Subchapter 5: Tangle and Tails

Spiral Hill Village, Nine Years after Sonic's disappearance

Tangle was currently engaged in a battle with Dr. Starline. The platypus had been rather aggressive as of late, trying his best to get rid of Tails and his friends in order to make his world conquest that much easier, and Tangle was his current target.

Most of the villagers had already evacuated, but not all, and Tangle was determined to protect the stragglers with everything she had.

"Geez Starline, if you really wanted to knock me off, you could of picked a better place!" Tangle taunted as she used her tail to swing around the robot.

"Oh? And why's that?" Starline asked his mech swatted at the lemur, who nimbly dodged the attack.

"Cause we are in MY town, and I know every bit of this town like the back of my ha-" Tangle said before she crashed into something.

Looking back, she saw that it was a familiar looking chili dog stand.

"DANG IT RON!" Tangle shouted as Starline picked her up and chucked her into a nearby building.

"Ugh… hope no-one saw tha-" Tangle started before she got a good look around.

This was the Mineral Museum.

Jewel's Museum.

"Oh no… JEWEL?!" Tangle shouted, hoping that her friend wasn't here.

"Ugh… Tangle?" Said a voice from underneath some nearby rubble.

Acting quickly, Tangle rushed over and pulled away the rubble, revealing her best friend.

"Jewel! Are you ok?!" Tangle asked.

"Yeah… did you always have two heads?" Jewel asked.

"Ok, definitely not ok…" Tangle said. She then took a look around, and was not happy with what she saw.

Starline was right in front of the building, and about to bring his mech's giant fists down onto it.

"Oh no…" Was the last thing Tangle could say before the fists came down, and completely destroyed the building.

"Ha…HAHA! YES! TAKE THAT YOU INSUFFERABLE WELP!" Starline shouted out in victory before using his warp topaz to warp himself and the mech away.

After about a minute, some of the remains of the museum began to move. Eventually, Tangle's tail burst out, with Tangle climbing out with Jewel wrapped in her tail shortly after, both of which very injured.

"… That went terribly…" Tangle said before passing out.

—

Two days later

When Tangle woke up, everything hurt, especially her tail.

"Tangle?" Said a voice.

"Huh?" Tangle groaned out. Her vision was still very blurry, so all she was able to see was a yellow blob near her bed. Deciding that it probably wasn't important, she fell back asleep.

Three hours later, she finally woke up again. This time, her vision cleared enough to get a good look around.

She was in a hospital room from the look of things.

"How did I…?" Tangle said. Then it hit her. "Jewel!"

Worry immediately flooded through her body as she forced herself to get out of the bed, only to fall flat on her face onto the floor.

"Wha-huh? Tangle?!" Said the same voice from before.

Tangle looked up to see Tails walking towards her.

"What are you doing out of bed?!" Tails asked before scooping her up off the floor.

"Jewel! Where is she?!" Tangle asked frantically.

"She's going to be fine, she is resting up in the room next door." Tails said. "You were honestly the one who got the worst of it."

"R-really? That's good." Tangle said. "Her museum?"

Tails just sighed. "Completely destroyed, barely anything was still in one piece by the time we got there." Tails said.

Tangle just sighed. "Great… all that work… gone."

"I'm sorry Tangle…" Tails said.

"Don't be, it's my fault." Tangle said. "Shouldn't of gotten so careless…"

"Hey, everyone makes mistakes!" Tails said.

"Yeah, and this one mistake cost Jewel her livelihood, almost cost both of us our lives, and destroyed what was pretty much what we spent our entire lives working on." Tangle said in a frustrated tone. "I'm a a failure of a hero… aren't I?"

"What?! No, your an amazing hero!" Tails said.

"Great heroes don't almost get their best friends killed." Tangle said.

"But she's still alive, because you saved her."

"From something I caused…"

At this point, Tails had had enough.

"Listen, Tangle, you are NOT a failure!" Tails started. "You are one of the bravest, most selfless people on the planet. You have saved countless lives over the years, you have been an amazing source of positivity to not only me, but to the others, especially after Sonic vanished. You are smart, beautiful, and strong, and I will not just stand here while you are beating yourself up over this!"

