Chapter 3
In the garden as the late morning sun beams down, Cream sits in her mother's rocking chair with Cheese napping at her side as she works on a very important task. Three flower crowns rest on the ground in front of her where she's gently laid them on the grass. Yellows and reds and whites had been braided together for the perfect crown for the others inside. The six year old hums to herself as she completes the circle of the last one, a very special one. Blues and reds weaving in a gentle pattern as she turns it in her small hands, observing her handiwork. Little yellow flowers peak out from the larger flora giving the appearance of little stars dotting the crown.
Satisfied that it's to her liking, the young rabbit carefully picks the other crowns up and makes her way back inside the house with a drowsy Chao not far behind. She hums to herself as she cheerfully distributes the first three of yellow, red, and white, not a care in the world of what the others are talking about as they sit around in the brightly lit living room. Her mother gracefully takes her gift and places it atop her head, careful of her long ears. With a kiss to her daughter's cheek, Vanilla thanks her daughter with a radiant smile though it quickly turns amused as sleepy Cheese settles down for a nap in her lap. Tails receives his crown with a bashful look, namesakes twisting themselves together as he cradles the braided flowers like a priceless treasure as he thanks her. Sonic, in all his bravado, makes a show of ducking his head to Cream so she can properly set the crown on his head. The blue hero ruffles the fur between her ears in a good natured show of gratitude, telling her how he now looks twice as handsome with one of her special flower crowns.
Cream glows at the remarks and skips away, pleased with the success of the first part of her mission. With the fourth and final crown gently held in her hands she makes her way deeper into the small house towards the bedrooms. She passes the first room, the guest room Sonic and Tails were currently using during their stay, making her way to stand in front of the second door of the hallway with the name "Vanilla" engraved into the face. Her mother's room was normally open, but for now it was shut to hide the one asleep beyond the wooden door.
It was scary when the heroic duo showed up yesterday. Sonic and Tails really looked no worse for wear as they'd come rushing and shouting to the house, but the woman they had carried with them, a Mobian cat, had been a dreadful sight with dried blood splattered across her torn clothing. Vanilla had been extra thorough in searching for wounds, the bright red fur and hair of the feline could've easily hidden wounds and the black stripes could've masked more blood. Thankfully the mysterious woman seemed to be alright. No wounds, only a wet sounding wheeze as she breathed.
No one had told Cream to keep away and just like every other mature six year old, she deems it safe to enter the room of the recovering guest in order to give her a simple but carefully made get well present. The little rabbit pushes the door open slowly so as to not make any loud noises and tiptoes her way over to stop by the bed, pushing past the pallet of blankets Vanilla had used last night. The stranger doesn't move or make a sound other than the quiet and constant wheezing of her breathing. Feeling confident enough to continue her mission, Cream moves over to the small desk her mother keeps by the single window beside her bed. On the wooden surface, in the rays of the sun coming through the glass, the little girl places her last flower crown.
Cream takes a moment to admire her work again, proud of how the colors work together, before moving away to make for the direction of the door. Something, however, catches her eye as she turns, and she looks back.
Deep green eyes stare at her from the bed.
"Hello," the girl greets the stranger. She doesn't move closer to the bed, but she also doesn't move away, curious to see what the woman will do. "Are you awake, miss? Do you need anything?"
The feline opens her mouth to speak, pauses, and closes it again with an unsure expression.
"Miss?" Cream tries again. She considers fetching her mother for a moment, watching the woman lick her lips. She was probably thirsty.
"Y-you're a rabbit?" questions the raspy voice.
The child nods her head. "Yes. Um. Would you like some water? My mother can bring some to you."
"Please."
Cream quickly makes her way out of her mother's bedroom to the living room. Vanilla is still there, petting the sleeping Chao's head as she speaks with Tails and Sonic. The blue hedgehog is the first to notice the six year old's return and the concerned look on her face.
"What's the matter, Cream?"
The little girl doesn't answer right away, grabbing at her mother's arm instead and gently pulling. "She's awake," she explains. "She wants to know if she can have some water."
Vanilla's eyes widen and she hands Cheese over to her daughter, instructing her to go play outside, before heading into the kitchen. Pulling down a slender glass cup, she fills it with water and proceeds towards her room. As she enters she sees her guest trying to prop herself up in the bed. The older rabbit is quick to reach out a hand and steady the struggling feline.
"You should be careful, dear. You're not fully recovered yet," the mother gently admonishes, placing the glass of water on the desk and pulling out its companion chair to sit on next to the bed. While she didn't find any cuts or serious scrapes on her guest after the boys had rescued her, there was no denying the shakiness of those elbows and the quickened pace of those heaving breaths.
"Sorry."
Vanilla offers the other woman the glass and she takes it, drinking the water quickly and not leaving a drop.
"Would you like more water?"
"Ah, uh, thank you, but I think I'm alright for now. Thank you." The stranger hums a moment before clearing her throat, feeling how the water has soothed some of the scratchiness.
"If you say so." Vanilla lets it slide with a sigh. "Now then. I know it must seem strange waking up in a place you don't recognize, but if you're feeling up to it, do you think you could come with me into the living room to answer some questions? I can get you some nice hot tea as well to help with your lungs. From how they sounded last night, I'm positive they must be causing you a bit of trouble."
