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It had come down to this. The final battle and a battle to determine not only the fate of the world, but all those that had been lost to the Metal Virus was upon them. And for Whisper, there was no other acceptable outcome except victory. She was determined to get Tangle back, no matter the cost. She had already experienced one painful loss with the fall of the Diamond Cutters thanks to Mimic and losing Tangle was another she couldn't handle as the memory of her own reaction to the news was still fresh in her mind. However, unlike before, she now had a chance to make things right. Tangle wasn't gone for good, unlike Smithy and the others were. And as she prepared her Wispon, she made several mental notes to make sure she would bring Tangle back one way or another.
As Whisper, with her Wisps watching, made some last minute preparations to her personal weapon, the Variable Wispon, the wolf saw someone moving around out of the corner of her eyes. Turning her head slightly to look to see who it was, she saw a certain two-tailed fox was the one going through the aircraft the remaining heroes were using to get to Angel Island where they intended to settle things. It wasn't unusual for Tails to be going around doing something, but what was unusual was seeing what the young fox had in his hands. It looked to be a potted plant containing what seemed like a decently sized rose growing from the soil in the pot. This caught Whisper's mind now as she had always known Tails as the sort of boy who messed more with technology and not so much nature.
Whisper for now continued to tend to her Wispon as she got ready for the battle as she was mainly focused on saving Tangle, but she couldn't get her mind off the plant Tails was carrying around for some reason. Sighing to herself as she could practically hear Tangle in her head telling her to get her mind off the doom and gloom stuff, Whisper put her signature weapon to the side and quietly told her Wisps that she'd be back soon. The wolf now found herself walking down the halls to where she saw Tails going and upon entering the room he had gone in, she was Tails now sitting down with the plant to his side, looking out the window right now. Not one to start a conversation, so she didn't really have much of an idea of what to say to start it. Thankfully, the door creaking from her pushing it slightly got Tails' attention as he looked in her direction now and was surprised to see her there.
"Oh, Whisper, hey. What brings you here?" Tails asked the wolf girl now, though as he spoke, Whisper heard it in his voice. Others might not pick up on what she heard, but she for sure did. And experience taught her not to bring it up first thing as she approached.
"Checking on you. Wondering how you're doing." Whisper replied, starting with that and now waiting to hear what Tails' reply would be.
"Me? I'm...I've been better. I'm worried about Sonic of course, on top of stopping this virus...if we can't stop it this time, then..." Tails stopped himself as he didn't even think about what the alternative was. He didn't need to, Silver had already made them all aware of what would happen if they didn't stop the virus. Whisper simply nodded as she approached the young fox.
"Understandable...but failure isn't an option." Whisper said, something she had been telling herself multiple times already and Tails simply nodded to that as he went back to looking out the window. She wasn't sure how to bring it up casually, so Whisper now decided it was time to go ahead and bring up the rose now. "...The rose you have...important?"
"Huh? Oh! Oh...yeah, you could say that." Tails said now, his voice growing to a now more noticeably sadder tone as he looked to the rose, now extending a hand out and gently rubbing one of the leaves on the rose with his gloved fingers. "...It's a reminder...of a friend I lost a long time ago."
This definitely surprised Whisper the moment she heard Tails say that. For the whole time she had known the fox, not once did she think he had experienced loss as well. Her mind instantly went to her old team, the Diamond Cutters. And how, because of a certain octopus, she had lost three valuable friends that day. And if what Tails had gone through was similar, she knew that it was a pretty delicate subject to talk about.
"...Who were they?" Whisper now asked, mostly out of curiosity and hoping that maybe talking about it with someone who could relate would help Tails get out of the funk he was in now.
"...Her name was Cosmo. She was, as far as I know, the last of her kind. She came to our world looking for help against beings known as the Metarex." Tails explained as he recalled the day Cosmo came to this world. Whisper nodded to what she was told and recognized the name 'Metarex'. She had heard the stories of their universal conquest attempt and how Sonic and company had gone into space to stop them, coming back victorious. But she was unaware of this other girl that was with them, this Cosmo. Before she could ask, Tails continued. "As we travelled through space, me and her ended up growing really close...in fact, you could probably say...I fell in love with her...and I believe she felt the same way."
