Well, I've abandoned wordpad and have began writing with Microsoft Works Word Processor! Hoorah! Parts from "Smooth Criminal" by Alien Ant Farm used in this chapter.

Act I, Scene II

Mother

One more kill...one more was all it would take, and all of the trio would be dead...

Mint and Cream were easy enough...Now I can concentrate on you Vanilla...

"N-no! Stay back!" Vanilla began running...

As she came into the window

Was a sound of a crescendo...

She came into her apartment

She left the bloodstains on the carpet...

Maniacal laughter rang in the rabbit's ears. Her feet hurried endlessly forward in an effort to escape the gaining beast. Yet it seemed no matter how fast she moved, it always seemed to move faster, "Leave me alone!" she called out behind her, gasping once again at the whites of the beasts fangs. The insanity she saw entrapped within the red glow of it's eyes only sent more chills down her spine.

She was sitting at the table

She could see she was unable

So she ran into the bedroom

She was struck downIt was her doom!

Something on the ground clipped her foot. It may or may not have really been there or even existed, perhaps she just tripped on air. But whatever it was, Vanilla fell, and that was not good. She turned back to see the beast coming closer, drool glistening and dripping from it's mouth, signifying hunger. This was truly the end wasn't it? Fodder for some ghastly monster that took her husband and her child. Too scared to move or fight back, Vanilla just closed her eyes and waited...

Vanilla, are you OK?

Are you OK?

Are you OK, Vanilla?!

Vanilla, are you OK?

You OK?

Are you OK, Vanilla?!

In three...

You've been hit by...

Two...

You've been struck by...

One...

A smooth criminal...

CHOMP!

----------------------------------------

Inside such an enclosed space, her scream's echo would take a moment to dissipate, such was the case , it was still ringing in her ears. In that same moment, realization kicked in, she was back in reality. For a minute or so, that was a good thing, until she remembered just how bad reality was. The pair of visitors that presented themselves to her every night appeared once more. Depression, fear. Vanilla chucked the blankets off of her with all her might, before making a mad dash to a room where everything remained quiet. Upon seeing Cream still safe in her bed, she released an enormous sigh and fell onto her backside, "Oh God….."

The woman tried to speak to herself in an effort to calm down, but any word she formed in her mind was vocalized in an unintelligible manor. All these nightmares made it impossible for the woman to even think clearly.

Vanilla sighed out loud, "Why does this keep happening? The wolf is dead, Cream isn't…"

All these thoughts became warped, too confusing to handle. This distraught rabbit staggered down her hallways, only to trip and fall onto her bed again, "If Cream was awake, I'd know what to do…"

Even time passed as she laid there, thought after thought whipping around in her brain. Her paw soon found her badge, "…badge…" she held it in front of her eyes. The little light in the room gleamed off of it, making sure Vanilla saw it in it's full glory, "The Guardian Units of Nations…sworn to uphold and protect the laws of this country at any price…any price…" Vanilla ran her fingers off the cold, chilling metals of the words that formed the same sentence she formed in her head, "Any price? Your husband…your daughter…your own life…" she instantly felt a surge of pain wash over her enough to make her drop the badge, it fell to the floor with a silent thud. She rolled onto her side, "This was a terrible idea…" she sniffled, feeling the pain all over again, "I broke a promise to myself…to Mint and Cream…"

Guilt suddenly forced itself upon her, she cringed at it, hissed, barked at it to go away, but nothing she did worked. It just kept cutting away at her like a white-hot hatchet wedging itself deeper and deeper into her skin. Only moments past before she was at her daughter's bedside once more, furiously shaking the smaller rabbit's body. Her words came out in begging roars, "Cream! Cream! Please, for the love of God wake up! I can't take this anymore!!!"

Tears streamed down the woman's face as she spied no movement from her daughter. Vanilla had finally cracked. She buried her face into her daughter's chest, unleashing a torrent of sobs that no amount of sheer will could hold back, "Please Cream…" she whimpered, red in the face and nearly blinded by the water in her eyes, "I can't go on knowing you're not okay…I can't live another day without you…"

She took her daughter's hand, closed her eyes, and prayed, "Please…I beg of you…wake up…"

It wasn't long before the woman had cried herself to sleep…

----------------

Once again, the curtains were drawn back, Shadow groaned and flipped over, I scoffed again, "Another day, another death wish." he mumbled, "Must you wake me on vacation?"

Something was off about the ebony hedgehog today, "Jeez Shadow, you're even more angsty than usual, what's up?"

"Not me." he retorted, disappearing into the blankets again, "Not ever again."

I sighed out loud, "Men." I returned my attention to the still-rising sun. Seeing the mixtures of red and orange was a beautiful sight to wake up too, even if my grumpy lover didn't think similar thoughts,

, and yet, something still plagued me. Vanilla's words. They stuck into me like knives, each one ripping away at me without end. Most of her words were true, and I wasn't one to deny them.

