Chapter 7:
Warm Welcome
"SURPRISE!!"
Yoshirou jumped at the shout and Tails jumped on him. Wrapping her legs and tails around his chest while her arms grappled his neck.
"Tails...get off." He choked out.
Tails dropped down on her butt, she lied down, blinking up at the ceiling.
"You okay Tails?" Yoshirou asked as her turned to stare down at her. All Tails did was sigh. Yoshirou laughed, turning back to the group that now stand before them. "What is all this for!?" He happily exclaimed.
"A welcoming party for you, Yoshirou." Amy said from behind.
"Wow...thank you Amy!"
"You're welcome. Figured you might like a celebration for you an Tails' reunion. Special, just for you two." She smiled to him.
"This is one of the most thoughtful things I have ever received." He said, tearing up.
"You OK?" Sonic asked.
He wiped his eyes. "Yeah, I'm fine. Happy to tears, thats all."
"Aww, we made him cry." A half dressed squirrel spoke out. He looked up at her, then quickly looking away, blushing. "Hm? Whats wrong? She asked.
"I, uh, do you always walk around like that?" Yoshirou shakily questioned.
"Yeah, not like you can see anything anyway." She answered back.
He looked back at her, still blushing. "My mother would kill me right now I she saw me with you dressed like you are. I mean no offense by that." He gulped. "My mother always felt I should never look in the direction of a woman who's breast are showing." His blush reddened.
Sally giggle, zipping up her vest. "That better?"
He nodded. "Thank you."
"Was your mother that strict?" Charmy asked quizzically.
"And then some. If she did catch me looking upon your figure, she would have smacked my knuckles with a yardstick. She had high expectations."
"Why do you speak of her in the past tense?" A black hedgehog asked. Cream started to wave her hand back and forth across her neck.
"Shut up, shut up, shut up!" Cream said to herself.
"...Do you all wish to know that happened? I must warn you. This will spoil the mood of the party."
Tails sat up, wishing to know the story.
"Alright, this is how it happened..."
--Flashback--
It was a hot day, and the sibling's parents worked in the garden. Harvesting the crops they had planted.
"Dear, what should we have for dinner tonight?" Manami asked Takeshi.
"I'm not sure. Why don't we ask Yoshirou." Takeshi suggested.
Manami nodded. "It has been a long time since we had what he liked. Sure, go ask him, this will surely brighten up his day." She smiled that loving smile of hers. Takeshi stood, walking out front.
The pale blue kitsune sat on the front steps of the cottage, dangling a doll above the baby known as Kokoro's face. She batted it the small plushy with curiosity.
"Yoshirou? There you are." Takeshi said.
"Right where you left me father. Do you need something?" Yoshirou replied.
"I do, actually, your mother would like to know what you want for dinner tonight?"
While Yoshirou attention was distracted, Kokoro grabbed the doll. "Oh, hey." She began to chew on it, grinning with triumph over her older brother.
"Ah, she's teething. Let her be Yoshirou."
"Ok, you were asking about dinner?" Yoshirou put the main topic back in motion.
"Yes dinner, what do-" He stopped, he sensed something coming for them.
An ax flew by Takeshi's head and landed into the door. Hooping and hollering could be heard behind him. A group of seven brutes out for blood.
"Yoshirou, take Kokoro and get in the house, lock the door."
"But, fath-"
"I SAID NOW!" Takeshi yelled.
Yoshirou did as commanded. He lifted up the basket, carrying his young sister into the house. Locking the door, he then peeked out of the mail slot in the door. Their mother and father stood at the gate, blocking the vagabond group's entry. Raised voices erupted from their parents. The group's leader lost his patience and struck their mother's head out of nowhere. The impact was so hard that she had died before she hit the ground. Takeshi retaliated, he drew out his claws and tore into the murderer's throat, killing him. The remainder of the group surrounded Takeshi and beat him down. Their attention shifted to the cottage. Yoshirou noticed this and picked up Kokoro from the basket, running for the entry to the cellar that lay in the house. The whole time, Kokoro had a naive smile on her face, unaware of the tragedy that was taking place. He hid her and himself in a crawlspace, big enough for the both of them but, too small for the murderer's to reach them inside. Kokoro started to laugh.
