Chapter 2
A couple weeks later found Tails doing much better. He had gained weight, so that he no longer looked so skinny and frail. His fur had a healthy shine to it that at times Sonic could swear Tails was glowing. Tails still didn't trust Sonic completely and still wouldn't let him touch his head, but he still hadn't uttered a word to Sonic. Despite all the good things happening to Tails he still had not fully regained all his strength and would occasionally cough, due to his lingering illness.
On this particular afternoon Tails sat the table in the kitchen with a pad of paper and several different colored crayons, coloring. Sonic on the other hand wrestled with an electronic can opener that seemed to refuse to work.
"Darn it all." Sonic muttered under his breath for the umpteenth time after slamming the device on the counter. Scratching his head Sonic stared down at the opened device, trying to figure out what was wrong. Several screws, a screwdriver, and a pair of pliers lay around him on the counter. Looking up at from his drawing, Tails stared at the device from across the kitchen.
Letting out a defeated sigh Sonic gave up trying to fix the appliance. "Guess I'll just use the can opener from the camping supplies." Sonic said more to himself more than to Tails. Once Sonic had left the room Tails got up from his seat at the table and wandered over to the device.
Hopping up onto the counter he looked at the mess of wires and parts inside the can opener. Following several stream of wires and parts Tails noticed that several wires didn't look like they were placed correctly. Picking up the device and grabbing the pliers lying abandoned on the counter, Tails carefully moved the wires to where they should have been. Once finishing this small task he closed up the device. Setting it on the counter, Tails pressed the button that turned the machine on. The machine came to life with a gentle whirr as the blades turned. A triumphant smile lit up his features and an excited sparkle entered Tails' eyes at the success of fixing the previously broken object.
"Whoa, you fixed it." Tails jumped at the sound of Sonic's voice. Standing in the doorway Sonic stood holding hand operated can opener. Walking over to the counter he set it down and picked up the electronic can opener. Reaching into one of the cabinets he pulls out a can of ravioli. Placing the can in place, Sonic switches it on and to his amazement watches as the can rotates and the sealed top opens up.
Taking the now open can of ravioli out of the can opener, Sonic stares at it baffled. Looking up at Tails Sonic stares for a moment with mouth agape. "H-how did you… where… when did… how'd you fix it?" Sonic stuttered. Shrugging in response Tails jumped down off the counter and returned to his coloring on the table.
Opening his mouth to ask another question Sonic was interrupted by someone knocking, loudly, on the front door. Setting the ravioli on the counter Sonic exits the kitchen to open the door.
"Hey, Knuckles." Tails could hear Sonic addressing someone apparently by the name of Knuckles, but continued to color despite the noise.
"What brings you to the neighborhood?" Tails heard Sonic ask.
"Oh, I just thought you might be lonely, so I decided to drop in and see how you're doing." Answered another voice Tails did not recognize, but assumed was Knuckles.
"Well, you're in time for dinner, and I want you to meet someone." Sonic responded. Hearing the sound of footsteps returning to the kitchen, Tails looked up from his drawing. Sonic, walking over to Tails, smiled, placed a hand on his shoulder, and turned to their guest. Looking at the creature in the doorway Tails couldn't help, but cock his head to the side in curiosity.
The creature that stood in the doorway was bright red, with the exception of his peach colored muzzle and a white crest on his chest. He had spikes similar to Sonic's with the exception that instead of standing up, they hung from his head like dreadlocks. He wore gloves like Sonic except that his had spikes on top and were shaped more like boxing gloves than the usual gloves with individual fingers. The most unusual thing about his, to Tails, was his eyes. They were purple. Tails had never seen any creature with purple eyes before.
"Knuckles this is Tails. Tails this is Knuckles the echidna." Sonic introduced the two.
Smiling, Knuckles approached Tails. "Nice to meet 'cha, kid." Knuckles greeted. Kneeling down to his level he reached his hand out to pat the kit's head. Just as he had done with Sonic, Tails flattened his ears and flinched away from Knuckles hand. Pausing, Knuckles' smile disappears and raises and eyebrow at the fox's reaction.
Looking at Sonic, Knuckles asks; "Did I do something wrong?"
"No, don't worry about it." Sonic answers casually walking over to the cabinet and pulling out several more cans of ravioli. "He won't let me touch his head either. Don't know why, but…" Sonic casually shrugs.
Taking a seat next to Tails, Knuckles stared at the small fox with mild curiosity. Staring back for a moment, Tails decides he's not going to do anything and returns to his drawing.
"So, where are you from?" Looking up at Knuckles in surprise at the question, he shrugs and once again returns to his drawing.
"You mean you don't know where you came from?" Knuckles asked in complete surprise.
"He was wandering around when I found him, Knuckles, and he's just a kid." Sonic answered for Tails looking over his shoulder as he poured the canned ravioli in a pot.
"You mean you found him out in the middle of nowhere and you brought him home?" Knuckles asked defensively.
