(A/N) Update! I need to do this more often. Oh Well, A lots going on. I'VE ADDED MORE TO CHAPTER 3! Make sure you've read it or you may be confused. It's just a little more. I hope you all like this chapter.
Christmas day had passed on the island and Christmas night had fallen. Though still warm, a coolness spread over Angel Island with the night. With crisp air and clear skies, a quarter moon and the Master Emerald were now the only sources of constant light. The night sky was filled with thousands of stars. Like a jet black sheet with diamonds cast on it, the sight was beautiful to behold.
Knuckles and Rouge had spent the afternoon talking basically about nothing, and Rouge had taken a nap at some point. They had managed not to spend Christmas alone and, other than a failed attempt at a Christmas party Amy put together two years ago, this would be Knuckles' first time doing so. In some way he enjoyed Rouge's company. It helped him forget about Sonic for the afternoon and let his mind rest.
"It's been a while since I've been able to really look at the stars."
The two were seated at the bottom of the altar steps. Knuckles was lazily listening to Rouge comment about things. Odd enough, it was the first time they had ever just sat and talked, like cognitive people.
"You'd think a bat would be outside at night a lot." Knuckles smirked closing his eyes and resting his hands behind his head.
"Yeah, but not out here. Lately I've been around cities and stuff. Can't see the stars from there."
"Hmm." The echidna began to doze. He had seen the sight a thousand times, there was nothing new about it. Rouge gave a glace at Knuckles; grinning slightly at the opportunity.
"I bet the whole island looks better at night," Rouge said with a hint of seduction in her voice. "You think you could show me around Knux?" The bat scooted closer to Knuckles. Then placing a hand on the other side of him for balance, Rouge leaned over him.
Even in his restful state, Knuckles took note to Rouge's new position. He was flustered, flushed, and beyond ill at ease. He snapped open his eyes to meet her gaze.
"Give me a little tour, you know what I mean?"
Did he know what she...what? This was not a comfortable moment for Knuckles. It was bad enough that she was kind of attractive, and now that she was this close with the moon light behind her and they were alone...Gaw don't think like that! Knuckles had to admit Rouge had a certain appeal. It's not like he likes her or anything, it's just she. . . he couldn't explain it.
So deep in his confusion Knuckles missed something Rouge was now saying. She's chuckling, what's that mean?
Sensing his discomfort, Rouge leaned in closer. "Come on Knuckles." He really was dense, it was so cute. If everything went smoothly enough, maybe she could tell him. It was the whole reason she was here and endured several hours of direct sun light. She needed to tell Knuckles how she felt.
"Look I'm tired..."
"Please." Rouge annoyingly held the 'e.' How was he suppose to answer? If he said no she'd get angry, but he hadn't slept well that night and was tired. He needed to be at his best to guard the Master Emerald. "Come on Knuckles. Yes or no, this isn't that hard."
Turning the possibilities in his head one more time, Knuckles cast his sight a little more south then intended. Noticing his change in focus, Rouge backhanded the side of the echidna's face.
"Ow, What Was That For!" Knuckles placed a hand to the afflicted area. Rouge got to her feet and glared down at the confused and wounded echidna.
"Do I honestly have to answer that."
Knuckles rose to confront Rouge face to face.
"Yeah!"
"No need to shout, pervert."
"What!"
"I caught your shifty eyes. You can't even fess up to it?" A grin tugged at the corner of Rouge's mouth. She knew Knuckles didn't do too much wrong; he probably wasn't aware of what he was doing. That wasn't the point, however, Knuckles was cute when he was mad. It was also when he showed the most affection. He would blush or mix up words, stuff like that. It was the most convincing proof she had that he liked her.
"Sorry if I 'offended' you somehow, but I am not a pervert."
"Then what were you doing looking there. Remembering some basic anatomy."
Why was she on the defensive? What did he do? She always started fights like this, sometimes Knuckles thought she did it on purpose, just to annoy him.
"Look I didn't try, I didn't do..."
"Stuttering doesn't help your case."
"Look at you! You can't really look anywhere without being offensive. I mean your attractive."
A moment passed. This line stopped Rouge's counter attack. It was what she wanted to hear and she was ready to move on to the walk.
"Come on Knuckles." The bat started strolling away snapping her fingers at her side as if summing Knuckles like a dog. Slightly dumbfounded by Rouge's sudden change in temper, Knuckles wasn't sure how to respond.