Tangle was silent, trying to process what Tails just said. After a moment, she just laughed.

"Tails, you have given a lot of sappy speeches in the past, but that has to be the sappiest!" Tangle said as she continued to laugh. "Like, seriously, 'Smart, beautiful and strong'?! If I didn't know better, I would think that you were trying to say that you had a crush on me!"

"Well maybe I am!" Tails said before quickly covering his mouth.

The two just stayed in silence.

'Did… did he really just say that?'

'DID I REALLY JUST SAY THAT?!'

After a moment, Tangle finally was able to speak.

"Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh."

But not very well.

Meanwhile, Tails was panicking.

'Ok! MAYBE she will just decide to drop the subject and ignore my out of no-where confession!' He thought.

"Uh… did… did you really mean that?"

'CRAPCRAPCRAPCRAPCRAPCRAPCRAPCRAPCRAPCRAPCRAPCRAP'

"Uuuuuuuuuuuuhhhhhhhhhh."

"…Tails?"

Tails, after gathering all of the courage that he could, spoke again.

"Yes… yes I did." Tails said as his face turned red.

"O-oh…" Tangle said, face also red.

…

'GREAT! NOW I MADE THINGS AWKWARD!' Tails thought.

"Uh… sorry about that… I uh… didn't mean to make you upset…" He finally said.

"Don't appoligize… what you said was really sweet… and honestly, it really helped a lot." Tangle admitted.

"Well, that's good at least." Tails said.

"So… how long?" Tangle asked.

Tails just sighed. "I don't really know when this started, but it has been a while."

"Oh…" Tangle said. "So uh… how's about when I get out of here, we go out? Get some lunch or something I mean?" Tangle asked.

"…Huh?"

"What I am trying to say is, I am willing to give us a shot, if you are." Tangle admitted.

"O-OH! Yeah! We'll talk more about it later though! You should probably get some rest first!" Tails said.

"Yeah… probably a good idea…" Tangle said as her eyes began to close. "Just one more thing though… come closer?"

Tails complied, and when got close enough, Tangle used her tail to pull Tails' face in to kiss him on the cheek.

"Thanks for everything, Tails."

"Uh… Uh…"

And with that, Tangle was asleep once again.

Deciding to let Tangle get her rest, Tails left the room. He found a nurse and told her that Tangle was awake for a bit, though the nurse was afraid that Tails had caught a fever, with his red face and all.

Eventually, he made his way out of the hospital, drove back to his workshop in the Cyclone, and expressed his current emotions in the only way he knew how.

"YES!"

Little did they know, a certain pink hedgehog saw the whole exchange in the hospital room.

Two weeks later

Tails was getting ready for the day, taking extra care to make sure that he looked absolutely perfect. The reason, that was simple.

Today was the day that Tangle was being let out of the hospital, which means their date was also today.

Satisfied with his appearance, Tails began to make his way for the door, when someone knocked on said door.

"Huh? Wonder who that could be?" Tails said as he opened the door, revealing an annoyed looking Knuckles.

"Hey Tails." Knuckles said.

"Oh! Hey Knuckles! What's up?" Tails asked.

"Doing Amy a favor… since I owe her one I guess…" Knuckles said.

"Oh? And that favor would be…?"

Knuckles just sighed.

"Knuckles?"

"We're SUPPOSED to be to help you get ready for your date." Said a new voice. Tails looked behind Knuckles to see Shadow standing.

"Shadow?… WAIT, HOW DO YOU KNOW ABOUT THAT?!" Tails asked.

"Apparently Amy heard your whole conversation in the hospital the other day." Knuckles said. "When she found out that you two were going on a date she said she had to, and I quote, 'make it the most amazing experience ever!'" He said, that last part being in his best (or worst?) Amy impression.

"W-Why would she…?" Tails asked.

"Beats me, but again, I owe her a favor, and I thought I would come and at least see if you are up for it." Knuckles said.

"Ok…? And why is Shadow…?"

