Rouge The Bat: Happily Married

Rouge the Bat and Thomas Adriani have been married for one year.
It is their first anniversary.

-----------------------------------------

The Bat strolled through the mansion's hallways, present in hand,
trying not to run. Her husband, Thomas, sat in the living room
reading the morning newspaper. Unusual for this time of the day,
he was dressed in business clothes. More unusual, Rouge was in her
best dress. She tried not to run, slowly climbing onto the couch,
pushing his newspaper down. "Happy anniversary, Tom," she greeted,
slowly pecking lips, tongue down his throat, taking the chance to
place the box in his hand.

Breaking the kiss, Rouge wrapped an arm around his shoulders,
watching as he untied the bow, smiling gently as the paper was
gently undone. "Oh, wow..." he muttered as the lid was removed,
revealing a very fancy gold watch. The face was black with gold lines
representing the numbers, thick Roman numerals at the three, six,
nine and twelve marks.

She said, "here, let me help," latching it around his wrist. "Like
it?" Rather than answering, Tom kissed her again, hand reaching for
her chest with a gentle squeeze. She moaned softly through her
breath. Pulling back, Rouge, controlling her dirty thoughts,
responded, "Tom... we have lunch reservations in two hours. Better not
do that yet. Although... no." Closing her eyed, she leaned back.

"Best to do that when we can spend some time on it, right?" he
replied, not at all sorry he felt her up.

"Well," Rouge clarified, "if we get into that, we won't even leave
the house. I'd hate to waste a special day like this." Her eyes
looked into his soul, begging to ask the question.

"You want your present..." Tom leaned forward, nose an inch from
hers. "You said yourself, you're the world's greatest treasure hunter,
right?"

"This sounds interesting," she muttered, curious as to his plan.

He continued, "I hid your present somewhere. You have to find it.
Should take someone of your skill about five minutes."

Somehow, Rouge liked the idea. It gave her a chance to use her skills
once more. "Wait here," she said, walking off. Running to the
bedroom, she dug out black tights and white boots, stripping off
the dress and easing into her old clothes. The pink chest plate
clipped into place and her necklace set aside, Rouge grabbed her
gloves. The digging claws in the end were still sharp.

Regaining her old senses took seconds. The call of treasure was faint,
but she picked it up. It was outside, likely somewhere in the fruit
fields. 'Sneaky of him,' she thought, opening a window and flying
out. Gaining enough altitude to survey the grounds, the bat flew to
the general area where it felt strongest, hovering over the ground.

The old well was her first stop. 'No... not there," she mused,
checking the grating. It was still firmly in place, and Tom wouldn't
be able to climb down it anyway. Senses drew her into the air again,
slowly flying to the nearby river that bordered the field. Rain
overnight had left the ground muddy and soft, any possible footprints
washed away. Not that she even has a clue when he would have
hidden her gift.

She had time to take a quick bath. Dirt and mud wouldn't stand in
the way of Rouge Adriani finding the treasure.

Drawn to a spot, she dug, slinging mud and rocks aside. Only two feet
down rested a sturdy metal box, padlocked. It seemed a bit old,
she considered, for Tom to have buried it, but it didn't matter.
Tearing it free from the muck, the heavy crate slammed into the
ground, leaving an impression in the grass. The padlock was
meaningless, cut in half with a quick swipe. The lid flipped open.

Rouge's eyes widened.

She thought, "screw the lunch date! He's getting laid right now!'


Thomas Adriani had his own senses. He knew when Rouge was staring at
him. He was also certain that he'd developed a keen sense to the
pheromones she let off. Not that it was really a smell that he could
physically sense, but he knew when his wife was horny. Lowering the
morning paper, he saw her, sultry smile, eyes fixed on him. Her only
order was, "unzip your pants. Bathtub. Right now. We're not going
anywhere!"

Tom cocked an eyebrow. "What the hell have you been doing?" She didn't
adjust her gaze.

"I found your gift.... nice hiding spot, too bad I can sense jewels,"
she responded.

"No, seriously, why are you covered in mud and dirt?" he asked again,
very perplexed. "Your gift is in the house...." Confusion kicked in,
her sex drive overridden. Pulling the crate into the open, she showed
him the contents. "Oh my god..." he stuttered, the sight overwhelming.
The old metal box was filled with jewelry and precious stones.
"Where DID you find this?"

