A/N: Hello again, everyone! Let's get right into it, shall we?

Pen: This chapter was inspired by "Dreams to Dream" by Linda Ronstadt. Tails and all related characters and material belong to Sega. Sword and I belong to the author.

Sword: Wait, wait! We'd like to thank ultimateCCC, Mew Aqua Spirit, and the anonymous reviewer for their reviews! And we'd like to thank AlvynnTheFox on Deviantart for giving us an idea to use in this chapter and the previous one! And djaik-niffsta on DA whose story inspired us to finish this chapter sooner! *grabs tissues* Okay, I'm ready.

Please enjoy.

Chapter 2: Dreaming of You

Music. That was what Tails heard. Regal, formal music. His eyes fluttered open. He was not in his bed, but outside, in thick grass teeming with the insects of the nights. He picked himself up. There was a large palace nearby that he had seen before. The music was drifting through its open windows and doors.

Tails smiled. She would be there. She always was when he visited this place. He ran to the palace, slipping by all the guests pouring in. He sought her out in the central ballroom. But the room could house at least three amphitheaters, or in this case, hundreds, if not thousands, of dancing visitors.

If he knew her, and he did, she would find him soon. Tails tried to search anyway, working his way out from the center. Soon he was trailing by the gigantic windows that opened to the night sky. Despite the many bright lights in the room, the stars above were shining through.

A hand rested on his shoulder. Delicate, soft velvety fingers that he had memorized very well. Tails spun around. Cosmo.

She was really there. Those deep, sea blue eyes that he could lose himself in were amused as she chuckled. "Hello, Tails," she said, her voice like a choir of angels. Yet would he expect anything less from a beautiful creature like her? Should one expect any different when her ivory dress, still the same as he remembered, had a glisten to it that captured the lights of the ballroom, transcending her to have a wondrous glow? Indeed, the light she absorbed spread to the rest of her, radiating a brilliant shine that was lovelier than any dress in the room and sparkled brighter than any of the stars in the sky.

He was not ashamed to admit that such beauty had bewitched him. "Hello, Cosmo," he managed to choke out. "Fancy meeting you here again."

She smiled. Oh, that smile, with the tiniest of crooks of her pretty lips. That smile could cure any sour mood. "And again and again," she said. She looked expectantly at the dancers gracefully gliding in one massive circle on the floor.

Tails looked down. Gone were his simple gloves and red and white shoes. He was sporting shiny, black shoes that completed a black tuxedo and dress gloves. He was not taken aback by the sudden change. Tails only grinned, as if he had expected it. He straightened his little bowtie and bowed to Cosmo. "Care to dance?" he asked. He held out his hand.

"I would love to," she said, slipping her fingers into his palm. He led her to the dance floor and they entered the crowd. Although the other women were dressed in a variety of beautiful colors, Cosmo stuck out from the dancers like a lighthouse amongst the multi-colored sea. She and Tails became a guiding light, leading everyone in a waltz.

Although he was far closer to the band than before, the music barely registered in Tails' ears. He was focused solely on Cosmo, her laughter, her glimmering eyes, her dainty figure. He allowed himself to lose his way in this dream, swirling, twirling with Cosmo.

The songs changed. Now strings struck up a somber number, bringing in the rest of the musicians for intensity at spots. The crowd dispersed, granting Tails and Cosmo the floor. This was a song for one couple alone. Neither Tails or Cosmo seemed to care. They held onto one another- his hand on her waist, hers on his shoulder, and clasping their remaining hands.

A singer stood in front of the band, singing to the hauntingly beautiful song. Tails did not even notice when she finished the last chorus or when the band stopped playing. For that matter, he did not realize that the ballroom had long faded away into swirling, violet-tinged fog. He continued to dance with Cosmo until they reached a lull in their stride.

He leaned his forehead against hers as they enjoyed the rest. "You dance divinely," he said.

"You're not too bad yourself," she said, smiling and pecking his cheek. "Thank you for the dance."

"The pleasure was all mine." He did not move, afraid everything would shatter if he did. Yet Cosmo pulled away, leading him through the misty surroundings. They traversed a hilly region, but Tails saw nothing beneath his feet except more of the fog. It was an ethereal world that had no inhabitants, no time, no discernible purpose.

Eventually, Cosmo settled on one particular hill. Tails sat beside her, his tuxedo traded once more for his plain shoes and gloves. Cosmo retained her glow and it was a comforting beacon amongst the swirling mist.

"Tails?" she asked. He raised his head to her. "Are you happy?"

"Of course I'm happy," he said. "How could I not be? All I want to do is stay here with you."

Her face dropped sadly. "Tails, you do understand none of this is real, right? That everything here has been a dream."

"Yes," he said, nodding. "I know."

"Then why do you continue to come here, seeking me night after night? Especially at this time of year?" Tails did not speak. "I will ask you again: are you happy?"

He shook his head. "No. I've been miserable without you. Ever since that day, I've done nothing, but think of you."

She patted his shoulder. "I know," she said. "It is quite obvious." Suddenly, a patch of the fog dissipated to reveal his memorial under a sunny day. "The flowers are very lovely. You have done a great job growing them."

"Thank you," he said. "But I did it for you. I couldn't let your seed be alone like that." He could have pinpointed the tallest calla blindfolded.

"However, by dwelling on me, you have neglected other aspects of your life," she said. "I have watched you waste away, no longer the happy boy I fell in love with. These days, you are like a sad shadow of your former self." The memorial disappeared, but the fog did not fill the hole left in its wake. "That is to say nothing of your friends."

