It was 9:00 PM on the clock. And Vanilla had just finished tucking Cream in for the night. She'd spent the last 3 or so hours calming Cream down
after the...''spider'' incident, and doing some light housework, being sure to keep things quiet so Cream could sleep in peace. She was currently in
the kitchen, checking the countertops for dust. In the midst of her inspection, she lifted a bit of dirt on her index finger and held it up to the light.
She was completely focused on her finger, thinking that water might not be the proper solvent to clean this part of the counter. At that moment,
another light had caught her eye. It was coming from the window near the fridge. The curtains were drawn over the window, but it seems some light
had passed through. Vanilla went to the window and pushed them aside. She saw where the light was coming from...the moon. It was a full moon.
And it shone especially bright, tonight. She stared at the bright sphere and started thinking back to how sad Tails looked all those hours ago.

"He was so full of life before we went to the kitchen to make him lunch," pondered Vanilla. "What could have happened in that short time to change him so?"

Back in the room, Tails had eaten up all but one of the sandwiches. The last sandwich was left in the tray, a single bite taken out of it. Tails lay on his side,
facing away from the door to the window. Though a full moon was out tonight, from Tails point of view, it was pitch-black outside. The room was warm enough.
But still, he felt cold. He was consumed in thought:

What do I really do, anyway? I make machines, sure. And I defeated Eggman...once. But how does that compare to Sonic?
He's beaten Eggman so many times. And the only times he's ever needed me was when he fell from the atmosphere and wanted
a safe way back down to Earth. He...wait...he was powered by Chaos Emeralds almost every time that happened, right? Then why
didn't he just fly back down himself? He IS Super Sonic, after all!

Just then, Vanilla's footsteps were heard coming up the hallway. But Tails couldn't hear them over his thoughts.

It's always Sonic! Sonic, the hero! Sonic, the Knight of the Wind! Sonic, the...the fastest thing ALIVE! But what about me?
Haven't I always been there, too? Saving the day with my machines, that's all me! But no matter how hard I try, I just can't be as good as him.
Damn it.

Now Vanilla was at the door. It was shut now. Tails must've closed it himself after I'd left, she assumed. She put an ear to the door and listened.
Meanwhile, Tails couldn't hold it in any longer. He pulled himself out from under the blanket and sat up. He sat there, for a whole minute.
Then, in a rage, smashed his fist hard on the table.

"DAMN IT!"

The door handle turned, and Vanilla poked her head in. Upon sensing her presence, Tails looked down at his feet. "Oh, Ms. Rabbit," Tails said casually.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make so much noise. I just saw a spider and felt the need to be rid of it. So I got up and took care of the little pest. Looks
like you were right about that spider, huh?" The look on Vanilla's face told him she wasn't convinced. He tried again. "Did I say spider? I meant...a fly!
Yeah, the buzzing got on my nerves so much that I had no other choice but to smash him. So sad, right?" Vanilla blinked twice. Then she opened the door,
walked inside, shut the door behind her, and walked over to Tails. She sat down next to him and simply stared at the wall for a moment.
Then she looked at Tails and said,

"Do you honestly believe I buy any of that bullshit, Miles?"

Tails had nothing to say. He was shocked. Truly shocked. Because he never expected someone as dignified as Vanilla, Cream's loving mother, to be capable
of saying something so crude and vulgar. He didn't know what to say next. Vanilla broke the silence and said, "So, Miles. Why don't you tell me what's going on?
You were in such high spirits earlier on. And please, be honest." Tails wanted to talk. But he couldn't find the words.
"Please," she persisted, "I know I'm not your mother, but...I've got to know." Then new thoughts filled Tails' mind:

...my..mother...my...father…ergh!

Tails bit his lip and looked away from Vanilla. Vanilla felt a wave of regret in her heart. "That is...I mean...I'm sorry."
"No," Tails began. "It's nothing. It's just...I wish YOU were my mother." This caught her off-guard. She wasn't expecting to hear that. "Wait, what? Why?"

Tails told Vanilla how he didn't have parents and about his life before meeting up with Sonic. "I swear, I've never met them. I'd never known them for my whole life.
And yet...there's this memory I have. A memory of the image of a male and female fox looking down at me. Looking at me in a..condescending way.
Like they...didn't approve of me or my twin tails. And there was the smell of something disgusting in the air, too."
Vanilla poked her brain for a response. "The smell. Was it...drugs of some sort?"
"Dunno." Tails said. "I just know that it made me sick to my stomach. Then everything goes black and I wake up outside in a swamp.
I hear a car driving off...the sounds of laughter going farther and farther away. And then, crying. The crying of a child. I feel like that child...was really me."
Did my parents abandon me? I just...don't know."

"But..that's not the reason I was mad! I was mad because..well, Sonic showed up when you guys went to the kitchen.
He needed my help to stop Eggman, till he remembered that he had stronger, more cooler friends to help him out.
I acted like I was okay with it, but really, I.."

"Yes, Miles?"

"I...I just...feel so...inferior, lately."