"In the riverbank," she said, "not far from the surface. But if this
isn't your gift...."

Taking a small wooden piece off the bookshelf, he showed it to her.
"I was wondering why you walked right past it. I thought maybe your
senses were dead. Guess something bigger kicked in?" he explained.
The small piece of furniture had four small drawers and a door with
clear glass, a faint white flower painted on the front. She could
see various necklaces hanging from hooks inside. He opened the
door.

"Tom... I...." Rouge was stunned.

"Here, let me help," he said, pulling her gloves off. She removed the
various necklaces. Fine gold and silver chains with small gemstones.
She could now see the slotted pads holding several rings in place.
"This one's special," he pointed out, pressing a button on the larger
necklace. Out popped a small black object with golden strips on the
end. "Small data chip. You can keep important files on it."

The small objects filled her with happiness. Embracing him, she
shouted, "I love them! They're so beautiful! Thank you! ....oh..."
Embarrassed, she drew back. Tom's shirt was dirty.

"I can clean up," he assured her.

"Right, our day out!" Rouge blurted. He swept her off her feet,
literally, walking towards the bathroom.

The couple lay in bed. Rouge liked the way her dress felt, gently
gripping her feminine curves, showing them off without hiding a single
line. She kicked her heels off, toes stretching, freed from the
evening. Tom was on his side, looking down at her. The day was done,
their first anniversary over.

"Tom... why do you love me so much?" she asked. "We made it a year.
We don't even fight..."

"I don't know," he replied, laying a hand on her stomach. "You have a
wonderful body, but that's not it. Well, not ALL of it." Easing down,
Tom looked her in the eyes. "It was that first time you came to this
mansion... I saw it in your eyes. Yeah... it was your eyes I noticed."

"Really?" She was very interested in hearing his reason.

"I saw it in you... that spark of honesty and caring you tried to
hide. It's why you stayed behind instead of just running off with the
necklace." Laying beside her, Tom's other arm slid under her back,
behind her head and began rubbing her ears. "Still... I like touching
you. I like the sound of your voice and the way you- well, you know
how to get what you want. I like being with you."

Rouge began to unbutton his shirt. "So, it's the full package, not
just one thing... wanna know why I love you so much?" His answer
was phrased by a gentle kiss. She responded, "you were the first
guy who gave me any decent attention back. I had a lot of guys yell
at me."

"I know," Tom said, "you never deserved it, either."

"Oh... maybe I did," Rouge lamented. "I never knew when to back down."

"If you'd backed down from me, I'd be dead, remember?" Tom assured
her. She smiled at him, the idea that she'd done something good for
someone in her stubborn ways. "Don't ever back down. Not if you're
sure of anything, you got me?" he finished. She nodded.

"I have to admit, Tom, part of it was because I'm just a sucker for
a handsome man..."

He replied with a hint of filth in his voice, "and I'm a sucker for a
woman with big boobs." Sliding the shoulder straps of her dress down,
he continued, "I love you, Rouge. I'll say it until the end of time
if I have to."

"Tom... I love you. You don't know how good it feels to have someone
to say that to..." No more words were said as the couple kissed
passionately, ready to set their night on fire.


It was noon. Rouge was on the phone, trying to get through to the
Central City hall of records. The mystery of the crate still
bothered both of them. Not that she didn't like them, of course,
but how they got there... well, that was a question she wanted
answered.

"Yes... Rouge Adriani. ADRIANI!" she shouted. The person she was
talking to wasn't interested, she could tell.

Tom heard the knocking at the front door. Answering it, he looked
down. 'Oh, great...'

Amy Rose was looking up at him. "HI! You guys didn't have a party
yesterday! Why not?" He didn't want to put up with her. He really
wasn't that fond of the little girl anyway. "And where's Rouge?" Amy
asked, honestly expecting an answer.

"She's on the phone," he aswered, hoping Amy would leave. He wasn't
that lucky.

She kept staring at him, again asking, "why didn't you have a big
party?"

"Because it was OUR day, not something we wanted to share!"

"Then why were you two in the newspaper? Your picture was in the
social section!" The little girl was being unreasonably stubborn
about it, and Tom knew why. Amy was jealous of Rouge. "Nevermind,
she can tell me herself!" she blurted out, running past him into
the mansion.

"HEY!" he shouted, knowing it would be pointless. Amy wasn't going to
leave until she got her answer or someone threw her out.