"I am here cause I lost a bet…" Shadow said. "You just HAD to be the one to spill the beans first…"

"What…?" Tails said.

"Me and Rouge made a bet on who would confess to the other first, you or Tangle." Shadow said. "Sorry to say, I bet against you."

"Wait, WHAT?!" Tails shouted. "You mean, Tangle actually…?"

"Started liking you after you kicked Shadow's butt, yeah." Knuckles said to the Hedgehog's annoyance. "It was kinda obvious too, surprised the genius of the group didn't pick up on it!"

"… HUH?!"

"…I think we broke him." Knuckles said.

"You think?"

"Anyways, so we are here to help you get ready for the date." Knuckles said, pulling out what appeared to be a very nice outfit.

"Uh… we're just doing lunch… why do I need to dress up so nicely?"

"Cause Rouge got you a reservation at some nice restaurant." Shadow said. "She seems to be as into this as Amy…"

"Speaking of Amy… where is she?" Tails asked.

"Well…"

Meanwhile, with Tangle

"NOPE! NOT DOING IT!" Tangle shouted.

Amy and Rouge were in Tangle's hospital room, along with Jewel, who, while most of her injuries had healed, was currently sitting to not overexert herself, and trying to get the lemur to wear a yellow dress.

"Oh come on! The restaurant has a strict dress code!" Amy said.

"Then we aren't going to the restaurant!" Tangle argued.

"We already paid for it!" Amy argued back.

"Listen girl, she is not going to give up until you put on the dress." Rouge said.

"But… but…"

"Come on Tangle, we all know that you want to impress him, so what's the harm?" Jewel said with a smirk on her face.

"… Traitor…" Tangle grumbled out.

"Hey, just trying to help." Jewel said.

"Listen, I know for a FACT that Shadow and Knuckles are going to be able to get Tails to dress up." Amy said. "Do you really want to make him go through that only for you to not be prepared yourself?"

"I… uh…"

"Just one meal, that's all you have to deal with."

"Uh…"

"So, what's the harm?"

"… Fine… give me the dress."

And the girls cheered.

Back with Tails

Tails, with the help of Knuckles and Shadow, had finally finished getting ready for his date.

"Ok… so now what?" Tails asked.

"Well, now you meet Tangle at the hospital I guess?" Knuckles said, unsure about his answer.

"You guess?"

"Hey! I've never been on a date before! Don't look at me!" Knuckles said defensively. "Been too busy with guarding the Master Emerald and treasure hunting!"

The reminder of Knuckles' treasure hunter profession gave Tails an idea.

'I'll talk to them later about that…'

"You should probably get going…" Shadow said.

"Yeah, you're right." Tails said before leaving. "Thanks guys!"

"Go get em, tiger!" Knuckles said.

"Try to not completely embarrass yourself." Shadow said.

"I'll try!" Tails said before he got into his Cyclone and drove off.

"… We're going to spy on them, aren't we?" Knuckles asked.

"Rouge already planted the bug at their table." Shadow said before walking off.

"Right…" Knuckles said as he followed.

When Tails arrived at the hospital, he messaged Tangle to let her know he was there. After a few minutes of waiting, she finally walked out the doors.

"… Whoa…"

Tangle was wearing a yellow dress, along with yellow heals, as well as what appeared to be bracelets on her wrists and around her tail, quite the outfit compared to Tails' plain dress shirt and pants. Although, she still had some bandages wrapped around her head and her right leg.

"So… how do I look?" Tangle asked.

Tails responded in the most eloquent way that his brilliant mind could possibly think of.

"UUUUUUUHHHHHHHHHHHHH."

"Well then… glad you like it." Tangle said with a chuckle. "Just don't expect me to dress like this too often…"

"I uh… wouldn't expect you to. You look amazing, don't get me wrong… but…"

"It's not my style." Tangle finished for him.

"Yeah. Again, you look amazing! But I just can't imagine you dressing like this too often." Tails said.