A view of Sonic appeared, head in his hand, as he tapped his fingers against a table. The picture zoomed out to show Amy beside him, looking equally worried. Amy troubled was one thing, but Sonic was always carefree and lively. He was rarely fretting anything, yet there he was, the worry spelled out in his eyes while he frowned. "Maybe we can do something else for him?" Amy half-heartedly suggested.

"What do you have in mind?" Sonic said, swiveling his head in his hand.

"I'm not sure. Just something to show him that he still has friends," she said.

"Well, whatever you think of, I'm game." He sighed. "I'm out of ideas. Nothing seems to work." He laid his head on the table, clutching his quills. Amy sympathetically rubbed his shoulder. Then the scene vanished into nothingness.

"Or of other loved ones," Cosmo said.

As soon as the next image cropped up, Tails turned away. He could not do this. Yet Cosmo touched his hand. "Look," she said. "Tails, please look." Reluctantly, he faced the sight of Cream.

Cheese hovered above his friend's head, cooing and bringing out an assortment of items to cheer her up: board games, old toys, pictures. However, Cream sat alone in her room, kicking her shoes against the bed. If Sonic and Amy's despair induced guilt, then Cream's was absolutely heart-wrenching. Even her sighs made Tails want to crawl under a rock for the rest of his life.

Eventually giving up, Cheese curled up in Cream's lap, upset that he could not cheer Cream up. His little body shuddered as he sobbed into her dress. Cream picked him up and shushed him. "Cheese, it's okay," she said softly. "It's not you. I'm concerned about Tails. He has been getting worse and worse. No one knows what to do."

Tails could not bear watching anymore "Take it away," he said. "I get it."

Cheese continued to be racked by tears. "Now, Cheese," Cream said, holding him close to her chest. "Stop that. If you keep that up, I'm…I'm…" She trailed off, blinking her eyes rapidly.

"No more! Take it away!" Tails said more forcefully. "Please!" At his command, Cream and Cheese disappeared into the fog. He was left alone again with Cosmo. She waited for him to compose himself. "I understand what you're trying to do. I'll spend more time with my friends, okay? I won't shut them out."

Cosmo smiled. "That's a start, but I want you to do something else."

"Name it."

"Find love."

He stared at her blankly. "Excuse me?"

"Find love," she repeated. He gazed at her, slack jawed. "You need to move on from pining after me. You have had your grief for years. At first, I thought more grieving might be conducive to the healing process. Get everything out at once. But I was wrong."

Another scene formed before them. Tails had to take a moment to place it, but he soon recalled it. Cream was bashfully standing in front of him, dragging her toes along the ground and occasionally glancing elsewhere. Her confession to him, but silent, as if it were a movie with missing audio. "Then when Cream confessed, I thought maybe you could be happy again."

The past Tails shook his head once Cream finished. He appeared apologetic and Cream became downhearted. "But you pushed that away too, remaining in your isolation."

"I couldn't accept her love," Tails said. His past self was walking away from her, gradually becoming emaciated and his fur thinning. Before the image became skin and bones, it regained some meat, transforming into a depressed, listless duplicate of the current Tails.

"Why not?" Cosmo asked, the scene pausing. "Do not deny you have feelings for her. I can see it in your eyes."

Tails flushed red and hung his head. "Okay, yes. You're right about that. But I don't want to replace you. I can't replace you." All the work in the months after her death were undone in moments. A cascade of sorrow and anguish flooded Tails. "I don't deserve to be happy in love anyway. Not after I killed you."

A cool, soft hand cupped his cheek. Then Cosmo pecked the corner of his lips. "Tails, I forgive you. You had to do what was necessary. I do not begrudge you for that." He opened his mouth to protest, but she shushed him. "You did what had to be done, alright?" She had stemmed the tide, sealing up the barrier to that avenue of blame. He accepted her forgiveness. "But now why would you think that you would be replacing me? What sort of silliness is that? You would not be."

"Yes, I would," he said, twiddling his thumbs. "If I let myself fall in love with someone else-"

"Tails," she said. "When you became friends with Amy, did you lose all your friendship with Sonic? Was there not room in your heart for both, and many more friends in the years since?" He slowly nodded. "Does a parent forget an older child simply because a new one is born? No. The children share the parent's heart, each having a place there." She paused. "Does one forget about ex-lovers they date? Is there not a small flame that burns even when both are happily married the rest of the lives? Does a widow who discovers a new love forget all about their previous spouse? Is there not still affection there those who are gone?"

Cosmo touched his chest, running her hand through his fur. "I know I will always have a place in your heart. Just as you will always have a place in mine. Cream knows this. It is plain as day to her." The scene resumed, fast forwarding to the current day, replaying the scene from the store earlier that day "Yet she continues to offer her love. She wants a place in your heart. She wants to see you happy, as do I. Do not think you will forget about me simply because you try to find love again."

He turned to the scene again. It had vanished into the fog. "Alright. If you're sure, I'll do it for you."

"No," she said. His head snapped up. "Do it for yourself. For Cream. For love."

"Alright," he said. "Thank you, Cosmo." He leaned into her, closing his lips on hers. He savored the scent and taste of nature in its fullest form. She meshed her mouth to his, breathing heavily in the kiss. His tails wrapped around her, pulling Cosmo closer as he held her head in his hands. He pressed his lips harder to hers, drinking up every ounce of the sensation that he could. All too soon, it ended. The fog cut between them, separating the two. Tails was overcome by a strong urge to faint. He fell backwards, cradled by an unknown object, and blacked out.

A/N: Huh. These are coming out shorter than I expected. Maybe we should've made it one long one-shot.

Sword: *blows nose* But let's hear from you! We want to!

Pen: No, we do not.

Sword: Yes, we do! We do! We do! We do!