"No, Kokoro, stop." He placed a finger on her lips, hushing her. She giggled, thinking it was a game.
He heard voices. "What do ya say boys? LETS BURN THE PLACE!!"
Smoke soon filled the cottage, Yoshirou took his vest off and covered Kokoro's mouth and nose. Fire, everywhere he looked. He stumbled outside, the vagabonds had left, heading for the settlement that lie down the trail from where they lived. All their friends and remaining family, would be slaughtered like animals. Yoshirou fell to his knees be their parent's side, Kokoro, still laughing. He set Kokoro down by her mother. She took one of her tails and played with it as Yoshirou began to cry.
"...Y-Yo-shi-rou..." His father was barely clinging to life.
Yoshirou his father with hope. "Father?"
"Your mother...is dead...Yoshirou-" He coughed up blood. "-I will soon follow her."
"No, father you can't!" Yoshirou pleaded, tears streaming down his face.
"You, must...Kokoro, take care...of your little sister." He reached down his shirt and pulled out the heart locket. He slid it over his neck and offered it to Yoshirou. "Take this, remember your mother."
Yoshirou took it, placing it to his heart, he cried effusively. "F-Father..." he grabbed his hand.
"Don't cry, we will...see each other again, we are just...going on a vacation...I love you son. So much." Takeshi pulled Manami's limp body close to him, he cried to his final breath. Yoshirou wept over their parent's lifeless bodies.
"Come back, come back..." He cried.
Once the fire and smoke had cleared, Yoshirou buried his parents on the land they shared their love for one another. He then took Kokoro, the innocent daughter, to another village near their area on the map. A village known as Knothole. They had spent a year with one another, in that time, Yoshirou continued to cry himself to sleep. Soon after, they were separated due to an attack by Dr. Robotnik. He escaped of course. Then wandered for years searching for his sister, with no such luck.
--End flashback--
"...And thats what happened." Yoshirou was crying badly.
Tails was crying noiselessly, no whimpers of pain, her tears just flowed freely from her eyes. The other girls couldn't look up at the kitsune the story hurt so much. Shadow was leaned up against the wall with his eyes closed. Sonic and Knuckles stood, grinding their teeth. Espio was silent along with Vector and Charmy. Rage flooded the kitsune, so much so that he had drew his claws into the palms of his fists. Blood and tears dripped steadily to the floor. Yoshirou walked past the group and down the hall into Tails' room, dragging his tails on the floor. He sat on the bed and cried into his palms, the blood and tears mixing.
Tails heart suddenly filled with hate, she rose her fists up and slammed the floor, cracking the hardwood. "Big brother..." Tails whined.
"They didn't deserve to die." Amy said, tears hung in her eyes.
Tails impulsively darted into her room and fell into her brother, crying steadily on his chest. "Big brother..." Tails wrapped her tails and arms around him. Yoshirou, only his tails, his hands were covered in blood after all. "Big brother...Yoshirou..." Tails continued to cry. There was no more joy, no more happiness to be found. It had died in the pit of anguish. Yoshirou drew his claws back. Tails set one of her tails in his hands, he squeezed it. "I don't want you to leave me..." Tails sobbed. She wiped his eyes of the blood.
"...I won't, I made a promise. Little sis...I love you." He whispered in her ear.
"I love you to." She tried to wear a smile but, only more tears arose.
For what seemed like hours, the hangar lie in a state of sorrow. Yoshirou stood after he felt he had the nerve to face everyone. He sighed. "I really didn't want to do that."
"Do what?" Tails asked, quieting her whine.
"Telling everyone about that tragedy. This was suppose to be a joyous time. One where I could make new friends but, instead I fill everyone with grief. I feel so stupid!" Yoshirou walked out of the room to see how everyone else was fairing. "...I'm sorry Amy, everyone. I ruined this for you."