"Yes, I understand. Thank you," Rouge said, hanging up the phone.
Turning, she saw the pink hedgehog running towards her. "Amy?"

"ROUGE! We're your friends, and you didn't invite ANYONE to celebrate
your anniversary! How selfish of you!"

"You rude little girl!" Rouge shouted back. "Barging into our home
like this and chewing me out for something that's none of your
business! What would you know about love? Sonic keeps running away
from you! Get out of my home, you little brat!"

Amy was upset. She said, quietly, "... fine...." as she ran off.

Horrified, Rouge watched. She had yelled at Amy for no reason.
Flying through the house, she caught the girl by the arm. "Let go of
me!" "ANY! Please... I didn't mean it!" Rouge shouted, a sorry look
on her face. "I- you didn't deserve that."

Tom found them. "She ran past me and-"

"It's okay," Rouge said, "she can stay."

Checking his watch, Tom exclaimed, "I have to get into the office and
sign payroll checks. Be gone about an hour."

Hovering high enough to give him a quick kiss, she said, "we'll be
fine here." As he walked away, Rouge took the floor beside the
hedgehog. "We should talk. You want some ice cream?"


"WOW! He bought you all of this?" Amy was amazed by the jewelry
display.

"He did... Amy, do you really understand what marriage means?" Rouge
didn't wait for her answer. "It means you're willing to spend your
entire life with someone you love."

"So why didn't you marry Knuckles?" Amy asked.

"Marry HIM? That-" She regained her composure. "I didn't LOVE him.
Just... I liked something he had."

Amy stated, "you mean the Master Emerald, right?"

"Maybe something else, too..." she muttered, "but I didn't love him.
I didn't get to know him well enough. And he didn't like me. And
Shadow, he..." She sighed. "He won't let anyone get close enough to
him."

Amy finished her ice cream. "They let you down, right?"

"In a way," Rouge answered, "but it worked out. I met someone else
who did love me back. You understand now?"

"I think so," Amy replied. "Knuckles and Shadow weren't meant for
you. That means..."

"Sonic still runs away from you, doesn't he?"

The little girl looked away. "Does that mean maybe Sonic isn't the
one I'm supposed to be with?"

"NO! Not at all!" Rouge assured her. "You're only thirteen! But think
about this, if you do meet someone else and things go well, then
would it be so bad?" She thought about what she'd just said. "Still,
don't give up just because of that! Here..."

Sifting through the books, she checked the titles. "Hmm.... heh, not
that one, you're not old enough," Rouge muttered, placing the
book on sex back in its place. "Ah, here it is," she pointed out,
handing Amy the book.

"Romance tips for teenage girls?" Amy was a bit surprised. "Will this
help me?"

"Amy, I want you to keep that book. Read it well. And do the EXACT
OPPOSITE of what that book tells you to do!" Rouge ordered. It was
the advice in that book that had resulted in the constant annoyance
of a certain red echidna. "Especially the part where it tells you to
make up a boyfriend to get a guy jealous! I tried that when I was
sixteen... it REALLY doesn't work if the guy's not interested."

Amy flipped through the pages. "Okay, I'll try..."

Grabbing her purse, Rouge withdrew some money. "Take this, too. Buy
some new clothes. You're still wearing that red dress you had on
when I met you! And maybe some new shoes, okay?"

"Okay.... thanks!" Amy said, taking the cash. "You changed a lot,
you know that?"

"I didn't really change, dear," Rouge defended, "I just... Tom just
brought some of my better qualities to the surface. You still live
in Central City, don't you?"

Amy responded, "uh huh!"

"Good. If you ever need to talk, you're welcome in my house. But...
call before you stop by, okay?"

"You mean, to make sure you're not... umm..." Amy stuttered,
embarrassed by what she'd just implied.

Rouge placed a hand on her shoulder. "That's something we'll get into
when you're a little older..."

Rouge led Amy to the front door. Tom's car was just pulling up as
the girl left. "I see it went well," he greeted.

"Very well," Rouge replied, pleased with how it had gone.

"I forgot to give you this yesterday," he said, handing her a card.
A unicorn painting was printed on the front. Inside was the text YOU
MAKE EVERYDAY SPECIAL.

She took note of the image on the front. "It's a beautiful painting."
Where'd you get this card?"

"It's sold by a charity group. The paintings are done by the mentally
handicapped and the cards are sold to fund the group. Thought it was
worth it. So, what'd you find out from the city?"