"Yeah," answered Sonic also defensively, "he was cold, sick, and alone. He was going to die if I just left him there."
An awkward silence had fallen over the kitchen. Looking up, Tails stared at Sonic then Knuckles and back. Sighing he set down the crayon he was currently using and picked up a different color and began working on his coloring again.
Feeling someone watching him, Tails looked first up at Sonic who was busy making the ravioli, then at Knuckles who stared somewhat curiously at him. Tails stared back unsure of what Knuckles was expecting him to do.
Blinking several times Knuckles shook his head and smiled slightly at the young kit. "So, what are you drawing?" Knuckles asked only half sincerely. Sliding the pad of paper toward Knuckles, Tails showed him his drawing. Tails had simply drawn up a memory of his home. One of the places he remembered the most was the view of a valley below where he lived. There were several mountains in the distance, a blue stream ran through the valley bellow, and several trees stood like sentries along the river and several in the field.
"That's not a bad drawing." Commented Knuckles, passing the pad back to Tails, who just shrugged.
"You don't talk very much do you?" asked Knuckles. Tails shook his head picking up a crayon again to finish his drawing.
"He's been like that since I first found him." Sonic said ladling food into several bowls. "I don't know if it's because he's scared or if he's mute."
"Maybe you should take him to see a doctor." Suggested Knuckles, accepting a bowl from Sonic. Tails paused a moment, a doctor? He didn't really want to see a doctor. If he saw a doctor he might have to get a shot or he might have to take some nasty medicine, but if Sonic decided that he should see a doctor he really didn't have much choice in the matter.
"Nah, if he's not mute he'll talk when he's ready." Answered Sonic much to the relief of Tails. At that moment the front door opened with a loud bang and a shrill "Sonic!" was let loose from some female voice. Tails jumped high in the air, landed in Knuckles' lap, and grabbed the echidna's arm; every hair on his body standing on end.
Staring at Sonic, Tails could see the blue hedgehog apparently being strangled by a pink hedgehog.
"Oh Sonic, I'm so sorry I haven't been able to visit you in so long. I was just so busy that I couldn't come see you. I know you must have missed seeing me." The pink hedgehog rambled to Sonic. After much struggling Sonic finally managed to break free of the pink hedgehog's death grip on him and stood gasping for several moments.
"Amy… do you… know how to… knock?" Gasped Sonic leaning against the counter for support.
"Well I figured you wouldn't mind, especially being out away from everybody." Answered Amy turning away from Sonic.
"Hey Knuckles, how are you?" Asked Amy smiling.
"Almost dead, because of a heart attack from you." Knuckles answered in a none-too-kind voice. Amy scowled and opened her mouth to say something when she noticed Tails still clinging to Knuckles' arm and still scared stiff.
Amy's eyes grew big and a bright smile spread across her face. "He's so cute!" exclaimed Amy advancing toward Tails. Scrambling off of Knuckles' lap, Tails quickly hid behind the echidna ear flat against his head in fear of the pink hedgehog.
"Aw, come out little guy. I won't hurt you." Cooed Amy, smiling and bending over slightly to get a better look at the fox. Unconvinced, Tails remained behind Knuckles, grabbing his arm for reassurance.
"Amy, I think you scared him too much for him to let you come near him." Sonic stated flatly.
"Nonsense, I bet he'll come out for a treat." Amy countered pulling a piece of candy from her pocket and offering it to Tails. The fox simply stared at the Amy and gripped Knuckles' arm tighter.
"I think you'd better back off, Amy. If this little guy grips my arm any harder, it's going to fall off." Stated Knuckles flexing his hand in an effort to keep circulation in his arm. Taking the hint Tails loosened his grip on Knuckles arm. Amy shrugged and replaced the candy in her pocket.
"Aw, come on Knuckles. I think he likes you." Sonic teased, but still slightly serious.
Knuckles looked down at Tails who looked back up at him. "Would you mind letting go of my arm?" Knuckles asked softly. Obliging, Tails let go, but still remained hid behind Knuckles. Shaking his arm Knuckles brought back feeling into his arm, now free of Tails' grasp.
"What's your name?" asked Amy, leaning to the side to try to look around Knuckles. Tails stared back, warily, remaining silent and leaving Amy's question unanswered.
"He doesn't talk much. In fact Sonic says he hasn't heard him say a word since he first found him." stated Knuckles crossing his arms. "Isn't that right?" Asked Knuckles half turning around grinning at Tails. Looking up at the echidna Tails nodded.
"Oh really," Amy smiled mischievously, "I bet I can get him to talk by the time dinner is over." She declared challengingly.
"I'll take that bet." Sonic declared. "If you can't get him to talk by the time dinner is over you get to do dishes."
Smiling broadly Amy says "Fine, and if I win you have to go on a date with me. Deal?" Amy held out her hand to Sonic.
"Deal." Sonic seals the deal by shaking hands with her.
