Simplest Of Jewels

Author Notes – Gah, sorry this has taken forever and a half…yup, that's all I gotta say.

Oh, no, wait.

To all those who've appreciated my bold step into this couple and have not flamed me, I give you all hugs.

To those who flamed me (just one, I believe) , kiss my grass.

Day Two.

Rouge dimly opened her eyes to her now familiar surroundings. She stretched her wings, and quickly regretted it, feeling sharp pain throughout her shoulder and back. She groaned in pain, putting an arm over her eyes. What didn't help was she had that strange dream again…fabulous wealth at her fingertips, and a ridiculous riddle that seemed to be about the locket she had stolen. 'My greatest treasure is also my simplest.' was the only clue given.

She removed her arm and dug out the locket from under her pillow. While doing so, she stole a glance to the sleeping cat and frog. Big was on his back, Froggy on his large stomach. With every breath Big took, Froggy was lifted up and down. Rouge couldn't help but chuckle…it was an interesting and rather cute sight. The other day reeled back into her mind…he was a native child to this dense jungle, and although his mind was slow, his heart was fast in judging Rouge, listening to her tale of woe and offering comfort.

She shook her head, trying to dismiss the memory, snatching her locket and looking at it. She ran a thumb over the encrusted jewels, admiring its beauty. Her reflection shone back at her, and for some reason, she didn't like the sight.

'Perhaps because it's the face of a lying slut?' Her mind chided. She growled and turned over onto her back. So what if she was lying? Who was it hurting? She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. She smelled the heavenly hot air of the dense jungle, filling her with a deep relaxation…

…Followed by fish breath.

She quickly looked to her side, and saw Big sit up, smiling. "Good morning, Miss Rouge!" He said rather jollily. Froggy was climbing onto his back and then onto his head, to rest between the big cat's ears.

"Whatever." She muttered, painfully sitting up. "I suppose it's another round of fish for breakfast."

He nodded and sat up, taking his fishing pole, which had been leaning on a nearby wall. "You should come with me, Miss Rouge. We can wash your pretty locket, so it will shine more."

Rouge looked down at the locket. She had to admit, it had gotten rather dirty since she arrived. She raised an eyebrow, contemplating. Although there was dirt and grime upon it, its pure beauty still stood out. Perhaps even with those jewels covered, it would still be a lovely sight, for whatever was inside was sure to be heavenly. 'A diamond in the rough…'

"Miss Rouge?"

She blinked. "Oh, uh…sure." She twitched her nose, annoyed that she had gotten lost in thought. She walked out of the door, and Big followed. As they walked to the river, Rouge smirked, getting a devilish idea in mind. She hadn't met a man who hadn't flustered and blushed at this…since Big was behind her, she gave her own behind a little wiggle for show, and looked back to see his reaction.

To her shock, he was normal. Heck, he wasn't even looking at her! His eyes were straight ahead, and he bobbed his head side to side, as if listening to imaginary music. Froggy leapt down and hopped alongside his partner for some exercise.

Rouge walked onward, but was now very confused. After all, for all the men she had met, there were a very low percentage of those who didn't look at her behind, or her chest, or her pretty face. Big did not have a case of wandering eyes.

And it startled her.

---

John, back in civilization, was with Zack at the shooting range downtown of Station Square. Zack didn't seem all that interested, flipping a page in his book as his partner shot down several targets.

"There's no need to practice, you know." Zack finally said, looking up. "You have the best aim in our entire squad."

"It needs to get better." John snapped, firing again. "I want that chick to suffer. Thinks she can get away humiliating us like that…"

Zack rolled his eyes and flipped a page. "She's probably dead, John. No one lives out there. It's practically deserted."

John ignored the remark and looked at the book. "What are you reading, you bookworm?"

Zack closed it and pointed to the cover, which read 'Famous Myths and Legends of Station Square'. "Just researching that locket…I'm kinda curious about that 'greatest treasure'."

"Bunch of crap, that's what it is." John returned to firing the targets. "Nothing great could have fit in that small thing."

Zack shrugged. "Wouldn't hurt to know."

He flipped another page, and the contents in the next paragraph highly intrigued him. "Hey, John, listen to this theory…"

---

Same as the day before, Big sat atop a rock and fished, Froggy by his side. Rouge had to wonder how he could stand doing the same routine every day. She sat next to the rock on her knees, splashing water onto the locket to clean it.

"Don't you get tired of doing the same thing everyday?" she finally asked him, looking up at him.

"Nope." He simply replied, watching his lure bob up and down in the water.

"But doesn't it get…predicable?"

"Nope." He looked at her with a smile. "I didn't know I'd have a friend visit me."

She lowered her shoulders in discomfort. Why was he so NICE? "What makes us friends?" she snapped before she thought.