Her train of thought left the card. "Oh, that... nothing. The city's
records only go back to your grandfather's ownership of the land,
back when the river was dug out."

"Right, I remember the story, the city government dug the river out
because he paid for it, to help with the winery. Think maybe that
box washed here in the current?" Tom asked.

"Hardly," she quipped. "I could barely pull that thing out of the
ground. There's no way a river could carry that."

"Why no older records, anyway?" Tom inquired, curious.

She answered, "all the older files were destroyed in the Black Arms
invasion before they could be recorded to computer data. The history
went up in fire and explosions..."

Tom sat down. "Guess where they came from is gonna be a mystery.
Oh well, finders keepers."

"Maybe not," she said, "I have one way to find out what we need to
know..."


"Thank you for getting this for me," Rouge said, taking the envelope.

"You earned small favors such as this." The GUN Commander stood at
the door, his limousine waiting.

"I did, didn't I?" she muttered, somewhat angry at herself. "I did a
lot of awful things as a field agent. You know why I left..."

"We all do some awful things to keep the world safe. You will always
be a GUN agent to us. Don't forget, sometimes one has to get their
hands dirty to make things right. I'm glad you found a way out...
I have to be going." He left as Rouge closed the door.

She handed the packet to her husband. "They find something?"

"Something, yes," she said, "not sure if it'll be worth anything,
though."

Thomas opened the envelope. "Yeah... this is back when the land was
purchased. My great-grandfather was the first to come to this
country. He bought the land and started the wine business. As I
understand, my grandfather built the mansion. Whoa..."

"Find something?" she asked eagerly.

He continued, "dad was unhappily married... my grandfather was
unhappily married... looks like great-grandpa was divorced. Yeah...
he kept the land and twenty percent of his money, she got the rest.
But...."

"The old coot converted a lot of his money into precious stones and
buried them, didn't he?" This revelation seemed right to her. It's
something she would have done in such a situation.

"Looks like it," he said. "A good deal of his money went missing
before she could collect. Hidden right under everyone's noses.
Still, why leave it there?"

Rouge considered the facts. "They missed it when the river was dug
up. How much you wanna bet your grandfather had that river dug so
he could find it-"

"-and claim it was all a coincidence, to keep it for himself?" Tom
finished. "So what do we do with it?"

"There's no record of the jewels existing... and any legal claim to
them is likely null by now," Rouge said.

"Then they're yours," Tom said, kissing her on the cheek. "They were
ordered to go to the wife of an Adriani, and that's where they're
going! How much you suppose they're worth, anyway?"

"Two million." He gave her an odd look. "What? Jewel appraisal is
a skill of mine."

"Looks like you got very lucky," he remarked.

She grinned, crawling over to him, hands unbuttoning her lover's
shirt. "And you're about to get very lucky!"


Morning. Rouge enjoyed her vanilla coffee as Tom walked into the
living room. "Morning..." Sleep was in his voice.

She handed him a cup. "You awake?" she asked.

"Enough, yeah..." he responded. "Good," she continued, "because I....
I have a confession."

"Um..." he managed, wondering what she was going to hit him with.

"You remember the card you gave me and the charity, right?" He nodded.
"Well," she said, "I looked into them and called them earlier.
They were about to go under from lack of funds. You know what they
do? Good things. GREAT things! They give people homes and food and
put money into medical research to help people! They give those people
jobs! And..."

She closed her eyes. "I found two million worth of jewels in our
backyard. We live a very easy life, don't we?"

Without a word, Tom took her hand and sat beside her. "You gave them
two mil. I don't mind."

"You don't?" she asked.

"No," he responded, "you did something good for a lot of people. Not
like two mil is a big dent for us. You... you really didn't think I
was gonna get mad, did you?"

"Well... no, no I didn't," she answered cheerfully. "I want to become
more involved with charity donations. I don't need to get my hands
dirty to help people any more."

"Sounds good," he said. "I'm proud of you.

She laughed. "We helped each other... I broke your family curse of
unhappy marriages," she commented, "and you helped me be a good
person. I'm not the stuck-up greedy bitch I used to be."

"I know," Tom thought out loud, "charity night at the casino. Big
yearly event, all the winnings go to the poor and needy."

Rouge smiled. She liked the idea. "Very good, Tom. I'll call Vic and
start work on that later today."