I sighed again, "I need a drink…" un-gracefully waltzing into the kitchen, I snapped my fingers to gain the already-awake Dusk's attention, "Wolf, you're cooking breakfast." I ordered, rather harshly.

Dusk's ears twittered, "Uh, y-yes Rouge." she replied, somewhat stunned by my words as she headed for the stove.

The hard wood of the kitchen chair didn't help my mood, but I really didn't care at the time. Her speech still bit at me. I sat with my chin in my hand, "Dammit Vanilla, now you've got me obsessing over this…"

Maybe I screwed up when I offered to be nice to her. Maybe I screwed up by actually letting her join the force. All I know is,

, I made a big mistake yesterday…and I can already tell it's going to drive us apart…

---------------

Sunrise loomed over the horizon. Blue fading into orange and sending sunlight flooding in through Vanilla's windows. A strong beam of light shot her in the eye, letting a few, uncomfortable moans come from the woman before she finally opened her eyes and stood back up. Recollection of the previous night's events was difficult, and painful to go back to, only made worse by the sight of her still unconscious daughter laying still, unmoving.

The rabbit sighed, "Guess I'll get ready for work…"

A closet containing nothing but two items, and the black suit caught Vanilla's attention. She grabbed it off the rack and thumbed through it in her paws, "…even if she did wake up…it wouldn't make a difference…now that I work for G.U.N…." another sigh, another disappointment. She slammed the closet door and proceeded to undress.

A familiar face caught her attention, her own. Vanilla gazed into the reflective glass, examining the deadpan, machinelike woman in front of her. She poked at the grey rings under her eyes, darkening every night from lack of sleep and stress. Dull greyness replaced the deep brown eyes she once had, showing heavy loss of spirit and life. Vanilla already had enough problems, and now she had to worry about how ugly she was becoming? Jeez.

She reached a paw out, and in a quiet, gentle voice, she murmured, "Things will be okay…someday…"

Someday…

"Someday soon?" the woman then scoffed, "Yeah…As if." she threw off her dress, black and blue soon replacing the colors of her old-fashioned clothing. Gun strapped to her hip and badge on her chest, she made her way for the front door, not knowing what the day would bring. All she knew was that it wouldn't be anything good…

"Rouge won't even want to talk to me after what I said to her…" events from the previous day were brought back into question, the route of Vanilla's grief and sudden hatred for her new job for the military. She hung her head low, and turned the knob…

!!!

It was either pure luck or fantastic timing, "What?!" Vanilla made a complete one-eighty. Noise didn't always gain her attention, but this one was so familiar. Almost like a cry. She heard it again, the sudden shock recoiling and sending her back. Her paws trembled with anxiety, "No…it…it couldn't be…" utilizing speed even Sonic would blink at, Vanilla charged back into the room where she hoped to find the source of the sound.

It was exactly what she wished for…

"Mmm…Mama?"

All her breaths soon became ragged and heavy. Her legs trembled, nearly buckling underneath her. Somehow, the woman grabbed enough strength out of what energy she had and immediately leapt for the side of the bed.

Two, chocolate-brown eyes soon met with her own, forming a joyous look in retrospect of the elder rabbit in front of them. It was enough to bring the poor woman to tears, "I…I had a bad dream…" her daughter's voice squeaked, for what seemed like the first time in years, decades even.

Without warning, Cream was soon pulled against her mother's breast, Vanilla's arms acting like prison bars to make sure she didn't get away, "C-Cream…" All the pain and guilt that had swelled up in her suddenly vanished as she felt the warmth of her daughter in her arms once again. It was a feeling she knew she had experienced before, but after so much time without it, it only made the sensation sweeter.

Cream looked up at her mother, looking worried, "Mama, what's wrong?" her hand reached up to the woman's eye, "Why are you crying?"

Vanilla only sniffled and squeezed her daughter tighter, "It's nothing dear…I'm just…sad you had a bad dream. What happened?" she asked, already knowing the full situation, but wanting to hear it from her daughter's lips.

The younger rabbit began to whimper again, "I dunno…you and I were out in the forest…I got lost, and, a-and there was this really scary monster…with big red eyes, and ginormous teeth…" she soon recoiled into a fit of quiet sobs she released onto her mother's stomach. The arms around her held her close, one paw slowly caressing the back of her head.

"Shh shh, it's okay baby…" Vanilla cooed, "It was all a dream…" the two spent much time in their embrace. Vanilla soon realized that she had to use this opportunity to tell Cream what she had longed to tell her since this tragic event began. She hugged Cream as tight as she could, uttering, "I love you Cream." with tears still falling down her cheeks.

The younger rabbit was taken back by this, surprised that her mother would just come out of the blue with this. True, Vanilla would say this occasionally at least once every day, but she never made it this big an event. Yet, Cream instantly felt the urge to say it back, feeling as if she had been trapped in that night mare for quite some time, separated from Vanilla. She returned the embrace.

"I love you too Mama…"

End Act I