Chapter Text
The Lotus Canopy Zone was one of the most relaxed places that Bunnie had ever seen. Towering palm trees grew alongside gargantuan flower blossoms, creating an iridescent dome of greenery and flower petals that sunlight trickled through, kissing the environment with a soft emerald light. Hammocks were strung between the palm trees and sturdier flowers, with distant huts built in the tree tops giving a sense of life as the zone’s residents went about their daily lives.
Bunnie reclined in her chosen hammock, far from any residents but appreciating the sounds of activity. It reminded her of Knothole on its good days. She could hear the distant rush of waves far below her, but the environment didn’t feel tropical or luxurious like most of the seaside resorts that filled so many other zones. It just felt cozy and restful. A girl could nod off in a place like this.
“My my, I knew you’d like it here, but I had no idea you’d get so comfortable so fast!” said Rouge.
Bunnie’s eyes snapped open. She sat up in her hammock (an awkward action at the best of times, even with expertly designed hammocks built to cut down on superfluous jiggling) but couldn’t see who spoke.
“Rouge?” she said.
“Up here.”
Bunnie peered up and smiled. Rouge was hanging from the tree branches overhead, wrapped in her wings and obscured by the shadows. If she hadn’t started waving, Bunnie never would have seen her at all.
“Rouge! How long’ve you been up there, darlin’?”
“Long enough to appreciate how good you look when you’re relaxing, and to hear how cute your snoring is.”
“Hey, now I don’t snore,” said Bunnie.
“Oh, it’s nice though,” said Rouge. “It hardly counts, it’s practically purring.”
“Well, that’s good of you to say,” said Bunnie. “Stop hangin’ around up there, though! I can barely see ya!”
“If you insist!”
Rouge’s eyes twinkled and she released her hold on the tree branch, and plummeted through the air. Bunnie gasped and tried to steady herself, but hammocks are famously enemies of all who would try to become steady. She gulped as Rouge plummeted and braced for impact reflexively…
…only for Rouge’s wings to snap open, billow full with air, and allow her to more gently drop the last few feet on top of Bunnie, who giggled and pulled the bat even closer.
“Y’all nearly scared me to death, girl!”
“Scaring to death is the best way to liven things up,” said Rouge. She blushed just a bit as Bunnie held her. It felt good to be up against Bunnie. Really good. She wasn’t used to someone else being as forward as she was, but she could definitely get used to it…
“You were right about this place,” said Bunnie. “I was worried it was gonna be another dull beach resort or casino, but this place takes the carrot cake.”
“I had a feeling you might like something a little less touristy, a little more woodsy,” said Rouge. “It’s still palm trees on the ocean, of course, but…”
“No, no, you’re right, it feels like a forest,” said Bunnie. “Best of both worlds. I might go explorin’ ‘round the huts later, see what the locals get up to for fun, but it’s so nice to just relax.”
“Wonderful plan,” said Rouge. “And now that I know you found the place well, I’ll be sure to hurry back to see what fun you’ve set up for yourself.”
“Wait, you have to leave already? I was hoping we could spend a few hours together…”
“Well… I suppose I could delay a few hours,” said Rouge. “Dawn won’t reach that zone for a bit yet, and I don’t have to be there right away…”
“What’s this big job that’s got you fussin’ over the timetables so much anyway?”
Rouge bit her lip and started to answer when a sudden thwip-thwip-thwip-thwipping noise billowed through the treetops. Their hammock swayed like a boat in a storm as a gust of wind blew through and Bunnie and Rouge both looked around in panic until Rouge spotted it: a massive helicopter pushing its way through the canopy. Eggman’s logo was emblazoned on the size of it, and dozens of Eye-Spies poured out of its open doors while two Egg Robos peered out of its windshield.
Distant screams came from the huts at the sight of this intrusive, militaristic raid. Bunnie and Rouge hugged each other in fear for a moment as a searchlight hanging from the base of the helicopter activated and started sweeping through the territory.
“No, they’ll see us,” said Bunnie. “This is brazen even for Robotnik. A random raid for canon noncompliance? Why now… Oh, they’ll see us together, and then tear us apart…”
“They won’t get the chance,” said Rouge. “I can hide. I can stay out of sight and keep them from ever knowing that I was here.”
“Or we could fight,” said Bunnie. “It’s just a helicopter and a buncha badniks. Barely a miniboss.”
“If we fight it, they’ll know for sure,” said Rouge. “Even if we won, they’d radio it in and we’d be on the run.”
“Just me,” said Bunnie. “You’re locked in to the canon. I can go into hiding, it wouldn’t be the first time.”