The feline stiffens, fur puffed up giving away just how nervous that question makes her.
"Questions? What kinds of questions exactly?"
The mother offers her a kind smile to try and ease her. "It's not an interrogation, dear. Just things like your name and where you're from. Sonic is trying to find out where you came from so he can help get you home."
Vanilla's guest looks confused, but nods in response, holding out a hand that her host takes to help her up out of bed and give her steadying support as they slowly make their way to the living room.
"I hope you don't mind, but I had to throw out your old clothes. They were absolutely ruined beyond repair. Thankfully I had an old dress that fit you."
"Oh. Thank you. That was very kind of you."
"Think nothing of it." Vanilla guides the feline over to the chair that rests beside the one the mother had been sitting in just earlier, both facing towards the couch where the brothers still sat. "Now just make yourself comfortable."
The red Mobian settles into the plush seat, nervous eyes sweeping over the rooms and its other occupants to take it all in. The older woman, seeing her guest settled in, makes her way into the kitchen and pulls out an ornate tea cup.
After an awkward bout of silence, Tails is the first to speak up. "I'm glad you're awake. When we found you inside Eggman's base we'd feared the worst with how torn up you looked."
One of the cat's ears flick, confusion clearly written on her face again.
"Eggman?" she asks.
Sonic looks at her wide-eyed. "Yeah. Eggman. You know. The crazy robot builder psycho bent on ruling the world? That Eggman."
"Oh. Um, okay then. Eggman." The stranger rubs her eyes a moment, centering herself. As she looks back Vanilla is placing a hot cup of fragrant tea on a small table seated between the two chairs. "I'm sorry, I didn't get your names."
"My name's Tails," says the yellow fox first with a proud smile.
"I'm Sonic the Hedgehog."
"My name is Vanilla and my daughter you met earlier is Cream."
The feline smiles. "It's nice to meet you. My name is Claira."
The mother rabbit offers her a kind look as she settles back into her own seat. "Claira," she repeats. "That's a very pretty name."
"Thank you."
Sonic leans forward from his spot on the couch. "I'm sorry to try and speed this along, it's kind of in the name, but we really need your help in finding out what Eggman wants with you."
Claira eyes the blue hero, almost looking uncomfortable in his presence, but she nods her willingness to comply. "I'll help you in anyway I can, but you have to understand, I have no recollection of any 'Eggman' or how I even got onto his base. I don't really know fully where I am right now or how I got here. It's kind of all a blur."
Vanilla reaches over and grabs the other woman's hand for support. "What do you remember, dear?"
Claira sits silent a while, contemplating the question.
What did she remember?
"I-" She freezes, a faraway look shadows her gaze as her eyes moisten. "I remember. Oh God."
A hand tightens on her own. "It's alright, you're safe here from whatever it is. You can tell us."
"It hurts. I don't want to remember." Claira tries to blink away the heat from her eyes, freeing the gathering tears.
"Please," Tails implores. "It could be the only way we can help you."
Tears are wiped away with a wet sniffle. "My family. We were attacked and I was, I was thrown into one of the pods designated for Earth. The last thing I remember is seeing the planet before cryostasis was triggered."
Rabbit, fox, and hedgehog eye each other in concern while the fourth room occupant continues to wipe at her face.
"Earth?" Vanilla questions. Claira looks up and nods. "Claira, dear, I know this may be a terrible time for you, but..."
Tails clears his throat and pipes up to finish. "There hasn't been an Earth for 49 years."
Sonic's quills bristle slightly at the panicked look worn by the crimson cat, ready in case high emotions cause her to lash out. As quickly as it comes though, it's replaced by anguish, tears freely flowing down red furred cheeks.
"It's just gone?" she breathes. "All of it? What of the other humans? My kind. I'm not the last, am I?"
"No," the blue hero assures her, "there are still plenty of humans around the world. But you sure don't look like one. You sure you didn't just hit your head too hard after listening to some human talk about Earth?"
"What? What do you mean? Of course I'm a human, what else would I be?"
"A Mobian."
"Mobian?"
Vanilla stands up and leaves the room again for a moment, returning to a tense and quiet room with a hand mirror. She places it in Claira's hands and sits back down in her seat to carefully observe what happens next.
Claira, after looking everyone in the eye to judge the the sincerity of the claim, shakily brings the mirror up to look into it.
She doesn't even manage a gasp at the revelation that it's not a human staring back at her, but a humanoid cat. The red of the fur and long hair on top of her head is the same as the hair color from when she was human. Her green eyes remained the same as well. But large ears, so different from before, lay flat against her scalp in her distress. The black stripes resemble those of a tabby, lined down her forehead and mixed in with her hair. On her chest where the beautiful but simple light green dress didn't cover was a patch of long snow white fur.
Tears continue to stream down Claira's face, her other hand now firmly pressing against her mouth.
Tails and Sonic remain still and silent, understanding that the news given is devastating, while Vanilla slowly pries the mirror away.
"You said that it's been 49 years?" the grieving woman asks.
The other three Mobians nod.
Claira looks over at Sonic and Tails. "You said other humans tell stories about Earth. Do you think I could still have family alive, here, in that case?"
"It's possible," Tails confirms. "I can probably find them for you if you give me your last name."
"It's Robotnik."