DISCLAIMER: I really shouldn't have to keep saying this, but I own nothing. All rights go to Sega and their companies, executives, water coolers, board offices, and that one office joker who keeps misquoting what he sees on sketch comedy. I hate that guy.

So... you know how I said at the end of my previous one-shot that this would be my last one? Well, I have two more after this that I've delayed for too damn long. But let's not talk about those! Let's focus on this one! A rare one not based in the Boom universe, and it'll be a bit different for more reasons than that. And it was requested by ultimateCCC. Sorry that it took so long to get around to it. Hopefully, you all enjoy it.

"I can't believe that we're here..." said Shadow.

"Well, believe it and behave yourself," said Tikal.

The hedgehog and echidna couple were walking to Cream and Vanilla's house because Cream wanted to congratulate them on being a couple. Tikal took joy in wanting to see Cream due to their close friendship, but Shadow... well, he didn't hate Cream, but he didn't see the need to talk to someone else about his relationship status.

"Just be as polite as you can be, okay?" Tikal said. "You promised."

"I know..." said Shadow. "I'm working on trying to be less of that guy."

"What? The guy I love?" Tikal teased.

"No. The guy who was a pain in the neck for everyone else and... you know."

"I know," Tikal said. "Well, we're here. Should I ring the doorbell?"

"I'll do it," Shadow smiled. He reached to press the doorbell, but the door opened, and Cream smiled up at Shadow and Tikal.

"Mummy! They're here!" Cream said.

"Then let them in!" Vanilla said.

Cream nodded, stepping aside. "Hello, Mr. Shadow and Miss Tikal!"

"Hi," Tikal smiled. "Thank you for inviting us."

Cream beamed happily. "You're welcome!"

"Where are the Chao?" Shadow asked.

"In the garden," Vanilla said. "Cream, you lead them there."

"Sure!" Cream said as Cheese flew in from the back. Cheese flew over to hug Cream, who hugged back. "Ready for our tea party?" Cream asked Cheese.

"Chao!" Cheese replied, nodding.

"Sounds like fun!" Tikal smiled. "Lead the way, little one!"

"Okay!" Cream said. "Just follow me!"

"I'll bring the tea out!" Vanilla said.

"Okay, mummy!" Cream said.

She grabbed Tikal's arm and playfully dragged her, causing the peach-coloured echidna to laugh. Cheese grabbed Shadow's hand to try and pull him along, and Shadow just smiled a bit and walked along anyway, the small Chao's strength not actually helping.

Soon, they'd arrived at the garden itself, seeing several Chao happily flying around or play fighting. A couple were sharing a coconut, eating a half each and munching cutely. Shadow looked at the cute couple and couldn't hide a smile as he kept walking to the table that Cream had set up, complete with four seats.

"This looks amazing," said Tikal as she sat down at her seat.

"Me and my mummy helped to set the garden up," Cream said. "Along with the Chao, of course."

"Speaking of which, where's Chocola?"

The Chao in question suddenly landed on Tikal's shoulder, giving the orange echidna a kiss on the cheek before joining Cream and Cheese. Shadow once again couldn't hide his smile, but he turned his head when he heard something.

"Here's your tea!" said Vanilla. "And biscuits too, obviously!"

"Thank you, mama!" Cream said. As Vanilla went about pouring the tea, getting everyone's orders of sugar, milk, and such in as she went about it, Cream spoke again. "This is a special tea party," she said.

"Oh, yeah?" Shadow said. "What makes you say that?"

"Well, I'm going to congratulate you two for becoming a couple!" Cream said.

"Thank you," Tikal said, smiling. "That's very kind of you." She looked at the Chao and then at Vanilla. "All of you." She elbowed Shadow. "Right?"

Shadow nodded. "Uh... right. Thank you for inviting is. It's so nice of you to do all of this for us." He sighed. "But... I feel like something's off?"

"How do you mean?" Vanilla asked.

"Well, you wouldn't set up all of this stuff just to congratulate us," Shadow said as he ate some food.

"I kind of agree," Tikal said. "I mean, it's not like we don't appreciate it, but this is quite a lot for just wishing us well as a couple."

"Well, we had more to talk about than that," said Cream. "We wanted to thank you for... well, quite a lot."

Vanilla sat down next to her daughter. "We've already congratulated the two of you on becoming a couple, but we also wanted to bring up... well, that time that Shadow rescued my little girl from Eggman's base when the Black Arms invaded."

"That was scary..." Cream said.

"I think that was when I first fully became a good guy," Shadow said. "Well... I don't know if I'm still all the way there yet..."

Tikal touched her boyfriend's arm and smiled. "You're still learning. But even back then, you had goodness in your heart. You just didn't know it at the time."

"Remember, you didn't just rescue my girl," Vanilla smiled. Cheese flew over to hug Shadow's arm in thanks. "He was there too."

"Chao!" Cheese said happily. He then flew a in a circle around Shadow's head before going back over to Cream.

"Thanks," Shadow said. "That fight wasn't easy, though. Eggman was teamed up with the Black Arms. His intelligence and their alien technology were a very bad combo to be around."

"But you beat him," Tikal said. "And you beat those aliens too. Trust me, you're a hero."

"Well, I had some help from the others," Shadow said. "Sonic, Amy, Knuckles, Tails, even Big. He's the one who carried Cream and Cheese out of that place." He sighed. "Not to mention, Sonic beat Eggman. I just kept the Black Arms away."

"You spin dashed through their spaceship and blew it up," Tikal said. "You did more than just keep them away."

Shadow chuckled. "I guess so. My point is, I didn't to it alone. I... I don't even know if I wanted to do it at all. But... I... I am happy that I was able to help then."