"...What happened to her?" Whisper asked, though something told her she already knew the answer and was also afraid to hear it too as the memory of finding what had happened to her old team began to replay itself in her mind now. She didn't even notice her breathing had picked up in pace as this memory replayed in her mind. Tails was really silent for what felt like ages now, stopping his rubbing of the rose's leaf and pulling his hand back. And that's when Whisper saw it. Tears. Forming in the eyes of the young fox.
"...During the final battle...she sacrificed herself...she used something called Mover Mode to become a tree to suppress the Metarex leaders' last ditch attempt to destroy the universe..." Tails explained, but he stopped now as he squeezed his eyes shut. Whisper could see it too...that wasn't all that happened. Still, she respected his privacy and chose not to push for answers. It was clear that recalling that day was painful for Tails, especially losing someone he loved.
"...I'm so sorry...I know the feeling." Whisper said, opening her eyes now and looking at the ground as she was referring to her teammates. It was a simple response, but it carried a lot of weight still. And for the first time, Whisper felt like the weight she had been feeling was one she wasn't carrying alone, now realizing that she was in the company of someone who had gone through the same kind of pain she had. But then Tails' next words...completely changed things.
"...At least...you weren't the one to...pull the trigger." Tails eventually said and this made Whisper's head shoot up in shock. Tails...he was the one to pull the trigger that had killed his own love interest? The moment that realization hit her, Whisper found herself bringing a hand over her mouth. She was speechless. It wasn't the same as what had happened to the Diamond Cutters, it was so much worse. It was already bad enough she had to see their dead bodies, but she could never imagine being the one to pull the trigger that would have ended them. And here was Tails, who was younger then her and having had to make that awful choice himself, to kill the one person he loved in order to save the universe. Whisper now felt both a very deep sadness for Tails' experience and a newfound respect for how strong he really was. But then a thought came to her.
"...The rose...is it..?" Whisper asked now, though she wasn't sure what she could say to finish her question as she wasn't even sure who Cosmo was like or even what her species was, let alone what she could be capable of besides what Tails told her.
"...It's what Sonic retrieved after he and Shadow used the Chaos Emeralds to do something...I'm not sure if it's really her or not...but it's all I've got left to remind me of her. And there's no way I could have let the Metal Virus..." Tails was now the one to stop as he didn't even want to finish that sentence. The thought of the Metal Virus getting onto and infecting the last reminder he had of Cosmo was just simply unthinkable. And while Whisper wish she could know what the rose really was, she now understood that there was yet another reason to win this battle. Placing a hand on Tails' shoulder, she spoke up now.
"Then we won't let it. We win this, one way or another. For Tangle...and Cosmo." Whisper said now and the silent nod from Tails was all she needed as a response. Taking one more look at the rose, Whisper nodded now as she turned to leave the room now to make some final preparations.
"...Thanks Whisper...for listening." Tails said now as he looked back at Whisper, his words making her stop. Whisper looked back at him and gave him a small smile.
"...It's no problem...just doing what any friend would do." Whisper said as she now left. And as she did, she realized that the weight on her shoulders suddenly didn't feel as heavy as before. As if talking with Tails had helped her in a way. She wasn't in this alone, even if it felt like it. Not only that, she also now had a better understanding of some of the stuff her newfound friends had been through before meeting her, Tangle, and some of the others. She had a feeling that everyone was saddened by the loss of Cosmo, just not as much as Tails. So even though she didn't know Cosmo personally, she hoped that she, along with her old teammates, were blessing them from wherever they were. Little did Whisper know, as she walked away, back where Tails was, the rose gently glowed and a small flicker of light came from it and went in the direction Whisper had went.
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Things had gone to hell on Angel Island. Zombots were being tossed onto the island as Zavok, in his giant form, tossed more Zombots onto the island in an attempt to take down the heroes for good, all while Sonic, who was still fighting his own infection, and Silver tried to retrieve the Chaos Emeralds from the Deadly Six aboard the Faceship, where the Metal Virus was stored and made at. For Whisper, she was holding her own against the oncoming hoard of Zombots, using her Variable Wispon to hold back the zombie-like robotized victims before they could touch and infect her. Though she was slowly getting tired and found herself driven near the edge of the island as she knocked some of the Zombots away. Whisper prepared to fire several shots at another incoming Zombot to neutralize it temporarily...until she saw who it was. And the moment she did, she immediately stopped her assault.