"And that's fine… so uh… Amy and Rouge gave me an address to some restaurant in Sunset Hills… and they got a reservation… so…"

"Yeah, Shadow and Knuckles said as much… you don't have to go there if you don't want to." Tails said.

"No, it's fine. The food there has to be better than the food here." Tangle said as she pointed her thumb back towards the hospital.

Tails laughed at this. At least she was back to her normal self. "Alright, then let's get going!" Tails said as Tangle got into the Cyclone.

Thankfully, Sunset Hill was not far, so after about twenty minutes of driving and talking, the two arrived at their destination… and they immediately knew something was up.

"Uh… didn't Amy and Rouge say this place had a strict dress code?" Tangle asked.

Sure enough, the patrons of the restaurant were not dressed in anything nearly as good as what they were wearing.

"… I can't help but feel like we were tricked…" Tails groaned out.

"Well… maybe this is the wrong place!" Tangle said as they walked inside.

"Ah, Mr. Prower, we have been expecting you!" Said the man at the front desk.

"… Or we were tricked…"

"We have a special table prepared for two of our worlds greatest heroes. If you would follow me please." The man said as he began to lead the two.

'Ok, first date… ever… and it is with the girl you have had a crush on for who knows how long! You got this Tails! YOU GOT THIS!' Tails thought.

'I swear, I am going to kill those two when I see them!' Tangle thought before she took a look at Tails. She then remembered what he said to her at the hospital. 'But… if he really does like how I look right now… maybe it was worth it… but just this once.'

As the duo sat down at their table, on a veranda overlooking the city, the rest of their friends were hiding out inside some bushes.

"Ok, so they are at the table. Rouge, is that thing working?" Amy asked as she saw the two through her binoculars.

"Hold on… yes! We have audio!" Rouge responded as the radio in front of her came to life.

"Well, at least this place IS nice…" Tails said through the radio.

"Yeah, totally gonna get those two back for tricking me though." Tangle responded. "Though this view is really nice."

"You got that right…" Tails said.

"So uh… now what?" Tangle asked.

"Uh… I don't really know? I guess we just… talk."

"Ok then… so, come up with any new inventions lately?"

And so, the two of them began to talk, and reminisced on all the good times that they had together.

"So… what do you think Sonic would think about all of this?" Tails asked.

Tangle couldn't help but smile at the question. Tails had finally accepted the fact that Sonic was gone a while ago, but he still admired the blue hedgehog… everyone did.

"I think he would be proud of you… either that or incredibly protective." Tangle answered. "Though, my money would be on proud."

"Yeah, I think so too." Tails said. "So, I had an idea."

"Ok?"

"You know how Jewel's museum was destroyed?" Tails asked.

"Ugh, don't remind me…" Tangle said as she slumped into her chair.

"Oh… right, sorry. Anyways, I was talking to Knuckles earlier, and it gave me an idea!" Tails said.

"And that is?"

"Well, maybe the two of you could go treasure hunting together every now and then." Tails said. "You love adventure, and he is an expert at it, so it would be a great way for you to start replacing everything in the museum!"

"Hey yeah! That's a great idea!" Tangle said. "I'll talk to him about it next time I see him!"

"I hope it works out for you!" Tails said.

Then, he noticed something. Out of a nervous habit, he ran his hand along the bottom of the table they were sitting at, and noticed a weird lump. It didn't take long for him to realize what it might be.

As such, he mouthed the worlds "Play along" to Tangle, who nodded in response.

"Heck, I bet you can get him to donate the Master Emerald to the museum! A gem that big oughta bring in quite the crowd." Tails said.

"Yeah! That's a great idea! Heck, I bet he wouldn't mind if I just went ahead and took it!"

"WHAT?!" Said a very angry voice in the distance.

"… They've been spying on us, haven't they…"

"Yup."

Later

"Sorry…" Amy said to the annoyed couple.

"Seriously, you went through all that effort just to spy on us?" Tangle asked.

"We just wanted to make sure that everything went perfectly!" Amy explained. "… we just want you two to be happy is all…"

Tails smiled at this. "Well, at least you meant well. Thanks Amy, everyone."