"I've seen you with Sonic and his friends. You help save the world from bad things."

"Of course I do, it's my job."

He tilted his head, confused.

She smirked proudly. "You're looking at G.U.N.'s top secret agent." She forgot to leave out the little matter that she had been in hot water there too…not telling the government about the Shadow clones (Sonic Heroes), and of course this recent theft would probably help get her fired.

His eyes widened and his ears stood straight up. "Wow…you must be very important."

"That's one way of putting it." She muttered, taking her locket out of the water. She then realized she had nothing to dry it with. "Oh, crud…"

"What's wrong, Miss Rouge?" Big looked at her.

"I don't have anything to dry with this."

Big thought a little, then shifted around his rock, sticking his tail in her face. Rouge blinked. "Okay, WHAT are you-"

"Dry it with my tail."

She blinked again. "But…your tail will get dirty!"

He shrugged. Rouge decided she didn't really care and grabbed his tail, scrubbing the locket with it. "You're not one for cleanliness, are you?"

Big raised his fishing pole, inspecting the hook. "I clean when I have to."

Rouge's face twisted. She had heard rumors that cat creatures used their tongue to clean their bodies…disgusting! "Just give me a warning before you do." She shuddered, now drying the back of the locket.

Big tilted his head. "Huh?"

"Never mind."

A few moments later, she released his tail, and admired the shine the locket gave. She traced a finger around the smooth gold sides, feeling the closed ridges. The small-encrusted jewels stared right back at her, glimmering in clean beauty. It was pure eye-candy. To think, there was something even more beautiful locked inside…it was nearly overwhelming. She felt hypnotized by the sparkling lovelies, running more fingers around the jewelry.

"Miss Rouge?"

Rouge, startled, quickly looked up, almost falling onto her back. Big had turned around to look at her, his face looking more confused than worried. Froggy was wallowing in the water, enjoying how cool it made his clammy skin feel.

Rouge blinked. "What?"

"You looked funny."

Rouge's eyes narrowed. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"You kept staring at your pretty locket so hard…like you were being sucked in." His ears folded, the worry now surfacing.

Rouge snorted. "You're delusional. What's wrong with looking at it? You just said it was pretty."

Big put his head straight. "You really like pretty things, huh?"

That was putting it lightly. She was, after all, a jewel thief. Ever since she had begun life on her own, she obsessed with snatching those beautiful objects for herself. The way they shone, the magnificent colors, the rapture of having it all to herself… "Of course. And what could be more beautiful than something like this?" She smirked, looking down at the locket. "This is probably worth a fortune…"

Big's gaze never wavered. "You said you bought that for yourself. How did you afford it, if it's worth a fortune?"

Rouge's voice caught in her throat. She couldn't let him know the truth, not now! She needed to hide and heal, and if she were left out alone in this wilderness, she'd never make it. "I…um…" she took a few quick moments to recollect herself. "G.U.N. pays me very well. I think I got this very cheap; the former owner was very old and probably didn't know how much this could really bring." She responded very quickly, her words falling on top of one another.

Big blinked, and then looked to the water, casting his line again. He seemed to accept her answer. "So it's very valuable to you because it's worth a lot of money." He soon spoke, trying to fit everything together.

"Exactly." Rouge nodded, happy he finally understood it all.

But she didn't expect his next comment. "So when will you sell it?"

She spoke before she thought. "Never!"

Big looked back at her. "But isn't that why you like it? When you sell it, you'll get a lot of money. Isn't that what you just said?"

Rouge felt herself sinking into the ground. She had to think this over.

I steal jewels because they are worth a lot.

I don't sell them because they are worth a lot.

I steal jewels because they are worth a lot.

I don't sell them because they are worth a lot.

I steal jewels beca-

Rouge shook her head furiously, feeling like she could throw up from the intense confusion. "I steal them because they're beautiful!" She shrieked, and then clamped her hands over her mouth, realizing what she had just said, dropping the locket onto the ground. She panicked upon seeing Big's once again confused face, and tried to speak before he could. "Buy. I BUY them because they're beautiful." She let loose nervous, high-pitched laughter. "Slip of the tongue, sorry, ha ha…ha…"

Rouge held her breath as Big looked at her. Please let him believe! Her mind begged. Only then did it occur to her how hard she was trying to convince him. Why did she have to justify herself to him, a stupid dimwitted anti-social cat?

The stupid, dimwitted anti-social cat then smiled. "Okay. I guess that's all right, liking something because it's pretty. Different strokes for different folks."

Rouge sighed. "And you are different. Really."

Big smiled, taking that as a compliment…and Rouge found herself smiling back. He was a different folk…and that didn't seem so bad.

End of Chapter.