Taismo: Six Years On: Ch8

Taismo – Six Years On – Chapter Eight – “A Helping Hand”

Tails was sat glumly at a table in a dining room. A cup of tea he clasped, warming his hands. He didn’t necessarily need the warmth as the sun was shining brightly outside. But the heat was enough to comfort Tails in his times of trouble.

The fox sighed. Almost everything that could have gone wrong last night had gone wrong. In the end he had gone to bed without dinner, being in too much of a state to eat. Thankfully for him Cosmo had been kind enough to cook him a full English breakfast. Tails smiled at this thought. The Seedrian really cared for him. He knew what he wanted to do in return. But it was plucking up the courage to ask that was the issue.

The table that he was sitting at belonged to Vanilla the Rabbit. This was because he was currently at Vanilla and Cream’s house. Tails had always wondered what had become of Cream’s father. Vanilla preferred not to talk about him. Once or twice Tails had tried to speak to Cream about him, but the reply was always a glassy expression and a mumble about how she couldn’t really remember. Tails had never been sure whether Cream knew more than she was letting on, but had never probed further for fear of upsetting the young rabbit. This often left Tails speculating as to what had happened to him. It could have been any number of things – perhaps he had been killed in a tragic accident. Maybe he had gone through a particularly violent divorce with Vanilla. He could have just gone missing one day, never to be seen again. Tails did not like these speculations because they showed the many things that could go wrong with a couple. Anything could split him and Cosmo apart, just as it had with Vanilla and Cream’s father. Given that Cosmo had returned to him, Tails had always said that if death could not keep them apart, then nothing could; but at the same time her death had shown just how easily they could be separated. That is why he felt that he must unite himself with Cosmo in an eternal bond.

As he sat pondering, Cream walked in carrying a light brown cake with a knife on the side of the plate.

“I hope you like this, Tails,” she said cheerfully. “It’s lemon drizzle cake, baked freshly this morning by mother and I.”

“Thanks,” Tails smiled weakly. “I’ll be sure to try some”.

Cream’s smile faded as she noticed Tails’ look of worry. “Is something the matter, Tails? You seem awfully sad.”

Tails smiled another fake smile. “No, of course not. What made you think that?”

Cream tutted. “Oh come now, Tails, I’ve known you long enough to know when you’re upset. You know you me because I can help you.”

Cream’s voice was friendly but firm. Tails was always touched by the whether Vanilla had mothered the group, and he could really see this essence echoing in Cream at the moment. She truly was her mother’s daughter – which of course meant that no matter how hard he tried he would not be able to refuse help. “Well… last night I went on a date with Cosmo, but things did not go exactly as planned.”

Cream gasped and put her hands to her mouth. “Oh, Tails. It wasn’t anything to do with the way Cosmo looked, was it? I’m sorry, because I helped her get ready, and I thought she looked pretty, but-”

Tails chuckled slightly, and cut Cream off. “No, no, Cosmo looked beautiful Cream. She always does.” Tails eyes momentarily glazed over as he thought about his girlfriend. “But it was the restaurant that was bad.”    

Cream took a seat next to Tails and gestured for him to continue.

The kitsune twisted his face into an awkward expression. He cringed as he remembered the restaurant’s awful service. “Well… the waiters were all rude, and put on a fake French accent for no reason. The menu was essentially fast food, and there was no vegetarian option for Cosmo. And on top of that, th-the steak the gave me… the meat… w-was… fox.”

Tails choked as he finished his words. He could feel tears forming in his eye.

Cream was shocked and her mouth dropped open. She rubbed Tails’ back soothingly. “That’s awful! How could they do that? Why would anyone do that?”

“I-It’s disgusting, I know.”

Cream looked at Tails with a concerned expression. “I’m sure you’d have preferred a nice…” Cream tailed off. “Actually, what meat is normally in steaks?”

Tails looked thoughtful as he considered this. “I don’t know. I presume beef because I’ve never seen any cow Mobians in the games or TV series.”

Cream was flabbergasted. “Games, wha-…? What on Mobius are you on about, Tails?”

Tails opened his mouth as if about to speak, but closed it again. He did this several times, bearing the same bemused expression that Cream had. “I’m not sure…” he eventually uttered. “I just felt some weird impulse to say that.”

Cream shrugged. “Well, all that matters is that you’re alright – especially after your dreadful evening.”

Tails sighed and looked glum as he used clenched fists top prop up his cheeks. “I know. I just wish it had been a bit nicer, because then maybe I’d have asked Cosmo to marry m-“ Tails clamped both paws over his mouth and stared had Cream with a shocked expression. He hadn’t meant to say that. But the damage had been done.

Cream’s eyes lit up and a smile began to form across her face. “Did you just say you’re going to marry Cosmo? Is this true?”

Tails was speechless. He simply stared back at the rabbit with a gormless face.

Cream’s smile widened. “It is true, isn’t it? You’re getting married.”

Tails continued to stare, but eventually sighed with a defeated expression. “Well, I suppose Amy and Sonic know, so telling you w---hey!” The fox was surprised as Cream threw her arms tightly around him.

“I’m so happy for you Tails!”

“Cream, please, I can’t breathe!”

“Give Tails some space, dear,” said Vanilla softly as she entered the room. She carried a mug of coffee and a stack of small plates. The younger rabbit duly obeyed her mother, but could net prevent her grin. “May I ask, daughter, what was that in aid of?”

“Oh, mother!” Cream leapt up and hugged Vanilla instead. “Cosmo and Tails are getting married. Isn’t it wonderful?!”