Turning back to Tails and Knuckles, Amy roughly shoves Knuckles away to fully face Tails. Backing up to try to get away from the weird lady, Tails backed into a chair, nearly falling over in the process.
"Hey little guy, what's your favorite color?" Amy asked enthusiastically walking toward Tails. Staring up at the pink hedgehog towering over him, feeling threatened, Tails' ears flattened against his head.
"Tails, do you want some dinner?" Sonic called holding out a bowl. Walking quickly around Amy while keeping an eye on her, Tails retrieved the bowl and sat down next to Knuckles, who had returned to his seat and his own dinner, and began eating.
Also grabbing a bowl Amy sat down on the other side of Tails. The look in her eyes made Tails nervous. "Hey Tails, do you like being called 'Tails?'" Amy asked somewhat critically. Still watching her closely, Tails nodded his head in affirmation to her question.
Amy continued to ask Tails questions and for his opinion throughout dinner. After several minutes of answering meaningless questions with either a nod, a shake of his head, or shrugging his shoulders, Tails simply ignored the offending pink hedgehog, but still kept a wary eye on her from time to time. By the time dinner was finished Tails still had not said a word and Amy desperately babbled at Tails in a last minute attempt to get the kit to say something.
Knuckles burst out laughing. "Did you really think you could get him to talk? He's been living with Sonic for two weeks and he still hasn't said a word to him."
Staring wide eyed at Sonic, Amy's expression changed to anger. "You knew I wouldn't be able to get him to talk didn't you?" She demanded.
Laughing alongside the red echidna, Sonic calmed down long enough to answer Amy. "Yep, and now you get to dishes." Sonic slid his bowl across the table toward Amy.
Giving Sonic a look that could crack stones Amy grabbed the bowls off the table and proceeded toward the sink. Picking up Tails Sonic carried him to the living room and, sitting down, set Tails next to him. Picking up a remote Sonic began flipping through the channels. Knuckles passed through the living room, heading straight through the door.
"Are you leaving already Knuckles?" Sonic inquired.
"Yeah, I left the Chaotix in charge of the master emerald and I should get back as soon as possible." Knuckles answered opening the door.
"Stop by again, and bring the Chaotix sometime." Sonic called after Knuckles as he left, closing the door to the cold outside behind him.
Sonic settled back into the couch and continued his channel surfing. After several minutes Sonic turned off the television and sighed. "Nothing on." He muttered under his breath. At that point Amy came out of the kitchen and stared at him a frustrated look on her face and her hands on her hips.
"What?" Sonic blurted noticing Amy's look.
"You shouldn't rot his brain out with T.V. like that. Why don't you read him a story or something?" Amy suggested walking out the front door.
Staring after her Sonic for a while said nothing. Then looking down at Tails, asks "Would you like a story?" Brightening up at the prospect of a story Tails nodded enthusiastically.
Standing up with a sigh Sonic walks toward one of the rooms by the stairs. Opening one of the doors, Sonic reveals a mess of boxes. Looking on, Tails watches as Sonic opens several boxes, apparently looking for something. Finally Sonic pulls a book out of a box near the back of the room.
Closing the door behind him, Sonic walks back to the living room with Tails following closely behind him. Reclaiming his spot on the couch, Sonic looks down at the book somewhat disappointedly. Climbing up on the couch next to him Tails looked at the book in Sonic's hands. 'Fairy Tales' read the title in gold lettering across the hard bound cover.
"This is the only book I can find. I'm not sure if you'll like them or not, but it's worth a shot right?" Sonic said hesitantly looking to Tails for a sign of interest. Looking at Sonic then back at the book Tails smiles. Taking the book from Sonic, Tails opens it to the first story.
Sonic read several fairy tales. The stories fascinated Tails to no end. He especially liked the story of The Elves and the Shoemaker. He loved that such little people could do so much for one person and that both the elves and the shoemaker got a happy ending. Finally, Sonic shut the book much to the fox cub's disappointment.
"And now it's time for little foxes to go to bed." Sonic said lifting Tails to the ground. Taking the book from Sonic, Tails began walking up the stairs to his room, with Sonic following closely behind. Before climbing into bed, Tails set the book of fairy tales on his nightstand.
Tucking the little fox in Sonic told him "You know if you want to, I can read more of those to you tomorrow." A wide grin spread across Tails muzzle as he reached up and hugged Sonic. Taken aback, Sonic hesitated for a moment before hugging him back.
Monster: Alright, here's chapter two. This chapter might seem unnecessary, but it is. It introduces characters to Tails and his ability to work with machines. I had to go back a couple times and edit because some of you people out there would take it the wrong way. *cough cough perverts*
Cricket: I don't blame Tails for being afraid of Amy. And this chapter is important for Tail's character. :) I heart Tails!
Dolphin: Fav part is when amy screams sonic and tails jumps into knucles arms but i don't blame him. well it does introduce charaters and monster we all want to know what the amulet does. love it;D