“I don’t want to risk you,” said Rouge, holding her hand up to Bunnie’s face. Bunnie smiled softly, and closed her eyes.
“All right,” she said. “Go hide, Rouge.”
The bat smiled and saluted, and as the spotlight swept toward their hammock she gripped the side of it and swung herself beneath, gripping to the underside of the hammock just as Bunnie was illuminated. The helicopter drew closer and the thunderous sound of its spinning blades grew noisier.
“Bunnie Rabbot, An Anonymous Tip Indicated That You Were Engaging In Canon Non-Compliance!”
Bunnie recoiled at the sound of the robotic voice from the helicopter’s loudspeaker, and she watched the swarm of Eye-Spies warily.
“Ah’m just tryin’ to relax here in the trees!” she shouted back. “Get outta here, y’flyin’ albatross, I need my beauty sleep!”
“Bunnie Rabbot, You Are Under Arrest For Canon Non-Compliance.”
“But… but I ain’t doin’ anything wrong!”
“You are a Non-Compliant Character,” said the loudspeaker voice. “You are not doing anything wrong. You ARE wrong.”
Bunnie felt like her insides turned to ice. She breathed heavily for a moment but waved her arm.
“No, no, I’m not non-compliant! I’m just… I’m a retired character! I’m I’m I’m not against the rules, I’m just… old-school! I… I might be in Sonic Blitz if that comes out!”
“As of today, your status of Retired Character is less significant than your status as Non-Canon Character,” said the loudspeaker. The laser gun on the helicopter began charging and sparks on the tinier weapons on the Eye-Spies began crackling. “Submit Yourself To Arrest By The Fandom Consensus Board And Doctor Eggman!”
Before Bunnie could even consider denying, the helicopter’s laser blaster fired. She was familiar with Robotnik’s crowd-control tactics, however, and swung herself over the side of the hammock to dodge out of the way as the lasers sliced through the netting, turning the hammock into a clumsy rope that snapped her away thanks to the tension stored in the formerly suspended bedding.
Part of her mind clocked that Rouge hadn’t been under the hammock anymore, which gave her relief, and confusion.
“Impossible!” trilled one of the Eye-Spies. “Bunnie Rabbot Does Not Canonically Possess Super Speed, Dodging Laser Fire Does Not Compute!”
Bunnie swung back, clutching the rope with her organic arm and pulverizing seven Eye-Spies in a row thanks to her pendulous momentum and their baffled positioning. She grabbed the Eye-Spy that spoke as her swing carried her further up, and smiled at it.
“Be a dear an’ transmit somethin’ to your boss that lets him know he messed up,” said Bunnie. “Freedom Fighters ain’t non-canon, we’re in Sonic Spinball. We’re just retired. If he wants to swipe us outta that, we’ll be ready for an encore of the old days; if’n memory serves, those didn’t work out so well for him. Y’got that, darlin’?”
“Does… Does Not Compu-”
Bunnie crushed the Eye-Spy in her metal grip and looked back up at the helicopter she was arcing toward. She reached the end of the rope’s swing and jumped, taking a deep breath as she hit a brief, exhilarating moment of free fall. She punched her mechanical arm forward, and it extended, telescoping forward just far enough for the base of the helicopter to be in reach.
But the Egg Robos piloting it saw her, pulled the controls to the side, and the helicopter bobbed just barely too far for her mechanical fingers to grip.
Bunnie started falling and, reflexively, retracted her arm back. She looked down at the rocky seas and occasional sandy beaches far, far, FAR below her and gulped. She clicked her feet together and they started issuing a gout of flame which momentarily slowed her fall until the fire sputtered, coughed, and extinguished, sending her back into the plummet. She started hyperventilating, looked up, and saw the two Egg Robos giving each other a high five as she tumbled down.
“Better’n goin’ out to a badnik,” she said. “Goodbye Sally girl… Rotor, you were right about keepin’ the rocket boots fueled… Sonic, Tails, Nicole, Dulcy… dear ol’ Antoine… goodbye R… Rouge.”
Tears welled in her eyes as she thought about never seeing Rouge again, about not being in her life anymore.
And then she was grabbed from behind by a bat moving faster than she’d ever seen anyone fly before.
“You called?” said Rouge, holding the rabbit in her arms. Bunnie looked into Rouge’s eyes and gasped. Rouge looked back and while she was trying to stay cool and focused, Bunnie could see the genuine worry and fear hiding behind them.
“Y… you saved me! Oh, Rouge, you saved me!”
“Just learning from the best. You saved your beau Antoine from falling back in the day, right?”
