Author's Chapter Notes:
As previously stated, I do not own Sonic the Hedgehog, likenesses, or anything. Infringement is unintentional, I assure you.
Tails was (trying) to give Sonic a bath while phoning for help at the same time. Both Knuckles and Amy had taken their baths with no problem; Sonic, infant or not, still hated water. He hated it with every fiber of his being.
So, while Tails kept him sitting in the ankle-deep water of the bath tub in his left hand, dialing Rouge the Bat with his right, and praying that the bat would know something about how to care for children, Sonic screamed and yelled and squalled so loudly that Tails was very glad to live in the Mystic Ruins. Had he lived anywhere else someone would have called the cops, afraid that he was murdering the little hedgehog.
He might as well have been, in Sonic's mind at least. The hedgehog couldn't believe his own "budder" would betray him like this. He didn't care one bit that he was dirty. He liked being dirty. He didn't like water, he didn't like baths; how dare Tails make him take one!
"OUT! OUT!" Sonic screeched so long and loud it sounded like a horrified howl.
His pleas fell on deaf ears; deaf to his pleas and certainly deaf to everything else now, Tails thought darkly. Rouge had better be home!
The phone rang once, twice, three times. Tails held his breath while, in one fluid motion, he took a cup of water, dumped it over Sonic's head, grabbed the shampoo, and lathered as much of the hedgehog's quills as he could while Sonic was still in a state of shock. The hedgehog took a breath, composed himself, and screamed to high Heaven.
"Pick up, Rouge," Tails murmured while pouring more water over Sonic's quills to rinse off the shampoo.
"NOOOOOO BATH!" Sonic squealed, then he settled down to a sort of whining chant. "NO bath! NO bath! NO bath! NONONONO NONONONONONONO…"
Rouge the Bat was getting prepped for another 'expedition' to Angel Island in order to 'liberate' the Master Emerald for her collection. It was her right; the Master Emerald was hers whether the Echidna thought so or not!
Just as she was heading out the door, her phone rang. She sighed and went back inside. Gliding past the stairs and into the kitchen where her phone was kept, she picked it up and heard the strangest sound she'd ever heard in her life.
"Hello?" she asked.
"Rouge?" asked a tired voice. In the background she heard another, younger sounding voice screaming, "NONONONONONO!" over and over and over…
"Tails, what on earth is going on over there?"
"Rouge, I can't really explain over the phone, but Eggman did something to Sonic, Amy, and Knuckles and—"
The "Nos" changed to: "I hate bathies! I hate watoo! I hate ebyting!"
"Excuse me a moment, will you?" Rogue heard him take a sharp intake of breath, then a muffled, "Will you shut up already? It won't kill you to take a bath!"
"Is killi me!"
"NO ONE has EVER died in TWO inches of water, but if you keep this up, I will GLADLY aid you in becoming the FIRST!"
"WAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
"Alright, fine, here! You're out of the tub. Lemme get you a towel…"
There were a few muffled noises Rouge couldn't quite make out, then Tails got back on the phone, sounding as if he'd just lost World War III. Certainly, something must have happened to make the kitsune act so out of character. "Could you come over for a bit? I really need your help."
"Is dat?"
"Hang on again." Once again there was a slight pause, then she faintly heard, "Not now Sonic, I'm on the phone."
"IS DAT!?"
"I'm talking to Rouge the Bat."
"Wo Bat?"
"Uh, yeah, I think…"
"I talky! I talky Wo Bat! Pweeease?"
"…Fine. Here."
The little voice all but exploded into her ears. "HI WO BAT! I IS TALKY YOU!"
"Augh!" Rouge pulled the phone away from her ears and the loud voice that presently accompanied it.
"I WIKE YOU!" The voice shouted, then it was gone as quickly as it came, and a tired sounding Tails replaced it.
"Please Rouge? I'm in a bit of a jam here," he pleaded. "Long story short, Eggman turned Sonic, Knuckles, and Amy into toddlers and I need you to babysit so I can find a cure. PLEASE help me!"
A slightly deeper, yet still childlike voice started yelling in the background. "I is NO baby! I Garden!"
"I KNOW THAT, KNUCKLES!" Tails yelled at the voice. Then he coughed and muttered a brief apology that the bat could barely hear over the ringing in her ears.
Rouge sighed. "Tails, I'm leaving on a job," she said.
"Rouge!"
"Don't panic, Tails, I'll find you a babysitter."
"Oh, thank you, Rouge! Thank you thank you thank—AMY GET AWAY FROM THE POWER COUPLETS!" And he hung up.
Rouge sighed dramatically and thought about who she could get to baby sit. Cream and her mother had left on vacation, the Chaotix were unavailable (Something about some top secret mission.) and of course, she was out of the question.
That left…well, why not? After all, he did owe her a favor.
Rouge smiled and dialed the phone again.