Chapter Twelve: Fateful meeting

Real fast description time! Emerald: Dressed in ninja suit, only her head visible. Long green hair, shimmering green eyes, green skin tone, and very slight frame, which is surprising considering what she is capable of. I forgot to add that in last chapter, so I did it now to save myself some pointing out...(though I doubt it is really going to work...).

Tails sat in his workshop, furiously typing up plans for the event that night. He was worried that he would be too late, not even aware that someone was at the front door, knocking. He just kept typing, unwittingly letting his visitor enter without even being noticed. Finally, he had all of his files ready and began printing, and the noise of the printer attracted his visitor to the garage. The door opened, startling him beyond words. He nearly had a heart attack, he was so scared by the sudden entrance.

However, upon calming seeing who it was, he calmed down and just stared in awe. The person was an orange-furred, female echidna that wore tribal clothing, with locks that went down in dreadlocks and beautiful green eyes. She was half-surprised that he jumped like he did, but she said, "Hello, may I talk to you?"

Her voice had a beautiful tone to it, and he said, "Um...yeah, I'm Miles Prower...you can call me Tails if you like. What's, uh...your name?"

He knew that he seemed somewhat shy now, but he quickly got rid of it, and the girl answered, "I'm Tikal. It's nice to meet you, Tails."

Tails stared into her eyes for a moment, and then asked, "Why are you here? I don't remember letting you in..."

Tikal replied, "I needed to talk with you about something. Have you met with Shadow, out of curiosity?"

Tails asked, "How did you know about that?"

He felt her eyes search him as she thought about what she was going to say. Something about him had caught her eye, he felt. She suddenly replied, "I've met with Shadow, and he told me to come and tell you to get ready for the plan. He also mentioned the sheets for everyone's part in this plan."

Tails said, "I have them right here. How did you meet him, though?"

Tikal replied, "I was out in the jungle, following my senses for a nearby Chaos Emerald. Shadow beat me to it, so we discussed who would get it. He finally agreed to let me have it if I did a certain something, and that certain something involved me coming to meet you and remind you about the plan."

Tails thought about it for a moment, and then said, "Alright. So, then I'm going to have to have to leave right about now by plane if I want to have any hope of making it to..." his voice trailed off as he began talking to himself. Tikal watched him as he looked at the time on his computer, shut it off, picked up the papers, and then began to get his plane ready for take-off.

She asked, "Can you take me with you? I also need to be there."

Tails turned to her and smiled as he said, "Sure thing! Just hop on the tail and hold on tight. I won't perform any aerial maneuvers, so you won't fall off."

She smiled back at him, and he helped her get onto the tail of the plane. As the plane revved up for take-off, she gripped the tail in fear that she might slip off. She asked, "Are you sure I can't sit beside you or something?"

Tails looked back at her, then looked down at the seat. It was designed for one person, but two was possible, and it would be safer for the second person. He just hadn't intended for a girl to be sitting right beside him. He said, "Um...alright. You can, if you're not going to be uncomfortable with it."

She slid down the tail of the plane, and as Tails made some more room, she slid down beside him. They were pressed together somewhat, but after a bit of adjusting, they both found themselves strangely comfortable. Tails took note that one of Tikal's legs was over one of his, which made him slight uncomfortable, but he didn't pay it any heed. As the plane flew into the air, Tikal watched as he carefully took the plane up into the air. As he flew out to sea, he suddenly turned it around and began heading for Station Square.

"You're a good pilot," she commented.

"Thanks," Tails replied, "I've been working on my skill for quite a while now."

"When did you start flying?"

"Let's see...I started when I was about eight. I was a prodigy, actually."

Tikal was surprised and asked, "You began when you were eight years old?"

Tails replied, "Yep! Back then, me and Sonic were best pals. We worked together when I was just a kid for about two years, and then we separated. We came back together only recently, seven years later."

Tikal guessed, "You're seventeen, then?"

Tails smiled and said, "Yep."

Tikal now slightly blushed and said, "I thought you were actually older than that. The way you acted...I thought you were more like twenty-one."

Tails seemed surprised and said, "That's odd. Not many people think I'm older than seventeen. In a lot of cases, people seem to think that I'm younger."

Tikal said, "Well, your voice, your looks, and the way you act...it just made you seem older."

Tails asked, "How old are you, out of curiosity?"

Tikal replied, "I'm your age."

Tails again glanced at her leg, and was even more embarrassed now than he was before. He didn't admit that, though. He just kept flying, not even fidgeting. As they neared the city, Tails asked, "I was wondering if, after this, do you want to go out sometime? Like on a date or something?"

Tikal seemed surprised, but she said, "Um...sure! Why not?"

Tails was surprised, but shook it off, smiling to himself. Even in the darkness, Tikal saw him smile, and could already guess which way this was going. He didn't know everything about her, but what she had said was technically true. She was seventeen, because she hadn't aged at all during the time she was in the Master Emerald. As Tails brought the plane down for an easy landing on the beach outside the city, he said, "You get out first."

Tikal wondered why, and then she noticed for the first time that one of her legs was on Tails. She blushed lightly and stood, allowing Tails to stand. He helped her out of the plane and then got out himself. He said, "Okay, follow me. We're going to be doing some pretty crazy things pretty soon..."

Next chapter will cause the story to have a serious change of tone, and you'll see why. Just be prepared for things to go from somewhat light-hearted to very serious in the next chapter.