The snow was falling more intensely. The wind was nipping at the gang's cheeks, and they all felt the chill.

"How're you guys holding up?" Vector asked.

"Fine, I gue-" Charmy started to say, but then he stepped on a fragile spot and sank up to his head in the snow. Espio pulled him out by the antennae.

Cheese's nasal bridge, or where it should have been, was quite red and their skin had become pale. They shivered and sneezed. Cream held them close to herself.

"Cheese isn't looking too good," she said. "We gotta find some way to warm them up."

Vector found a blanket and bundled Cheese up in it.

"Now that's what I call a Cheese burrito," Charmy joked. Espio gave him a "not a good time" look, and he quickly clammed up.

Cheese swabbed at their nonexistent nose. They still looked quite weak, and they coughed in a very raspy voice.

"They must be coming down with something," Espio said.

Cheese pointed at their mouth and rubbed their belly.

"I've got soup in my thermos," Vector suggested, and he took it out. He gave it to Cream, and she had Cheese drink from it as she cradled them in her arms. Cream was not only worried about Cheese's health, but she also felt terrible for putting them in this situation in the first place. She didn't want Cheese to be scared, so she did her best to stay strong for their sake.

Soon, the gang came across an ice cave. They entered, and Vector quickly found that even the ground was icy; he slid and fell right on his rear end.

"I suppose we better tread lightly," Espio said.

"Let's ice skate," Cream suggested. She thought it would lift Cheese's spirits at least a bit.

The others were in favor of that. Espio did a triple axel and a backflip. Charmy did a waltz jump. Cream started to do a figure eight, but then Cheese sneezed and sent Cream colliding right into Vector, causing them all to glide past the others and down a steep slope.
"Hey, that looks like fun!" Charmy exclaimed gleefully.

"Wait, hold on," Espio said, but Charmy already jumped down the slope before he had even finished talking. Espio sighed and slid down after them all.

The frozen slide had many twists and turns. Vector screamed in fear, but Cream, Cheese, and Charmy squealed in delight. They fell into a hole in the ice, which had a 360-degree loop-de-loop. The ice started to slope upwards, which sent them all flying to the other side. They all landed in a heap.

"Get your wing out of my face," Vector grumbled to Charmy.

Charmy got up and grinned. "Anyone wanna go again?"

"NO!" yelled Vector and Espio.

"Look, there's a way out," Cream called out. Sure enough, there it was.

The gang approached it, but then Cheese inhaled deeply before letting out an even louder sneeze than last time. The sheer volume of it caused the ground to shake and a bunch of rocks came falling, and they blocked the exit. Vector tried to push the rocks out of the way, but he couldn't. He tried to punch one of the rocks, but that only left a dent.

The stress of the situation was more than Cream could stand, and she could no longer hide her feelings. She began to sob. "I'm sorry I got you into this mess, Cheese! You never would've gotten sick if it wasn't because of me!" She held them tightly and wailed.

Vector put his hand on her shoulder. "Cream, it was outta your control."

Cream sniffled. "But I should've taken better care of them."

"You did what you could," Charmy said.

"We won't let any more harm come to them," Espio declared.

Cheese nuzzled Cream. The gentle look in their eyes made it clear that they did not blame her. Cream felt a little relieved, and she kissed Cheese's cheek.

"And we can't give up now!" Charmy said.

"But what can we do?" Cream asked, wiping her eyes.

"We'll just have to work together," Vector said decisively. He approached the boulders and began to pound them again.

Charmy hit the rocks with his stinger while Espio and Cream kicked them. Cheese got up with the blanket still wrapped around them and gave the rocks a body slam.

Cream pulled them aside and shook her head. "Oh, no, you need to rest."

Cheese gave her a tearful, pleading look.

"Sorry, but you're in really bad shape," Cream told them. "I can't let you get hurt."

Cheese huddled in the blanket and turned away, whimpering softly. Cream didn't like having to put them on the sidelines like this, but she felt like she had no other choice. She went back to the guys.

"Maybe you should let them help," Espio advised. "We need all the assistance we can get."