It was her...Tangle. Her body was covered in amber colored metal and her tail was covered in unnatural metal spikes as she moved forward in that same way any other Zombot did, her hand outstretched with claws in place of normal fingertips. It was a sight Whisper was both wanting to see and wishing she didn't have to as well. She wanted to see Tangle again, but not like this.
"Tangle...no..." Whisper said quietly as she saw Tangle slowly moving forward towards her, not responding as the look in Tangle's eyes, red and glowing like every other Zombot, showed no sign of recognition. She knew she had to fight, but Whisper couldn't bring herself to even harm Tangle, even if whatever damage she would take would regenerate because of how the Metal Virus worked. Then Tangle lunged forward and Whisper moved out of the way, before remembering that they were on the edge of the island! She was about to cry out to Tangle to watch out, only to see the Zombotized lemur land on the spot Whisper herself had been at before and turn her head towards Whisper.
Whisper didn't know what to do. She knew she couldn't let herself fall victim to the virus, not until the mission Sonic and Silver were on was complete, but she couldn't bring herself to fight her best friend, the one who had come into her life and became closer to her then anyone else had in years. Even as she aimed her Wispon at Tangle, it was shaking heavily in her hands. She couldn't do it. Even if it didn't really matter, Whisper couldn't bring herself to even harm the lemur. She didn't know what she could do...but then she heard something in her head suddenly. A voice she didn't recognize.
"...Let me help..." said the voice, a female sounding one and that's when Whisper saw it. A small, pink light coming into view. And that light now went forward and began to go into Tangle's head as the Zombot lemur moved forward. After a few moments, as Whisper began to wonder if anything had even happened, suddenly...Tangle stopped in her tracks. Whisper didn't know what this meant...until suddenly, Tangle brought her hands up to the sides of her head and began to groan in pain.
"T-Tangle?!" Whisper asked now, her voice raising more then she usually spoke in. She wasn't sure what was going on, but then she saw something incredible. The moment Tangle looked up, Whisper saw the lemur's eyes. Her eyes, while mostly still red...there was hints of purple now, the same purple as Tangle's regular eyes. Not only that...there seemed to be a form of recognition on Tangle's face now.
"...W...Whis...per..?" Whisper's breath caught in her throat now as she heard Tangle speak, say her name with a sort of glitchy echo in her voice. Whoever had spoken to her had somehow gotten through the virus' hold on her friend's mind! Feeling some hope, Whisper lowered her Wispon and cautiously approached the lemur.
"Yes Tangle, it's me..!" Whisper said now as she saw Tangle struggling now to control herself. She desperately wanted to hug the lemur, hold her and comfort her in this situation, yet she couldn't for fear of being infected. A part of Whisper told her it didn't matter, to do this, yet she had to remain cautious because she wasn't sure if this was going to last. Then she saw Tangle grunt in pain again as she fell to her knees, holding her head even more now.
"GAH! I-it's so...hard to...t-think..!" Tangle cried out loudly now. That feeling of wanting to hug Tangle grew more now, but Whisper had to control herself, at least enough to restrain herself. She got closer to Tangle as she got down on her knees as well, opening her eyes to look more directly at the lemur.
"Focus on my voice Tangle...I'm here. You're not alone. Keep fighting it." Whisper said, having more hope in her voice then she had dared to give recently as she saw this apparent miracle happening before her. She wasn't sure how it was going on, just that something had spoken to her and then went to help Tangle. Or was it...someone? Whisper didn't have an answer, but whatever the case was, she knew she couldn't let this chance slip by now to help Tangle, not when she was now able to fight the virus' control over her apparently. Tangle gave more groans of pain as she squeezed her eyes tightly and kept her hands against the sides of her head, her breathing growing more frantic. But then Whisper's words to her seemed to finally register as Tangle looked up and opened her eyes, showing more purple in the irises of her eyes now.
