Chapter 1: Steal the Credit

It never felt better just to feel the grass beneath his feet as he walked. The faint breeze caressed his face, and it felt as though someone was blowing at him from a distance. The smell of the earth wafted into his nostrils, replacing the almost sickening smell of metal for the past two months. The sound of birds chirping was music to his ears. Mobius never felt this lively before. Everything around him felt fresh and bursting with life. He smiled at the sight of two rats chasing each other's tails. Sonic and his team had finally defeated the Metarex yesterday after two long months of intense battles. They saved the universe, but it came with a cost.

He keyed in a code onto the door's security system, and the shiny metal door opened to reveal his workshop. It wasn't a huge workshop, in fact it used to be his garage, but he couldn't stand the unused space and thus transformed it into the place he spent most of his life in. His gaze was fixed on the floor as he dragged his heavy feet across the floor. The lab was completely silent, except for the sound of his shuffling and the metal door closing behind him. The sounds were slow and long, almost depressing. Incredible inventions stood obediently in a line, showing off their magnificent exterior to anyone who saw them. Lots and lots of toolboxes were stacked on each other at his wooden desk, accompanied by blueprints untidily piled on each other. He sighed and sat down on his chair. The ruby sky outside meant that it was sunset. He hadn't had dinner, as he was still full from all the treats Amy and Cream had brought over. Although he had an enjoyable evening, the whole time, something was weighing down his chest. It was like an undone chore waiting for you at the back of your head, simple yet annoying. At the corner of his desk was a pot.

The pot was light pink. The rim had minimalistic patterns engraved into the hardened clay, which reminded him of the two rose buds that sat on each side of her head. Only during her last moments did they bloom, revealing their extravagant beauty minutes before her demise. It didn't take long for him to be reminded that he was the one who...

"No!" he yelled out, banging his fist on the table. His teeth were clenched so hard that they looked like they would shatter anytime soon, and tears were welled up in his eyes. Whether it was tears of sadness, guilt or anger he couldn't tell. He grabbed a blueprint from the pile rather violently, cuasing it to crumple. He would work on his latest invention to take his mind of things, he thought. Only then did he realise that he had walked into the lab without turning on the lights or fans.

He was about to get up from his seat, but he didn't move muscle. He couldn't. His face was emotionless, and his hands gripped the ends of the armrests on his chair, as though he were holding onto them for his life. He didn't want to leave her.

Not again.

He was depressed. It was as though his whole world came crashing down on him at that very moment, seeing Cosmo fade away right before his eyes. No one could blame him. He was just an innocent eight year old cub fox, and just yesterday he had to pull the trigger on someone he loved. Something most adults on Mobius wouldn't even be able to stand. For the next half an hour or so, he just sat there, dwelling on the past that would never leave him.

"When will I ever get over you?" he said to the young seedling, his ears drooped. It stood motionless, almost taunting him. Another sigh escaped his lips as he finally stood up from his chair after what felt like eternity. He was really curious to know what the plant would grow into, almost dying to know. Would it grow into another Seedrian? A normal plant? Would it be Cosmo? But he couldn't bear to even take one cell off the plant. Soon, the purple rays of light spilling in from his windows started to fade, and night fell upon Mobius. He looked up into the sky and stared at the stars. The stars, how he had met her at the very beginning. He remembered that day as though it was today, and it constantly replayed itself mercilessly in his mind ever since yesterday, threatening to drive him crazy. Just then, he heard a knock.

"Tails! Are you there?" a familiar voice called out. He instantly knew who it was, and after giving the tranquil night sky one last glance, he went to open the door.

"Hey buddy!" the blue hedgehog, his adoptive older brother, patted him on his head. He couldn't help but to smile at his presence.

"Hi Sonic," Tails said. Although a broad smile was plastered on his face, the tone in his voice was gloomy, like a swamp in the nighttime. Sonic sighed.