Vanilla now fully understood Cream’s excitement as her face grew into a similar expression Cream’s. “Well, I think this calls for a celebratory slice of cake.” She gently pushed her over-excited daughter off her and cut three slices of the cake that Cream had brought in earlier, dishing them out appropriately.    

“So, Tails,” begun Vanilla once she had sat. “When is the wedding? I’ll be sure to come if I’m invited.”

Tails took a nervous sip of her tea. “Er… we don’t exactly have a date yet.”

“When would you like it?”

“Um… haven’t really thought too hard about it.”

“Well, what does Cosmo think?”

“I, er… haven’t asked her about it yet.”

Vanilla frowned. “How can you plan a wedding without co-operation? Have you talked at all about it?”

“Um… no.”

“Why ever not?”

Tails grinned sheepishly. “Heh… well, I… haven’t exactly… asked her to marry me… yet”

“Ah.”

Cream smiled kindly. “Well, I bet you’ve chosen a really nice ring for Cosmo.”

Tails stared blankly. “Ring?”

Cream giggled. “You mean to say you haven’t even got Cosmo an engagement ring yet?”

Tails looked worried. “Do I need to?”

This only made Cream laugh harder. Even Vanilla was stifling chuckles.

“Oh, Tails. I think we have much to discuss” quipped Vanilla.

Cream’s eyes began to shine again as an idea formed in her head. “Yeah, I’ll help you Tails. That would be so much fun.”

Tails pondered this cautiously. It seemed that letting Amy in on the plan had been a bad idea, so he was reluctant to accept any more help. But Cream was more level-headed than Amy. Besides, Tails didn’t have a clue how he would prepare both a proposal and a wedding, so an extra pair of hands would be all but necessary, especially if Vanilla were to help too.

“I suppose you could, as long as you both swear to secrecy” said Tails slowly. Cream’s smile spread even further and she silently cheered. “But don’t try to run it for me,” he quickly added. He didn’t want another set up like Amy had tried.  

“Well then,” Vanilla beamed. “I’ll leave you two to sort yourselves out.”  

Once Vanilla had left, Tails began to talk. “So, are you okay to start the preparations now?”

Cream twiddled her thumbs and her smile faded slightly. “Um… not exactly now Tails. I, er… need to… go out.”

Tails was surprised, but took it in his stride. “Uh, okay. Who are you seeing?”

Before Cream could reply the doorbell chimed. The rabbit nimbly leapt from her seat and rushed to open the door. Curious, Tails followed. He walked into the hallway to find the rabbit speaking to a familiar bee.

To Tails Cream seemed sort of embarrassed but happy at the same time. “Hi Charmy,” she muttered with a smile on her face, then bit her lower lip.

“Hey Cream,” came Charmy’s soft reply. His eyes were glowing and there were two little patches of red on his cheeks. However he appeared more surprised when he noticed Tails. “Oh, hi Tails. I-I didn’t expect to see you here.”

Charmy seemed nervous, almost as if he was afraid of Tails, or feared being judged. What could possibly make the bee afraid of him? Then it hit Tails – Charmy fancied Cream. The fox grinned slyly as he came up with his reply. “What’s up, Charmy? I’m just visiting Cream and her mother, that’s all. Don’t worry, I’m not trying to steal your girl.”

“Tails!” Cream turned back and shot Tails a death glare. Charmy just blushed even harder. “Charmy and I are… just, um…” Cream’s initial confidence disappeared.

“Yes?”

Cream remained silent, seeming to be reluctant to finish her sentence. Finally she spoke in an almost mute voice. “Going to the cinema.”

Tails chuckled. “There’s only one reason why a boy and a girl go to the cinema together with nobody else. And I think you know what that reason is.”

“We’re just friends!” Cream insisted. “Besides, I could make the same jokes about you and Cosmo.”

Tails shrugged. “Go for it. They don’t bother me. I love Cosmo and I’m not afraid to say
that.” The kitsune dramatically spread his arms out wide as he finished his sentence.

Cream sighed a defeated sigh. “I suppose we should be going, Charmy. See you later, Tails.”

Tails giggled as the pair walked off. “Bye! Have fun!” He watched the pair disappear over the horizon before turning back into the house. Once he reached the kitchen he found Vanilla washing up.

“Miss Vanilla, I should be on my way home now to Cosmo. Thank you very much for your
hospitality, and for your helping me with… er, preparations.”

“Why, you’re welcome Tails. I must ask, where is Cosmo today? I would have happily had her come over this morning as well.”

“We were growing some vegetables that weren’t doing too well. Cosmo hopes to either rescue them, or go to the grocers and replace them with fresh veg. It would make sense for her to do it because she’s better at gardening than me and she always tells me I pick bad fruit and vegetables when I shop, so she prefers to do it anyway! She’s really sorry she couldn’t come, and she said that she’s try and come over later in the week.”

Vanilla smiled. “These things happen, she shouldn’t worry. Send her my regards, and tell her she’s welcome any time.”

“Will do, Miss Vanilla. Goodbye!”

“Bye Tails, have a nice day.”

“You too, Miss Vanilla” yelled Tails as he closed the front door behind him.

Vanilla smiled. Tails and Cosmo had been through so much, and they deserved their love for each other. Although Vanilla mothered most of the gang, she found herself doing it more so for Tails and Cosmo since they were younger than the rest and had no real parent figures in their lives. As long as all remained well with her and her daughter, there was nothing she would like to see better than Tails and Cosmo happily married.