Just as Whisper was about to say something about this, something big hit the island now. Tangle could see it herself now. Sonic and Silver had gone Super! They had gotten the Chaos Emeralds and were fighting the giant Zavok now to stop him for good and had just delivered a huge blow to the giant Zeti, sending him right into Angel Island. However, because of the shaking of the island, some of the ground began to break away...and Whisper was on one of the areas that began to break away! Whisper's eyes widened as she felt herself began to fall and she had her hand outreached now towards Tangle, who stared back now as things went in slow mode for her, seeing Whisper falling now. And in that moment...
"WHISPER!!!" Tangle cried out now as suddenly, her mind was clear on one thing. Saving Whisper. Getting back to her feet for a brief moment, Tangle leaped over the edge as fast as she could towards Whisper, diving towards the wolf and using her tail to grab onto a rock behind her. The moment she grabbed onto Whisper, she immediately used her tail to bungie them back up onto the island before they fell too far, the two of them rolling around as they made it back onto solid ground. Tangle quickly got back up as she realized what had just happened...and then her eyes widened in fear as she scrambled over to Whisper, seeing the virus already spreading over her. "Oh crud, Whisper, I'm so sorry, I-I didn't mean to! I just, I saw you falling and I was so focused on saving you and I didn't realize what grabbing you would do and I just-!"
"...You...saved me..." Whisper said as she sat up, not even paying attention to the unpleasant feeling she got as she felt the metal spreading across her now. Her focus was more on Tangle as she realized that Tangle, in that moment, had regained control over her own body and had saved her from falling into the sea. Whisper's Wisps immediately flew over to her, voicing their concern over their friend, but she her focus was simply on Tangle right now as she saw the panicked look on her face. "...You...have control now."
"T-that doesn't matter, you're about to become one of those things too and it's my fault, I'm really sorry Whisp!" Tangle responded, clearly not taking this development well, not even fully grasping what she had done or even paying attention to the fact that her voice was back to normal now. But for Whisper, she didn't care right now, especially once she saw the two Super hedgehogs fighting Zavoc. And she knew, deep down, this nightmare was almost over, but for her now the real nightmare was over. Tangle was back with her and in her joy, Whisper, not caring about the Metal Virus at this point, wrapped her arms around Tangle in a big hug, allowing herself a moment to let a couple of tears fall. "W-Whisper..."
"Shh...it's almost over...just glad you're back Tangle." Whisper said, not even paying attention as the virus spread faster now. She made a mental note to thank whoever or whatever it was that helped not only her, but Tangle as well if she ever had the chance. Tangle felt herself get emotional as well, albeit in her own goofy way, as she hugged Whisper back. Just as the virus was about to take over Whisper completely, the decisive end finally came and every single infected being felt the virus now being pulled from them completely as Super Sonic and Super Silver did the deed. And as this happened, the pink light that had helped Tangle and Whisper left now to return to where it had come from. Tangle didn't notice it leave, but Whisper did...and deep down, as she saw the light and thought back to her conversation with Tails, she began to connect the dots and knew just what...no, just who she had to thank later.
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The following few days after the end of the world wide epidemic caused by the Metal Virus were chaotic for sure. To make a long story short, a party was held to celebrate, though Sonic had ended up in Blaze's dimension with amnesia, though had gotten his memories back just in time to come back home and stop an Eggman assault. And also, the Restoration now had their hands full with healing as much damage to the world as possible, since the Metal Virus had done a lot of damage to the forests and all that. It certainly wasn't going to be easy to get it all done.
But for Whisper, she didn't really care about all that. Yes she was upset that Eggman was back to no good again so soon, but that feeling was overpowered by the joy of having her best friend back. The wolf girl had decided to stay in Spiral Hill Village for the time being, not only to try and relax after going through what was basically an apocalypse, but also to make sure Tangle and the others in the village were alright as well. Whisper also made a note to make sure Jewel would be fine as well and to her relief, the beetle girl was taking things pretty well and from the looks of things, so was Tangle, especially once Tangle invited Whisper to spend a night at her place. And while she didn't want to impose, she also didn't want to be too far from Tangle either so she accepted the invitation.
"Aw sweet, this is going to be a great sleepover! I'll make sure to have a lot of popcorn and other stuff ready for you, so get ready Whisper!" Tangle had said to her before zooming towards her home to prepare for when Whisper would come by. Whisper just smiled, glad to see Tangle back to her usual self now and she of course was going to be by there soon, but there was something she wanted to do first. Luckily for her, Tails was in the village today helping with getting the Mineral Museum fixed up today at the request of Jewel, so the wolf girl made her way to the museum to see the two tailed fox. The moment she stepped into the museum, she was greeted by Jewel as she hovered around the museum and saw Whisper enter.