After a second Rouge took notice that Knuckles wasn't following. She looked over her shoulder to see the baffled expression gazing back at her.
"You coming echidna?"
"No," Knuckles shook his head and glimpsed at the emerald. "I have to guard the Master Emerald."
"You're going to wither away watching that stupid thing just to one day find out noone was after it at all." The remark came out harsher then Rouge wanted it to, but she needed this time with him. He needed to know how she felt and he couldn't if he was all worried about that rock.
Knuckles sighed. She was defiantly the oddest person he had ever come to know, and her statements always found a way to get under his skin.
"Ryuu's after it."
"Not all hours of the night, Knuckles."
"But enough to keep me on my toes." Knuckles faced her, his annoyance rising. "The Master Emerald is all I have left of my tribe. I am here to protect it and that's what I'm going to do. I care about them and what will happen if the emerald ends up in Ryuu's possession."
Rouge was speechless for the first time that evening. She had finally struck a nerve in Knuckles that pushed him to the edge. He felt more than just obligation to his people and friends in watching that rock and she knew that.
Knuckles took no notice to his visitor's thoughts. As far as he knew, she was simply trying to lead him away from the gem so she could take it for herself. Grant it she hadn't done that in a while and certainly wouldn't try to endanger everyone by taking it from its guardian now, but still. Whatever she was doing in 'taking a walk' was for some selfish motive.
"I can't believe you can't understand that," Knuckles continued heading to attend to his gem. "But I guess that's not your focus, is it thief."
Upon hearing those words Rouge snapped out of her thoughts. He was not going to say that about her. Of course she cared about what was happening with Ryuu and what not, but she wasn't going to let it ruin her life. She had come to close to that already and wasn't about to relive it. Or allow someone to tell her she didn't care about anything else but herself.
The bat extended her wings and flew herself over to be eye level with Knuckles.
"Answer me this. When have you ever cared about an event outside of your rock?" Without waiting for a response, Rouge took off leaving the island for home.
Knuckles sighed and returned to watching the gem, and grieving the lose of his friend only four weeks ago.
"What happened!" Rouge came along side Shadow the day Sonic had been killed. Knuckles had just been found wounded in the side. A quick sting of fear struck Rouge's heart as she saw Knuckles laying motionless in the snow. Could he be dead...? Rouge shook the feeling not wanting to humor that thought. Also not to show fear. Still her breathing increased and she couldn't hold back a wave of panic. Rouge wanted to do something to help him, but couldn't.
"He's been poisoned, but I don't know by what." Shadow began checking the echidna for a heart beat. Amy joined the two by their fallen comrade.
"Is he going to be alright?"
"He has a pulse."
"Maybe we should take him to a doctor?" Tails also joined the group.
"What about Sonic?" Amy protested looking about for her beloved.
Knuckles winched a bit in pain as he began to regain consciousness. A bit of felicity raised in Rouge as Knuckles awoke. He was okay! The small celebration didn't last long, however, as Knuckles' face formed into a look of worry.
"Where's Sonic?" He gestured to the place where Sonic had been laying.
"What do you mean?" Amy was beginning to panic.
Knuckles then did as best he could to explain what happened. Hearing Sonic was dead was a shock to the whole group. The bigger shock for Rouge being Knuckles faced Ryuu head on... alone. He could have been killed. He could have been killed and he'd never know...
Not that Knuckles had never come close to death before, but Sonic...Sonic did die. Ryuu was serious, if he wanted to he probably could of...
"Rouge?"
The bat turned to face Shadow who took a moment to before speaking again. "You have more reason to be worried about Sonic."
"What?" Becoming a bit agitated as she fought back the welling in her eyes, Rouged turned away from Shadow.
"Knuckles is going to be fine."
"I know," Rouge's voice softened. "That's not what's bothering." Rouge extended her wings for take-off.
"I wouldn't advise going home alone."
"Maybe I don't want your advise, just...leave me alone." With that she left. Shadow never returned to the apartment after that.
Rouge entered her apartment. Closing the door behind her, Rouge just stood there. The room was dark, but her eyes were adjusting. Everything she had ever earned or stole was locked away in this room. Her finest gems, family memorabilia, and household goods.
"Everything I've ever needed." And indeed she had managed to get anything she ever set her mind on to get. There was nothing she wouldn't allow herself to have.