"No, you did the right thing in telling all of us. Now that we know your pain, we can help you when you need to vent about it." Amy said.
Shadow rolled his eyes, wishing he were somewhere else when Amy said that.
"Thank you Amy, I appreciate it. And as for the black hedgehog, I won't bug you. I can see that you don't care much for that type of activity." He smiled weakly.
"Hmm, I think you and I are going to become fast friends." Shadow cracked a smile.
"Where here for you, even though we just met. I consider you as a little brother." Sonic said.
"Sorry to break that train of thought but, how old are you?"
"Seventeen" Sonic replied confidently.
"That makes you MY little brother, I'm eighteen." Yoshirou's smile widened.
Sonic sighed. "Shoot."
Yoshirou laughed, bringing everyone's spirits up so much that they joined in. Tails wandered in the room, rubbing her eyes.
"Whats so funny?"
"Sonic just label Yoshirou his younger brother, when he himself is older than Sonic." Knuckles said.
Tails looked at Sonic, grinning a little. "Good one Sonic."
"Yeah yeah yeah." Sonic groaned.
"Well, I think that enough cheer has returned to have the party, what do you say?" Yoshirou said.
Everyone reeled in surprise. "Are you serious?" Rouge said.
"Our mother and father would not want Tails, I, or any of my friends to continually lament over them. They would wish for us to have joy in our lives."
"Well, if you put it like that. Sure, why not." Amy said.
"Dibs on the cake!" Sonic zipped over to the table.
Amy walked up to Yoshirou and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Thank you."
"For what?" He honestly had no clue as to what she was talking about.
"For saving the party, for once in my life it hasn't gone completely awry." She blushed.
"Your welcome." He looked up at everyone. "Hey, I'm going to go take a short walk, help clear my head. I'll be back though so, save me some cake." He pointed at the table. Yoshirou walked to the door and grabbed the knob, his wrist was grabbed.
"Mind if I join you?" Tails gave him a smile but, not just the ordinary. One that was parallel to their mother's loving one.
"You needn't ask." He opened the door and walked out with Tails, both of them with their arms locked.
An hour passed, the sun was setting. The two walked back into the hangar. Yoshirou's and Tails' hearts were beating in at the same pace.
"There you two are." Amy sounded relieved.
"Hey Ames." Tails said
"So, how are you doing?" Yoshirou asked.
"I sent Sonic home. He devoured the last pieces of cake without you. Sorry."
Tails started to laugh. "You should have made some chillidogs."
"Should have but, I didn't." Amy sighed. Yoshirou was blushing upon the pink hedgehog. "Whats with you?"
"Oh, Tails told me about your last name so-" Be pulled a rose out from behind his back. "-I got this for you. A rose for a Rose." She accepted it, not knowing what to think. "Consider it an apology for me grabbing you so brusquely earlier."
"Apology accepted." She sniffed at the rose.
"Glad you like it."
Amy blushed.
"Where's everyone else?" Yoshirou added.
"They left, sorry about that. I tried to convince them to stay."
"Ah, its fine. I'm sure they had more important things to do." Yoshirou walked over to the couch.
Suddenly and out of nowhere came another- "SURPRISE!!" -everyone jumped out.
"Are you kidding me!?" Yoshirou laughed.
"What do you say we try this again?" Amy smiled.
"Sure, get things off on the right foot."
Amy clapped her hands. Sonic walked in from the hangar, carrying the cake, which had an addition to it, sparklers. "Happy reunion Yoshirou, Tails." Vanilla said, following up Sonic.
Yoshirou's lip quivered, trying his hardest not to cry again but, it was just so hard. "Thank you everyone. I feel right at home."
Tails walked up behind her brother and embraced him. He returned the favor.
"Let the party begin!" Vector said as he hit the on button on the boombox he brought over.
And so it did. They danced, they talked, ate, danced some more. Everything was just perfect.
Tails: Saaaaad! cries
Okay...