"Oh, Whisper, hello! What brings you to the Mineral Museum today?" Jewel asked as she hovered down to greet her friend. Whisper nodded with a small smile herself to Jewel as she got right to the chase.
"Came to see Tails. Where is he?" Whisper asked now, making it clear she knew the fox was here. Jewel smiled and nodded as she pointed up towards the second floor of the museum.
"He's up on the second floor working on some of the smaller electrical structures and displays that got damaged during the whole virus thing." Jewel said now. Whisper nodded and began to head towards the stairs to go see Tails, only to then stop herself as she thought about Jewel's own state, especially once she mentioned the virus. Looking back at her, she of course had to ask a certain question.
"...How are you feeling? After...you know." Whisper asked and she could see the look on Jewel's face change as she thought about the whole thing with the virus taking over the village.
"...Honestly, I still have some unpleasant dreams about it. I don't remember anything past fully succumbing to it, just the feeling of my body turning on me and, well...you get it." Jewel responded, rubbing her arm now as she looked down at the ground. Whisper sighed as she knew it was a pretty traumatic experience for everyone and while she herself came very close to being overcome by the virus, she could only imagine what it was like after fully succumbing and it was a thought she didn't like to dwell on for long at all. "...Though I heard about...what happened with Tangle on Angel Island. How she suddenly regained control right before the virus was destroyed. Do...you know how she did it Whisper?"
"I have a feeling I do. Came here to ask about it. But Jewel...it'll be alright. The virus is gone...please take it easy." Whisper said, speaking a bit more then she usually did. This was mainly her attempt to comfort Jewel, realizing that even though the nightmare was over, the scars, and the trauma that came with them, remained still. Jewel at first wanted to protest, to say that she was alright, but a part of her knew that Whisper was right and that part was winning right now. Sighing to herself, she landed on the ground now and looked up at the wolf girl.
"...Just promise me if you learn something, you'll tell me before you go." Jewel requested now, to which Whisper nodded before she finally made her way up stairs to the museum's second floor. It took a bit of searching around, but soon Whisper found who she was looking for as she saw Tails working on a digital display for the museum now. Like before, she wasn't sure how to start the conversation, except this time she knew she had to. So she started with just one simple word.
"...Hey." Whisper said quietly, though just loud enough for Tails to hear her, seeing his ears flick a bit as he picked up on her greeting. Turning his head around now, Tails saw Whisper now as she entered the room.
"Oh, hey Whisper, how's it going? Don't mind me, just finishing one of the things Jewel asked me to work on for the museum." Tails said as he put in some last adjustments before activating the digital display, showing a description of the mineral that was on display on a small holographic screen.
"...Came to ask about something. About...the last time you saw Cosmo." Whisper responded now which made Tails freeze up right away. He wasn't expecting this, especially considering it was a wound in his heart that never really healed. Still, he had a feeling that Whisper was asking this for a good reason, but he needed to ask first why she was.
"...Why do you ask? Is...there something you're not telling me Whisper?" Tails asked now as he fully turned to face the sniper now. Whisper moved her head down a bit as she half-expected Tails to see through her and knew he would wonder why she had asked about that. Needing some answers, Whisper looked back up to answer the two tailed fox now.
"...During the battle on Angel Island...I ended up confronting Tangle when she was still infected...I couldn't bring myself to fight her and wanted to help her...Heard a voice telling me to let her help and then saw a pink light go into Tangle...helping her break through the virus's control over her mind...that light was the same color as the rose." Whisper explained now, speaking far more then she really liked to, but it was something she had to tell Tails. This definitely made Tails' eyes widened in shock as he let the explanation sink in. And it really got him thinking as well. The fact that a light that was the same color as the rose he was caring for helped free Tangle, at least mentally, from the Metal Virus, not long after he had told Whisper about Cosmo.