Vanilla couldn't believe her ears. "No way. You, inferior? To who?"
"To everyone! Sonic didn't have parents, but he's always in a good mood!
And Knuckles was born alone on a floating island in the damn sky! And he's peachy keen!"
Tails then got up and started walking around the room, pacing the floor.
"Then there's Shadow...and Rouge...they're so bold and confident in their abilities! And me?
Me? I'm...just some nerd who has a knack for working with technology."

"Oh, my."

Tired, Tails returned to the bed and sat down again. He sighed and continued.
"I'll never be as fast as Sonic. Or as strong as Knuckles. I can't use 'Chaos Control', like Shadow.
I don't possess Rouge's skills of infiltration. And even Amy's got that inappropriately-sized hammer.
I could make a Variant of it, something malignant and powerful. But I could never wield it, like she does."

"I really am a loser."

Vanilla let out a sigh. Then she said, "Is this what you really think, Miles?"
"Yes," replied Tails. "it is." Vanilla let out a heavy sigh. And then, without warning, slapped a hand on Tails' face and
made him look her in the eyes. Tails was more than shocked now. He was terrified! "Ouuch! Ms. Rabbit! Wh-what was that for?"
Vanilla's calm face had warped into a cold expression. Tails certainly knew she was mad now.

"You should know better than that, Miles! Sonic and his friends need you! You're not just a part of the team. You're a good friend, too. And they know that."
"B-but..I'm not as important as Sonic, or Knuckles, or.."
"Does it really matter? The only thing that matters is that YOU think you're important. You have to love yourself.
Give yourself some credit, once in a while. Don't ever forget what really matters!"
"What..really matters?"
"Tell me, what really matters to you the most, Miles?"
Tails gave it some thought, then said, "Making sure that the world is a peaceful place to live. And...fighting for Justice?"

Vanilla gave Tails a smile. She placed her hands on his shoulders. "Yes! That's it! You have to keep in mind what YOU want!
You shouldn't waste your time worrying about how to be important in the eyes of others. Because even if you're not the best or most
important person around, you can ALWAYS be the best you can be."
"The b-best I can be?"
"The best you can be! Just be yourself! That's the way your friends want you. It's why Cream likes you."
Tails smiled at that. "It is?"
"And..also," Vanilla said, reluctantly. "It's why I...like you, too."
This made Tails blush red all over. "..you...you...like me, Ms. Rabbit?"

"Yes," she assured him, "I really do. You might just say that...I really like you..a lot."

The two remained silent for awhile. Not one of them knew what to say next. Because their relationship had just risen to a new level of awkwardness.
Vanilla then pretended to check an imaginary wristwatch and let out a fake yawn. "Haahh! Look at the time! It's way past midnight! We should turn in
for the night. What do you think, Miles?"
"Oh, sure. Yeah, you're right. Haaah! Really late. Yeah! Haha.."

They gave each other nervous smiles. Then Vanilla went to the door. Tails let out a sigh of relief. He felt better now. His tension was gone and his
self-worth was restored. But when she opened the door, she didn't make a move towards the hallway. She just stood there, motionless.
Tails was puzzled by this, and a little worried.

"Um, Ms. Rabbit? Are you...feeling okay?" She didn't say anything, at first. Then she said, "Yes. I'm fine. Just fine."
"Oh, that's good."
"Hey, Tails?"
"Yes, Ms. Rabbit?"
"Don't you want to know...why I call you 'Miles' only when Cream or any of your friends are not around?" That's right. She had been calling him by his first name lately.
She'd done it before in the past, as well. But why? "Well, yeah," said Tails with a nervous grin, "now that you mention it, I actually do want to know the reason."

Vanilla shut the door again. But this time, she pulled out a key attached to a necklace wrapped around her neck and locked the door. She went back to Tails and
took off the necklace, placing it on the table. She then gives Tails a strange look. A look he had never gotten from her before.
"Before I tell you, Tails," said Vanilla, "I've got tuck you in for the night."
He was still nervous, but Tails decided to play along. "Oh, o-okay! I'll just get in bed and let you do that."
Tails got under the blanket and laid the back of his head on the pillow, expecting her to start tucking the edges of the blanket into the bed.

But when he turned to see, he saw her...undoing the buttons on her crimson vest.
A drop of sweat slid down the side of Tails' face. He was a little scared, but tried to keep his cool.

"Oh, Ms. Rabbit? What...are you up to?"
Vanilla laughed a little, and said, "Miles, please do me a favor, won't you?"
"What is it?"
"I'd like you call me by my first name for now. Vanilla. That's V..A.."
And as she spelled out her name, she bent over and slid off her long dress, while facing away from Tails.
He was in full view of Vanilla's white lace panties. His eyes were fixed on her cotton-white tail, along with her lovely, luscious posterior.
Tails felt a strange sensation taking over his body. He wasn't sure if he liked it. He managed to maintain control over himself.

"Ha..haha! M-Ms. Rabbit? I...that is, what I mean to say is...ah, Vanilla? Wha...what's going on here?"
Once Vanilla had successfully gotten her dress off, she kicked it aside. Then she turned to Tails. She was smiling,
but with an expression of pure lust and desire.

"Tell me, Miles," Vanilla said seductively, "how much...do you like me?"