"Look, Tails, I'm sorry I couldn't bring her back. I just-" Sonic was cut off by Tails shaking his head.

"It's alright, I don't blame you anymore. There's just so much one can do, isn't there?" Tails said, as he gestured for Sonic to enter the lab. Despite the lab being almost like a second home to him, he still awed at the magnificent inventions every time he walked in. He still couldn't believe an eight year old cub fox made all these. Tails also got flattered every single time he heard Sonic's "wows" and "woahs" as he marveled at his life's work.

"Why did you come?" Tails asked as he poured water from a jug into two cups.

"Oh, I went to your house and you weren't home, so I thought you would be here. Where else do you go anyways?" Sonic chuckled. Tails also giggled, but it was true. Tails was either at home or in his lab, or flying around in the X Tornado, which he only did when fighting Eggman with Sonic and before seven in the evening. He was pretty much cooped up in his house about all the time since he returned to Mobius. He missed Chuck, the times when the two of them would work on something spectacular together and go celebrate with a home cooked meal from Ella. Although he had left Earth for months now, it would forever be part of him.

"So why did you want to see me?" Tails asked as he set the cups of water on a table at one cornecorner of his lab.

"Oh, nothing much, I just wanted to check on you, that's all," Sonic said after taking a sip from the cup. "Also, we're having a party at Amy's to celebrate the defeat of the Meterax tomorrow. Wanna come?"

Only after the words left his mouth did he realise what he had just said. Sonic's eyes widened and he quickly shook his head. "I mean... you don't have to come if you don't want to... it's just a small party," he quickly tried to cover his previous words but to no avail. Tails was almost appalled. They were celebrating!? His ears pressed flat against his head, his fluffy tails stiffened and lay flat behind him on thd chair, and his fists were clenched, so tightly that his fingernails dug holes in his gloves. Sonic was taken aback by his reaction.

"Tails, please understand-"

"Understand what?" Tails yelled, cutting Sonic off mid-sentence. Both their chests felt heavy, and the atmosphere went from relaxed to stifling. "You guys are celebrating!? CELEBRATING!?" Tails screamed at Sonic, almost ready to pounce on and attack his best buddy. Tears welled up in his now bloodshot eyes.

"Tails! We're celebrating because we saved the universe! Nothing else!" Sonic tried to reason with the enraged cub fox. This only made him more furious.

"We saved the universe, Sonic? WE SAVED THE UNIVERSE!? We didn't do shit! She saved the universe, and now you're trying to steal the credit?" Tails screamed again. His voice, drenched with anger, echoed around the four walls of the lab. Sonic was stunned. This was the first time Tails ever acted like this. Tails had never, never swore in his entire life. And his first time was to his beloved brother. Sonic swallowed. Tails didn't look innocent anymore, he looked like an infuriated beast, ready to smash its way through everything that stood in its path. Silence followed, and for a good while. Tails took deep breaths, and when he finally calmed down, his body loosened up and he fell back into his seat. A throbbing headache was eating away at his brain. His tears had dried, but his eyes were red, almost as red as the chilli on a chilli dog - spicy, hot and violent. One hand shot up and started massaging his forehead. He closed his eyes and let out a sharp but soft sigh. Sonic didn't know whether he should feel guilty or not. He just enraged his little brother, but at the same time he had not done anything wromg. Was inviting Tails to Amy's party a wrongdoing?

"Get out," Tails said after a long while. Sonic was about to say something, but he was cut off. "Please."

The blue hedgehog said nothing. He stood up from the chair and headed for the door. The floor felt freezing, even through his socks and shoes. A strong and cold gust of wind attacked Sonic the moment he opened the towering metal door. He never felt this useless before. He could destroy Eggman's robots with ease, run around the whole of Mobius in less than an hour and even save the universe, but he couldn't even help his little brother. Sonic stared at the metal door that had shut behind him.

"Please get better soon, buddy," he whispered to himself, before speeding off.