Bunnie giggled, leaned up and kissed Rouge. Rouge leaned into it as best as she could while carrying someone. The kiss was short-lived as an explosion rocked the air behind them, causing them both to gasp and look back at the now-pursuing helicopter, launching another missile! Rouge spun out of the way, nearly dropping Bunnie.
“It’s gainin’ on us!” said Bunnie.
“Yep. Hold on.”
Rouge pulled back her wings and, simply, stopped flying. She started plummeting again and shifted Bunnie into a more comfortable arm-cradle and Bunnie clutched Rouge’s neck harder.
“Uhh… uhh, Rouge, honey, the ground…”
“We’re fine,” said Rouge. Another missile zipped by overhead and detonated worryingly close to where they might have been had they not started dropping. The helicopter tracked their new trajectory and took a moment to adjust its own flight path.
“That bought us some time,” said Rouge.
“Coulda warned a girl, girl,” said Bunnie.
“No time! I think you’re right about fighting it. It’s left the Eye-Spies behind, but it also looks more durable than the R-1/A Flying Dog.”
“Yeah, but less durable than the Heavy Gunner’s chopper,” said Bunnie. “That thing was mostly using its own crew as shieldin’, anyway.”
“I wouldn’t know, I didn’t live that game.”
“I just played it.”
“I don’t play the games.”
“You don’t play the games?” asked Bunnie, shocked.
“I mean, not often, I’d rather be out treasure hunting.”
“Sonic Mania’s so good, though!”
“I’m sure it is, but… this is off topic, and that thing’s starting to descend, fast.”
“It got the jump on us, but now we can go on the offensive,” said Bunnie. “Stop flyin’ away from the thing. Get me onto it.”
“You sure? Isn’t running safer?”
“Oh yeah,” said Bunnie. “But there’s a time when y’gotta stop runnin’ and hidin’, and a time when you’ve gotta start punchin’, and I do be believe it’s been that time for a bit now. Get me on that oversized soda can, I’ll make it go pop.”
Rouge nodded, opened her wings, and slowed their descent with a controlled glide. She twirled to the side, and the descending helicopter dropped past them, its Eggrobo pilots staring in shock. Once it was below them, Rouge dove, took aim, and (being mindful of both the primary helicopter blades and the balancing propeller at the back) threw Bunnie onto the back of it.
Bunnie landed on the roof of the helicopter, punching her fist into the metal to stabilize herself. Like most people, she could stand on the back of a moving aircraft without too much trouble, but considering it was adjusting from a rapid descent she didn’t want to take chances. Once she’d acclimated to the inertia, she carefully climbed to the side, wound up her robotic arm, and punched through the wall, damaging the engine compartment. The blades slowed down and an alarm started sounding. She pulled back her fist and punched again. A hatch opened and one of the Eggrobos peeked out. It drew its laser rifle and began charging a blast, but Bunnie punched a third time and the Engine sputtered, coughed, and died. She jumped toward the hatch, just missing the Eggrobo’s blast and smirked as the energy weapon’s discharge did even more damage to the already-wrecked engine.
“Y’picked the wrong rabbit, robo,” said Bunnie, grabbing onto the side of the helicopter just behind it. The Eggrobo spun its head around to see her, just in time for Bunnie’s metallic fist to cave in its face. She pushed it back into the hatch and dropped in as well, taking a moment to look inside it and saw a nervous Locky eagle stuck in a compartment inside. She crushed the side of the chamber, and the Locky flew out, quickly.
“Thank goodness I’m the only one who can’t fly here,” she said. “Stay safe, little eagle!”
The sound of another weapon charging behind her made her sigh. She hopped back out of the hatch just fast enough for the second Eggrobo’s blast to miss her and saw that the helicopter really was too close to the rocky waters below for comfort. She dropped back into the helicopter and raced toward the eggrobo, not having the time to be fancy. In a moment it was wrecked, and she released the Flicky bird within.
Rouge was having trouble keeping up with the crashing helicopter, especially now that it was shedding debris, but when she saw the second tiny animal fly out she knew it was time. She drill-kicked down toward the helicopter faster, and landed on the surface just as Bunnie rose from the access hatch. She offered a gentle hand to the rabbit, who took it with a smile, and they both leaped off together.
Rouge carried Bunnie as she glided away, and the helicopter crashed into the shallow waters below them.
“I guess we’re fugitives now,” said Rouge.
“Bound to happen to me again sooner or later,” said Bunnie. “But hey, least we’re on the lam together, right?”
Rouge smiled and flew into the sunset.