about 8 in the morning and he had made his way out into the park. His mind drifted to last night.

Why had he acted that way? Usually he was cold and nonsocial, but last night was something else. Rouge was something else entirely, he had to admit that the bat had got his goat a few times but she was always considerate and patient at times. He softly smiled, maybe she would be the right girl for him. Then he frowned, no he wouldn't let a girl run his way of life like how Amy did with Sonic.

'Augh! Why did I give her my number!' he cursed in his thoughts. He quickly got up and left, finding the peace to be a little too peaceful for his mind to cope with. He looked at his watch. It was almost 9, the shipment of alcohol should arrive at the arrived point soon.

'I might as well pick it up since I have nothing better to do' Knuckles thought as he began to stroll down into a more woody area.

Rouge was on her side, naked under the sheets. She had tucked her legs close up to her chest and her hands rested under and on her pillow. Shadow had left to tend to business matters while the rest of the gang had gone out shopping for new things that could boost the speakeasy's fame. Rouge sat up, her lower area's aching and she made her way to the bathroom. Her face was disheveled and the makeup was smeared. She felt a few tears threaten to burst from her eyes but she held them back. She wouldn't let a man hurt her. She took a quick shower and fixed herself up, straightening her hair and applying new makeup.

Then she put on a black tank top, with blue jeans. She grabbed her choker and grabbed her white boots, placed on her gloves and grabbed a denim black jacket. Before she left she wrote a note that said she was going to pick up the shipment at the appointed place and that she would drop of the load and would go out until the afternoon.

Then she hesitantly signed "Luv u Shadow" on the very bottom. But for some reason when she wrote it, she felt disgusted and violated. She then ran out, it was almost 5 min 'til nine and she didn't want to be late. She bustled through the city streets, and past the millions of trees until she reached a small clearing. It was just a small clearing, barely visible to the outside and it was where there was actually a good bank in order for the ferryman to drop the load off.

But something was amiss.

There was a man dressed in a white long sleeved shirt with jeans. His skin was an awful red color as if he had been majorly sunburned or worse, it could have been some skin disease.

Anyhow, Rouge froze in her tracks, she wasn't expecting company. The man turned and he met her gaze, only to be stunned by the fact that she was actually standing before him.

"Knuckles!?"

"Rouge!?"

They both cried in unison.

This was going to be an interesting day…

Well I hope u liked my fic about them 2…I know it's got bad stuff in it but it helps to develop the story along…anyway…until next chapter!

Preview: 'I can't leave her here…she might die…come on Knuckles! Are you a Echidna or are you a coward! HUH! Both!'