"...There's no way it's a coincidence...could it be..?" Tails asked himself now, part of him daring to hope that what Whisper explained to him was something that could only be described as a miracle. However, he couldn't leave Whisper hanging on what she was wanting to know and even if it was painful, he had to answer her. "...Well...the last time I saw Cosmo...it was right after I had pulled the trigger that destroyed her and the Metarex leaders...though it was in what I could guess was a sort of half dream, half vision thing. I was on the ship we had used to travel through space when what I believed to be Cosmo's spirit appeared before me...she held me gently and it felt like she was trying to do something when, well, she vanished..."
"...I see...Tails...I think we have an answer...for who you're caring for in that pot you had." Whisper said now as she got confirmation on what it was she was wanting to find out. The light that had helped her in reaching through to Tangle, it had to have been Cosmo's spirit. And the fact that she had done it after seeing the rose for the first time...Whisper wasn't sure why Cosmo had decided to help her of all people, though maybe it's because she knew the pain Tails was still going through and had done her best to comfort him. Whatever the reason, she had a lot of gratitude to give to the girl now. "...When you go back to her Tails...tell her I said thank you."
"...If it's really her Whisper...then I hope soon, you can tell her yourself." Tails said, this time with more hope in his voice then he's had in ages. Hearing Whisper's explanation had made him feel now that it was Cosmo he was caring for now and if she had helped Whisper and Tangle, then maybe soon she would return for real, at least physically. With that, Whisper nodded to Tails and waved to him goodbye before she left now, having the answer she was wanting. She made sure to tell Jewel about what she learned as well, as promised, before exiting the Mineral Museum. As she did, she realized how late it had gotten as the sun was setting over the horizon. Not wanting to keep Tangle waiting much longer, Whisper quickly made her way to the lemur's home.
The moment she got home, she was immediately subjected to Tangle's idea of a sleepover, starting with enjoying some snacks like popcorn and small unwrappable cakes while watching a suspenseful action movie, followed by a failed attempt at making dinner which resulted in putting out a fire and resorting to just getting takeout instead. Still, Whisper didn't mind too much, she was enjoying this time with Tangle and was having fun too admittedly, even her Wisps were having fun too. Though it didn't take long until it was time for them to get some sleep with Whisper staying on a makeshift bed for her that Tangle set up, which was really just a few blankets and pillows on the couch, which the wolf girl didn't mind.
Though as the night wore on, while the Wisps were in different parts of the room sleeping themselves, Whisper found herself still awake as she stared at the ceiling. It wasn't too unusual for her to sleep much later then others, but tonight she had a reasonable excuse as she had so many things on her mind now. She of course couldn't get her mind off of what happened just days ago with the Metal Virus, but it was the ending of it that she couldn't get her mind off of mainly. Like what had possessed Cosmo's spirit to even decide to assist her to begin with, what exactly had she done to help Tangle with getting her mind back even while she was still a Zombot, and even...how it felt when Tangle saved her. And despite the cold feeling of the metal covering her still a lingering feeling in her mind, Whisper also couldn't help but also recall...feeling a warm feeling that overpowered the cold feeling of the metal.
'...Why can't I stop thinking about that feeling..?' Whisper thought to herself as she sat up on her makeshift bed. The thoughts dominating her mind were basically stopping her from getting to sleep. Sighing to herself, Whisper began to think more about not only the feeling she had, but all of the stuff she had been in with Tangle ever since meeting her when they were helping Sonic and the others with stopping Metal Sonic. It wasn't just this recent battle for the fate of the world, there was also the adventure where the two of them worked together to try and subdue Mimic, resulting in her former teammate getting locked up and her hugging Tangle as well, letting the lemur be the first one to be close to her since the fall of the Diamond Cutters. Then there was how Whisper was like when she learned tangle had gotten infected as the wolf girl recalled her trying to rush back to the village in order to get to her friend and how she came so close to killing Eggman for everything she had been through because of him, only to be stopped by Cream and her words making her see that finally ridding the world of the mad doctor would have potentially made any chance of saving Tangle and everyone else be lost.
All this thinking began to make Whisper see a pattern now. Ever since she met her, Tangle has basically been a light in her darkened world, one that has helped her to learn to open up again. She was also a reminder of what Whisper, as she thought about it, used to be like herself and that made Whisper also realize another thing. The reason she was so worried about Tangle was because she saw so much of herself in Tangle and thus, she wanted to make sure Tangle didn't have to go through the same traumatizing events that made Whisper herself the way she is now. Or maybe...there was something more there. She really cared about Tangle. Maybe...more then she realized. As she came to this realization, Whisper's eyes opened up wide as she thought one thing.