"I know, but they could get worse," Cream said somberly. "They took what I said really personally."

"Well, think about it," Espio said, then he said something that really opened her eyes. "They probably feel guilty about causing the rockslide."

Cream understood just how Cheese felt and had another twinge of guilt in her heart. She also knew Cheese could go right back to resting after they were finished, so she approached them. "Alright, you can join in, but please be careful."

Cheese hugged her leg and flew forward before doling out more body slams. True to Espio's word, the gang was getting even more work done. Cheese felt another tickle in their nose, and they added the finishing touch; the loudest sneeze of them all. This blew the last of the rocks out of the way. The gang all cheered and went on their merry way.

Later, they set up camp. Vector found some firewood and managed to make a campfire. They all crowded around it and roasted marshmallows. Cheese was especially enjoying the warmth.

"Who's up for a story?" Vector asked.

"Ooh, I've got one!" Cream raised her hand. "It's about how my dad met my mom."

Vector's smile faded slightly upon hearing this. He still harbored some sadness over Vanilla, but he concealed it. "Okay, spill."

"It all happened when they were about twelve," Cream narrated.

In the past, it was late at night. Vanilla and her parents, Cinnamon and Basil, had fallen asleep. Vanilla was having a dream about someone barbecuing and the copious amount of smoke annoyed her. She woke up and coughed. She then noticed that the smoky aroma was not a dream. She sniffed the air and though she was puzzled at first, her pupils shrank in horror when she realized what it really was.

She ran into her parents' room. "Mom, dad! Get up!"

Cinnamon rubbed her eyes. "Huh?"

"It's a fire!" Vanilla screamed.

Her parents became fully alert in an instant. They bolted out of their room, and sure enough, flames were beginning to spread in the kitchen and up the stairs. The fire extinguisher was just out of reach, as it was blocked by the flames. They had no choice but to exit the house.

Vanilla clung to Cinnamon as the house continued to burn. The whole family held each other as they waited for help to arrive.

"The fire department tried to put out the fire, but they were too late. For a few days after that, mom and her family had to stay in a hostel."

Vanilla sat on her bed with a blank expression on her face. She had dark circles under her eyes, as she had not slept much due to her stress. Deep down inside, she wished that the accident was just a nightmare that she could wake up from.

Basil approached her. "Vanilla?"

Vanilla did not respond. The lights were on, but no one was home.

"I got you a slice of pizza," Basil offered. He left the plate on her dresser. "Please, you have to eat something. You've barely touched your food."

"Maybe later," Vanilla droned. That was the first time she had spoken in days.

"At the very least, you should get some exercise," Basil suggested. "It might get your mind off things."

"I suppose so," Vanilla stood up and she trudged outside.

As she walked, so many thoughts went through her head. Surely there was something she could've done to prevent it from happening, but none of that mattered now. Vanilla soon reached the park and sat on a bench. A young snowshoe hare saw how devastated she looked and walked up to her. It was Ice.

"Um, hi," he greeted her. "Is something wrong?"

Vanilla was quiet, but then she spoke up. "There was a fire, and I lost so much. My belongings, my home…" Her tears began to spill.

"I'm really sorry," Ice told her. He took a handkerchief out of his pocket and handed it to her. Vanilla blew her nose.

"I don't know how we'll ever go back to normal," Vanilla sobbed.

Ice didn't say anything. He wanted to help, but he wasn't sure how. He figured that being there to listen would be a good place to start. He saw a flower in a bush and got an idea. He plucked it out and handed it to Vanilla.

Vanilla was still sad, but she did appreciate that gesture. "Thanks."

"If you need anything else, just let me know, I'll be there," Ice promised.

"She's always been grateful that he was there for her during such a hard time in her life," Cream finished her story wistfully. She still had Cheese cradled in her arms.

"That was beautiful," Charmy cooed. Even Espio had a bittersweet smile on his face.

Vector remained silent. Knowing how much Vanilla loved Ice, he decided that letting her go would be the best course of action. He remembered that Cream said Vanilla had been grieving, and he just wanted her heartache to end.