"You're still helping to this day," said Vanilla. "Don't be so hard on yourself, okay?"

"I'm happy that I was able to help," said the black and red hedgehog. He then turned to Cream. "Is there anything else?"

"Well, yes," said Cream, turning to Tikal. "We'd like to thank you for babysitting Cheese and Chocola."

"Eh, I had a day off from saving the world," Tikal joked.

"We know," Vanilla said. "We're sorry for bugging you by then."

"Don't be," Tikal said. "I was glad to help. And besides, the Chao are freaking adorable. Any excuse to be around them is good enough for me."

"But, remember, you didn't have to," Vanilla said.

"It was Cream's birthday," Tikal smiled. "You wanted your little girl to have a great day, and if I was able to help the outcome in any way, then you don't really need to tell me what I did and didn't have to do. I was glad to do it."

Cheese and Chocola then flew over, both giving kisses on either of Tikal's cheeks. The orange echidna chuckled and hugged them both, giving them kisses of their own and causing them to giggle adorable before stopping, letting them fly back over to Cream and Vanilla.

"Of course, they were very well-behaved," Tikal said. "Taking care of them was a breeze."

"I'm just a bit sad that I wasn't there," Shadow said. "I heard that you had a good time with them."

"You were sick on that day," Tikal chuckled. "Not even the Ultimate Life Form can fend off the common cold."

"I'm just glad that you got that video of Cheese and Chocola when they were asleep," Shadow said. "I'll admit, they do look cute together."

"Aw, you big softy," Tikal laughed, lightly jabbing her boyfriend's side with her elbow. "I didn't think that they'd snore that loud, though."

The two Chao blushed before Cream giggled, and they all had some more food and drank a bit of tea too. Even the two Chao got some munchies of their own as Vanilla had prepared some sliced fruits for them, which they shared with other Chao in the garden before returning.

Tikal looked around at the garden itself. "It's a truly beautiful looking place," she said. "You really put some hard work into this."

"Well, after what you two went through to save the garden, we figured that we may as well make it look nice," Vanilla said.

"Oh, yeah," Shadow said, catching on. "When we helped stop the place from being turned into a parking lot, basically."

"Even for Eggman, that was a new low," Vanilla said. "The fact that he wasn't using violence, but hiring people to try and take our land... that was way too far." She hugged Cream. "They even threatened to take away my little girl if we didn't obey."

"But they didn't," Shadow said. "We investigated, took Eggman down, and saved the Chao garden."

"It was weird not having to actually fight anyone to do it," said Tikal. "I mean, not using our fists, anyway."

"You still helped us out," Vanilla smiled. "You saved us. We wouldn't have just lost the garden. We... we would have been homeless..."

"Hey, that won't ever happen," Shadow said, reaching to touch Vanilla's hand reassuringly. "But, if it did, you'd always have a place with us. You know that, right?"

"I know," Vanilla smiled. "Thank you both so much for all of your help."

"Eh, any time that we get to stick it to Eggman is good enough for us," Shadow smiled. "But it was nothing, really."

Cream giggled. "So, do you agree now?"

"Agree with that?" Shadow asked.

"That you're a good person?"

The black and red hedgehog was surprised at the question, but he nodded and smiled. "I think that I'm still getting there, but with friends like you and with someone like Tikal..." He put a hand on Tikal's and kissed her cheek. "I think that I'll be okay."

"I do too," Tikal smiled. "I love you."

"I love you too," Shadow smiled. "Now, let's eat, shall we?"

The others laughed, and soon they continued to make small talk as well as finish their food and drinks, enjoying what was prepared for them. Several Chao flew overhead as well, causing Tikal to giggle at their adorable nature.

Soon, they were all finished eating, and Shadow and Tikal were on their way out. "Thank you for having us," Tikal said. "It was very nice of you to bring us out here."

"I was a bit stricken by what you thanked us for all in all," Shadow added, "but it means a lot. Thank you."

"And thank you for all that you've done for us," Vanilla smiled. "Still, there's one thing that we're forgetting before you leave... oh, yes! I remember now!"

She leaned in close to hug Shadow and Tikal, who both hugged back. Cream later joined the group hug, as did Cheese, Chocola, and some other Chao from the garden too. The hug broke, and Shadow smiled.

"Thank you," he said. "We'll see you guys around."

"Don't be a stranger!" Vanilla replied.

"I'll try to make him not be!" Tikal giggled. She and Shadow waved goodbye and left the house proper, smiling at each other. "So, how was it?"

"How was what?" Shadow asked.

"Seeing our friends and being told what a hero you are," Tikal lightly chided as they started walking to Shadow's car. "You know what I mean."

"It was nice," Shadow said. "I... I wasn't expecting them to be that happy to see us. Hmm."

"And how do you feel now that you know how they feel about us?"

"I feel... good," Shadow said. "I mean, other people already know, but to be surprised by all the other things that they congratulated us on, it was kind of out of left field." He shook his head. "What about you? Did you feel good too?"

"Of course I did," Tikal giggled. "But that's my point. You need to enjoy those little things a bit more, Shadow. I do too. I like to think that we're learning together, though."

"Me too," Shadow said. "It was good of you to do this. I mean, good of us."

"Ah, he can be taught!" Tikal giggled.

"Well, I'm learning from the best person that I know," Shadow said. "I love you, Tikal."

"I love you too," Tikal replied.

The two then got into the car and drove home. Night was settling in as they got there, and they both decided to get some rest early, with the pair of them thankful to have each other, as well as their friends too.

And here it is! All done. Sorry that it was so long since the last one-shot. I got kinda sick and just felt a bit rundown. But I'm way better now, and I hope that this was worth the wait. I don't have much else to say. Take care, and stay tuned.