'...Oh Chaos...I think...I've fallen in love with Tangle...' Whisper thought to herself now as she felt her cheeks heat up now the more she thought about it. She had been through so much action she never even took time to think about how she really felt about everyone, but the more she thought about Tangle, the more warm feeling she had gotten before came back and it was growing warmer and stronger then before. Yet before Whisper could come to any sort of conclusion as to her feelings for the lemur, she suddenly began to hear what sounded like banging. It was soft, but it sounded like it was coming from...Tangle's room?!
Whisper immediately shot up off of the couch bed and grabbed her Variable Wispon as she rushed to Tangle's room, instinct and a protective urge kicking into overdrive right now while her Wisps, woken from Whisper's sudden movements, flying after her. The moment she got there, she opened the door wide to look for any sort of intruders trying to get to her friend, but was surprised to see Tangle alone and still asleep. Yet the lemur was tossing and turning in her sleep and on one occassion, her long, stretchy, and strong tail banged against the floor. That was what Whisper heard as she now realized there wasn't any danger, something the Wisps also noticed when they got into the room too. Relaxing some, she carefully approached Tangle now to check on her and see what was causing her to toss and turn so much. As she got close, she heard Tangle mumbling now in her sleep.
"...Mmgh...n-no...s-stay...back...d-don't..." Tangle mumbled in her sleep and that's when Whisper saw the cold sweat in her friend's fur. A nightmare and a pretty bad one it seemed. Not wanting her friend to go through it anymore, Whisper began to gently shake Tangle now to get her to wake up, but the moment she touched Tangle, the lemur's eyes flew wide open as she yelped loudly and scrambled out of her bed. Seeing the distressed look on Tangle's face now, Whisper quickly started to approach her. "N-no, get away, I don't wanna infect you Whisp..!"
"Infect..?" Whisper asked until realization dawned on her. That's what was wrong. Tangle had dreamt about her time as a Zombot it seemed. Whisper didn't think that Tangle remembered the whole time she was one, save for the final moments when Cosmo helped her. But it's apparent that maybe Tangle had some vivid memories of her time as a Zombot, which would explain the nightmares. Seeing how badly Tangle was acting right now, it only made it more clear what Whisper had to do as she began her approach again.
"No, stay back Whisp! I-I can't let you risk yourself-" Tangle said as she held her hand up to Whisper, only for the wolf to close the distance between them in one swift motion as she clasped Tangle's hand with her own. The moment she did, Whisper could see Tangle's breath hasten more as she tried to pull away, but then once she saw that there wasn't any metal, she slowly stopped. "W-wha..?"
"You're not infected. You had a nightmare." Whisper quietly said now as she saw Tangle starting to fully come back to reality now, though it really pained her to see the person she had apparent feelings like this. Whisper could see Tangle's breath start to slow as she calmed down now as the realization began to dawn on her now that she wasn't infected again.
"R-right...a...nightmare..." Tangle said quietly herself, looking at her free hand now to make sure of that fact and breathing a sigh of relief when she saw no metal on it either. And now Whisper found herself feeling a little...no, pretty guilty. With the way Tangle had been acting after she had been cured, she didn't think she had been bothered that much, especially considering the kind of girl she was. But it was clear that it had gotten to Tangle more then she had let on.
"...Want to...talk 'bout it?" Whisper asked now as she let go of Tangle's hand and sat down beside her now, seeing the lemur now curl up some and wrap her tail around herself somewhat, as if still trying to protect Whisper from herself. Sighing now after a moment, Tangle realized she wasn't going to get out of this now unless she talked to Whisper about it, yet she kept her gaze to the floor.
"...It's just...you know how everyone else...hardly even remembers what happened after they got converted? Well...it's just...I remember some of it..." Tangle admitted now and this definitely surprised Whisper. Though at first she was thinking it was the part of her time when Cosmo helped her out, but then Tangle continued. "...And not just when you somehow got through to me either..."
"...What do you recall?" Whisper said as she found herself scooting a bit closer now to Tangle. She now was starting to understand why Tangle had the nightmares, because she recalled more then other victims of the Metal Virus could.