"And you never thought you'd be stolen from." A familiar voice came from the couch as if trying to finish her thought. Squinting into the darkness didn't identify the person, but Rouge knew who it had to be.
"Shadow? What are you doing back here?"
Shadow didn't answer, instead he rose to his feet and headed for the old room he use to occupy. "So your not going to talk to me. Just walk into my house, Shadow. Mi casa, tu casa."
The black hedgehog disappeared from the room. Rouge waited a few minutes after his departure before moving to her room. Flicking on the light to the master bedroom, the bat sighed. Being a night person it was odd for her to feel so tired, but Rouge pulled her sleep ware from the dresser and went to bed. The sooner today was over the better.
Morning didn't bring much relief. Rouge woke up at about five with the failed attempt of telling her feelings fresh on her mind. Remembering Shadow was at the apartment, Rouge threw a robe over her night gown before heading out into the kitchen. Putting on a pot of coffee Rouge sat down at the table.
Rouge placed an elbow on the table and propped her head in her hand. She watched the coffee brew slowly in its glass container. All she wanted to do was tell Knuckles how she felt about him, and though she expected a small fight or two, she didn't think she'd offend him the way she did. The Master Emerald was important, she knew that, she just wanted Knuckles to take a break from it. His whole life seemed to surround that stupid thing. How could she even hope to compete with that.
"Is it a two way street, or is it all about you?"
Rouge quickly rounded her seat to find Shadow standing in the door frame of the kitchen.
"Shut-up Shadow." Rouge returned to her original position trying to ignore Shadow's remarks. The black hedgehog joined her at the table and both sat in silence. Each had their own set of thoughts but nothing was expressed.
When the coffee had finished, Rouge got up from her seat and made herself a cup.
"Want some?" She asked. Shadow responded surprisingly with a nod. He had never wanted caffeinated beverages before. Oh well. Rouge poured Shadow a mug and sat down next to him. "So where have you been for the last month?"
Staring into his drink, Shadow decided to take Vanilla's advise. He had been living with Rouge for quite some time up until Sonic's death, and could admit to her being the closes 'friend' he had at the time. What could it hurt to try and get to know them. Without Sonic many of Sonic's friends were grieving and seemed to share a common pain with Shadow. Pain being something he knew much about.
"I've been walking."
"For a month? Really, were have you been?"
"Walking."
"So you've just been walking all this time. Why didn't you come back here?"
"I didn't think you wanted my company." Shadow sipped from his cup trying his best to remain engaged in the conversation. He hated chatting about futile things.
"Come on Shadow. Can't you give more detail than that?"
"Why do you need to know about me?"
"Because you've been missing for four weeks."
"And what about you?"
A questionable look was on Rouge's face. Shadow knew she had just finished a bad meeting with Knuckles. It would be the only place she'd go around Christmas. But watching her as he had for the past year, he's come to know Rouge as a selfish person. She would do just about anything to get what she wanted and was just recently learning Love doesn't work that way.
"I haven't been doing to much. Why?"
Shadow finished off his coffee before speaking. "You're being too demanding in your relationship."
It took a moment for Rouge to register what Shadow meant, but when she understood Rouge became furious.
"Don't you start. You don't even speak with people half the time and you think you can tell me how to treat others."
Vanilla's advise didn't seem to be the best in all cases. Shadow knew he was right about Rouge's attitude toward Knuckles. She was treating him like a prize to be won, or stolen, over accepting all that he was.
"You treat him like he's somehow beneath you. You've always played games with him and manipulated him. Why don't you be straight forward with him and treat him like an equal?"
This was Rouge second speechless moment for the week.
"Instead of seducing him to be interested in you why don't you humble yourself and allow him to choose you if he wants you."
He was right. She hated to admit it, but Shadow was right. Never had he spoken like that before, But He Was Right.
"Why don't I?"
Shadow tapped his finger impatiently on the surface of the table. Rouge watched for a moment thinking about what was said to her.
"Not use to coffee, yet?" Rouge asked breaking the silence.
"Amy gave me some yesterday and I liked it, thought I'd have some here. It wakes you up."
"Amy?" Rouge smirked. "I thought you said you went walking?"
"I did."
"And Amy fits into that how? Is that why you're giving me advise, Love Doctor?"
Shadow grunted at the response. "How about this. I'll try your advise about me and Knuckles if you fill me in on your 'little' love adventure with Amy Rose?"
"Don't make me hurt you."