"That aside, you want to go on a treasure hunt, huh?" Knuckles asked.

"Yeah, if you don't mind."

"Sure, there are some ruins I have been meaning to explore, and having a friend along could be helpful." Knuckles said before extending his hand, which Tangle took. "Once that's all healed up, we can talk details." He said as he pointed to Tangle's leg.

"You got it!"

"Anyways, we should probably let the two of you finish your date… in peace." Rouge said before walking away. "Have fun!"

"See you guys later!" Tails said with a wave. "So… now what?"

"Why don't we just walk around."

And with that, the two began to walk away.

"You know, they really are cute together…" Amy said.

"Eh…" Shadow said.

Amy continued to watch them walk away, and saw Tangle laugh at something Tails had said.

"Hey Rouge… is that offer to join G.U.N. still on the table?" Amy asked.

"Of course! Why? Are you reconsidering?" Rouge asked.

"Yeah, I think I… wait… what's that?" Amy asked as she noticed something in the sky. "… Oh you have got to be kidding me…"

"Seriously?! He was actually talking to a destroyed robot?" Tangle said while trying to hold back her laughter.

"Yup, that was something I did not expect to see that day!" Tails said, recalling his adventure with Sonic to the Interstellar Amusement park.

He then noticed Tangle wince in pain.

"Hey, are you alright?" Tails asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine… leg just feels a bit sore though." Tangle said, gesturing to her bandaged leg.

Tails then took a good look around.

"You trust me, right?" Tails asked.

"Yeah, why?"

Tails then took off, spinning his namesakes to take flight. "Grab on!"

Complying, Tangle grabbed Tails' hands before he flew to a nearby rooftop.

"Ok, so why did you… oh." Tangle said as she got a look at the view.

"This place is called Sunset Heights for a reason."

Tangle could only stare in awe at the beautiful sunset before her.

"Yeah… I can see that reason." Tangle said.

The two then just sat down and enjoyed the view.

"So… you had a good time, right?" Tails asked.

"Hmmmm yeah, I'd say so. Chewing out the others for spying on us was cathartic at least." Tangle said, no longer bitter at them for tricking her… ok, maybe still a little. "And this view is great too."

"I'd say the best part was the company…" Tails said.

"Geez, when did you get so corny?" Tangle said with a laugh. "That was very sweet though."

"… Honestly, that line was something Sonic always told me I should say at the end of a date…" Tails said bashfully.

"…Yeah, sounds like something he would say." Tangle said with a laugh.

"… So, you want to do this again sometime?" Tails asked.

"Hmmm… I don't know…" Tangle said before noticing Tails looking very nervous. "Sure! Something less fancy next time though."

"Right, of course!" Tails said.

Then, their eyes locked. They began to slowly drift towards each other, until finally…

CRASH

The sound of something crashing right behind them caused the two of them to jump away from each other.

When the dust settled, they saw Shadow, standing over a completely trashed Metal Sonic.

"… Starline was planning a sneak attack?" Tails asked.

"Seems to be the case." Shadow said.

"Thanks for taking care of it." Tangle said.

"No problem." Shadow said before taking Metal Sonic away.

Tangle and Tails went back to watching the Sunset, just enjoying each other's company.

"Wait… where am I going to stay until my house is fixed up?" Tangle asked.

Tails just turned red.

End of Subchapter 5

This is one of the biggest chapters I have ever written, and it took me the longest too. I started this pretty much at the beginning of when I started posting this story, and I am finally finishing this the 23rd of July… I really wanted to take my time on this one it was special to me... I still have written longer in a future story I am writing though. :)

So! Let's talk about everything that happened! Tails and Tangle are together now… finally. Amy is finally reconsidering Rouge's offer. Knuckles is going to treasure hunt with Tangle now, and the mineral museum is trashed. Also Metal Sonic is trashed. That about sums it all up!

All that's left is the finale! I hope you are ready!… Cause the finale is! Yup, I have it all written out and ready to post! So we are finishing this over the next couple of days!

So, I will see you all tomorrow for part 1 of the finale, Cream!