"...I remember being with the rest of the village after I got converted...being lined up by those Zetis for battle...and even being thrown by that giant Zavoc...and not being able to do anything to stop myself..." Tangle responded now as she closed her eyes tightly, squeezing out a couple of tears. It was unlike her to be like this, but right now she couldn't help it. And it hurt Whisper to see this as the wolf now wrapped her arms around Tangle. And the moment she did, she could feel Tangle's tail wrap around her back as if trying to bring her in closer then she already was. "...It...not only was that...but I also...saw...you falling Whisp...only this time...I didn't save you and...watched you fall into the water where you..."
"That's enough..." Whisper said as she rubbed the lemur's back. Now that she had an idea of the cause of Tangle's nightmare, it made it that more important to make sure her friend could recover from this traumatic experience. "I didn't fall. You saved me. And you're not a Zombot Tangle...but should tell you...I wasn't alone when I got through."
"Huh..?" Tangle said as she found herself looking at Whisper now, surprised to hear this admission from the wolf. It was then that Whisper told Tangle the whole thing with Cosmo. What she had learned about the space adventure, what happened at the end of said adventure, and even about the plant Tails was caring for. Even making sure to through in the small details. But most importantly, Whisper told Tangle how Cosmo's spirit apparently helped them both now. Once all of this began to settle in for Tangle, she had a look of amazement now on her face. "Wow...so basically, Tails' girlfriend helped me..? ...Wait, hold on, when did he have a girlfriend!?"
"Don't know." Whisper said, though she couldn't hide the chuckle that escaped her throat that formed in response to Tangle's reaction. She could even already imagine how flustered Tails would be if he had heard Tangle say that as well. But it also was nice to see Tangle start to act like somewhat her regular self again. "...Feeling better?"
"...I guess...though..." Tangle trailed off now as she looked back down to the floor and a small blush began to form across her face. Whisper wasn't sure what this meant, but seeing the redness on the lemur's face made a small bit of hope appear in her. Though she waited to see what it was Tangle was trying to say now. Thankfully, it seemed Whisper didn't have to wait long to see her friend gather the courage to speak what she wanted to say. "...This is...probably going to sound really silly, but...could...you, uh...stay...with me tonight at least..?"
"Stay?" Whisper felt her hope rise a tiny bit now, hope that perhaps Tangle might feel the same way. However, whatever the case was, Whisper did understand why Tangle wouldn't want to be alone tonight, not after that nightmare she had. Giving a simple nod, Whisper saw the lemur let out what she believed to be a sigh of relief as she finally managed to get up off the floor. Whisper got up to follow her and joined her in the bed now and they were soon joined by the Wisps, who all gathered around Tangle as if trying to comfort her as well.
"Heh, thanks guys...and thanks Whisp...this means a lot..." Tangle said as she got settled in next to Whisper. There wasn't much room on the bed, but it was just enough for both girls as Whisper shifted around until she was sure Tangle had enough room at least. "...Hey Whisp...if what you believe is true...then I know just how to make it up to Cosmo...and...I'd like for you to help if we can..."
"Of course Tangle. For now, let's sleep." Whisper said as she already knew what Tangle had in mind. Tangle simply nodded and closed her eyes, letting herself fall back into slumber now that she had Whisper and the Wisps there to keep her company. Whisper remained silent, keeping an eye on Tangle to make sure the nightmare didn't return. But she knew what was to come next, the thing Tangle wanted to do with her help. Whisper wasn't sure how they were going to accomplish this task, but she felt determined to do it somehow anyway. The task of bringing Cosmo back for real.
For now though, Whisper let her thoughts take over a bit as she came to grips with her feelings for the lemur sleeping next to her. And after the feelings of hope she felt earlier, Whisper could no longer fully deny her feelings. So now, in the back of Whisper's mind as she began to let sleep take her now, on top of this new mission to find some way to bring back the girl who helped her and Tangle, she wanted to find a way...to get the confidence to hopefully confess her feelings. And hope that Tangle returned those feelings. As for the lemur herself, she would dream again. A dream of when she rescued Whisper from her fall, only this time it had a different ending. One that, deep down, she hoped would happen in real life, but one she chose to keep to herself for now.