Sonikku za hejjihoggu

in the third act of sa2, knuckles saves rouge from falling to a presumed death (youtube link). the game seems to forget that she has wings but that's okay we can assume she was taken off guard

she becomes very defensive and accuses him of having ulterior motives for saving her. she calls him a creep, though her tone is teasing and lighthearted, keeping the conversation surface-level and impersonal.

she gives him the pieces of the master emerald, claiming that she doesn't want them anymore because they 'stink like echidnas do'. it's an expression of gratitude masked behind indifference and an insult. note that she never verbally thanks him for saving her life-- which knuckles even points out.

when knuckles apologises to her, she watches him leave and lingers for a while. as she, too, turns to leave, she stops and looks back, smiling privately to herself. when unobserved, her demeanour is much softer and betrays her fondness.

this scene is a great example of rouge blatantly concealing her feelings, and there are a few reasons why that could be. she could fear appearing vulnerable, and acknowledging that he saved her requires acknowledgement that she needed to be saved-- as someone who works alone (more on this later) she needs to be self-sufficient. she could dislike mushy, sentimental conversations. she could be unsure of how to express her emotions, and keeping a conversation at surface-level means she doesn't have to try.

there's also that she and knuckles are implied to have romantic feelings for each other, but that reason is boring on its own imo. to me, it's a combination of all of the above.

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possibly the most emotionally sincere rouge has been in canon is in sonic 06 when (youtube link, sorry it's a short lmao) she tells shadow that she'll remain by his side even when the world is against him.

omega points out that power provokes animosity and she hangs her head in silence until shadow starts walking away and she turns abruptly, saying his name in a tone that sounds almost surprised, like she didn't expect herself to speak.

she looks at shadow, but only as he is turned away. she closes her eyes before she speaks and keeps them closed as she says "even if you believe everyone in the world will be against you" (pause, she finally opens her eyes) "know that i'll always remain by your side" (she turns away) "remember that."

and then she faces away, head bowed, as shadow leaves!! they don't make any eye contact at all!!

it's so awkward. it implies that she doesn't usually say such things, but her need for him to understand her undying loyalty forced her to say it anyway. behind her aloofness, she cares deeply and will side with those she loves even if it's difficult or frowned upon.

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all we really know about rouge is that she's a government agent and also a notorious jewel thief, which is a massive conflict of interest-- everyone she meets will likely disapprove of at least one aspect of her life. both occupations involve a lot of travelling and dangerous situations, which isn't really conductive for making and maintaining friendships.

on a related note, she doesn't have any established friends from pre-canon. it's plausible that shadow and omega are the first people she grew close to, and they're both isolated, complicated, misunderstood people with backgrounds that nobody else can relate to. consider what it could imply about her that they're who she finally 'fit in' with.

i think she was very lonely pre-canon, and maybe still is. i think that, to get to the position she's in when we meet her, she would have had to rely exclusively on herself, which would naturally cause some trust issues. combine that with the possibility that she never learned how to trust people, and you get someone that holds her heart behind a wall so dense it seems impenetrable.

but it isn't! as shown by the shadow clip, she is capable of trusting and being vulnerable, but it's difficult and she probably hates it.

in terms of how much of her personality is an act, i feel similarly about her as i feel about sonic in that i don't think it's entirely an act, but she definitely emphasises certain traits and suppresses others. i think she genuinely likes to flirt and show off and bicker, but she intentionally leans into the 'femme fatale' archetype because it's uncomplicated and prevents people from trying to learn more about her.

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situations and relationships change people, so you could characterise her the same way i do and still have her be openly affectionate.

i don't write her that way because i write a lot of team dark and they all have issues with vulnerability but if she were close with, for example, amy, she'd be regularly encouraged to share her feelings (and be rewarded for doing so) so she'd do it more.

i think it would take a lot of time and the change wouldn't be linear (she'd probably go through phases of freaking out and withdrawing again) but rouge, just like any other character, has the potential to be open and loving and happy in a relationship.

tbh i think a poly relationship could be good for her because the unconventionality of it would ease her nerves about having to behave a certain way.

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this was a Lot and yet i still have more i could say lmao so if you have any questions about anything specific lmk!