Happy Birthday, Ruby!

Back at the cottage, Cream was humming and lighting all twelve candles on the cake, which was too tall, very crooked, and, of course, runny. She carefully lit each candle by breathing a puff of fire on them. "There! Whoop!" she said, quite satisfied, after she blew out the fire. Then she noticed the cake was starting to run and held it up with a broom. She turned to Cosmo and asked, "Well, what do you think of it?"

Cosmo was also almost finished with the dress. But the dress was a bad joke - there were too many designs, some parts of the dress were way too big, and some were torn. And Rouge was still standing as the dummy in the dress, not seeming too happy. Cosmo was startled when she saw the sight of the birthday cake. "Why, it's a very unusual cake, isn't it?" she said.

Cream then noticed a few candles were starting to flow down the broomstick. "Yes. Of course it'll be much stiffer after it's baked." she said, placing the candles back on top of the cake.

"Of course, dear. What do you think of the dress?" Cosmo asked nervously.

"Well, it's not exactly the way it is in the book, is it?" asked Cream, as she had a good look at it, standing beside Cosmo.

"Well, I improved it a bit! But perhaps if I added a few more ruffles? What do you think?" Cosmo asked Cream.

Cream nodded. "Mm-hmm, I think so. What do you think, Rouge?"

But Rouge did not think it was a good idea! The dress was ruined, and the cake was ruined. She had enough. "I THINK WE'VE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS NONSENSE!!!" she fumed, as she turned to face them. A flap from the dress flew into her face as she carried on ranting and raving. "I think we ought to think of Ruby and what *she'll* think of this mess!" With that, Rouge struggled out of the dress, causing it to fall to pieces, and stomped upstairs. "I still think what I've thought before. I'm going to get those wands!"

As Rouge went upstairs, the cake on the broom began to melt completely, leaving only its burning candles.

"You know, I think she's right." Cream said to Cosmo, who nodded at her. This was not easy without using their wands. And the twelve years are up anyway.

Suddenly, Rouge ran back downstairs, carrying the three wands in her hand. "Here they are! Good as new!" she called.

But Cosmo was cautious about what Rouge was going to do with their wands. "Ah, ah, ah, duh, duh, duh! Careful, Rouge!" she warned, as she took the wands from the bat. Then Rouge locked the doors while Cream closed the windows and Cosmo blocked up every cranny in the cottage. "Quick! Lock the doors. Cream, you close the windows. Oh, block up every cranny. We can't take any chances!" said Cosmo. Then she gave Cream her wand and said, to her, "And now, you take care of the cake."

Rouge began, "While I..."

"Clean the room, dear." Cosmo finished, as she gave Rouge her wand and kept her own. "And I'll make the dress. Now hurry!"

Rouge became angry a little. But she realized what Cosmo meant, and she zapped a bucket, a mop, and a broom that were standing in a corner, making the objects come to life, ready to do any bidding. "Come on, bucket, mop, broom! Cosmo says clean up the room!" she called. Then the cleaning stuff immediately began to clean up the place as the broom swept away what ever pieces of the ruined dress were lying on the floor.

"And now to make a lovely dress, fit the grace of fair princess!" Cosmo chuckled, as she took a fresh sheet of jade cloth, and, with a whirl of her wand, she transformed the cloth into a base of the dress.

"Eggs, flour, milk!" Cream called, as the ingredients also came to life and walked over to listen to the rabbit. "Just do it like it says here in the book. I'll put on the candles." said Cream, as the ingredients walked over to a mixing bowl, and the flour, milk, and eggs were put in.

Meanwhile, the broom was sweeping some dust. The rug, stool, and chair Rouge was standing on moved up in order to make way for it. When the broom stopped sweeping, Rouge noticed the pile of dust was still on the floor, so she zapped it away.

While the ingredients were still filling in the mixing bowl and a big wooden spoon was stirring up the ingredients, Cream took a taste of some cinnamon. Then, when the batter was done, the cake looked perfectly baked with eleven layers containing red and white frosting, daisies, roses, and jonquils.

Now Cosmo was making the off-the-shoulder sleeves. She took another jade sheet and, with her wand, she ordered the scissors to cut the cloth three times. Then she zapped some spools of jade thread, making them come to life. The needles also came to life, and the sleeve was stitched with the jade thread. Now the sleeve was short, and it flew over to the left side of the dress and stuck it in its armhole. Now the dress was perfectly sewn!

Rouge was dancing with the mop. She danced and twirled while the mop did the same. Then she jumped, and the broom followed suite, only into the bucket and out. Then Rouge kept dancing and twirling while the mop washed the floor.

The mop glided gracefully under the table where Cream was standing at. She lifted one foot in order to give it room. Then she lifted her other foot until she was floating off the floor. When the mop was done washing under the table, Cream landed back on the floor.

Rouge was still dancing with the mop, and Cosmo was using her wand to put one small bead on the collar, ruffles on the skirt, and more small beads on the ruffles. Rouge saw her and stopped. "Oh no, not jade! Make it pink!" said Rouge, as she zapped the dress, making it turn pink.

Cosmo saw that and gasped in shock. "Rouge!" she scolded.

"Make it jade!" Cosmo said, as she zapped the dress back to its jade color.

Rouge still danced with the mop as it was still washing the floor. "Make it pink!" she whispered, zapping it pink again.

Cosmo saw that the dress was pink again and was now irritated. "Oh, jade!" said She zapped it back to jade again.

"Pink!" Rouge smiled, still dancing. But this time, Cosmo stood before the dress, and her dress turned pink. Rouge snickered to herself until Cosmo angrily turned her bodysuit jade. That actually did it. Because they began to start fighting over the color.

As Cream was putting white frosting on the red frosting-coated cake, pink and jade lightning bolts began flying all over the place and into the fireplace, where blazes of color went through the chimney.

Unfortunately, the fight happened at a wrong time. Because Meowth was walking through the forest when he saw pink and jade fireworks from a distance. "Hey! What's that?" he said, "I must go investigate." He walked over to investigate, and he saw the fireworks coming out from the chimney. Curiously, he looked down in it, only to get zapped multiple times by the lightning bolts. "Hey! That's not fair!" Meowth yelled.

Inside the house, the *war* continued, until they both hit the dress at the same time, with the result that it looked like two cans of color paint were emptied on it.

"Ohhh, now look what you've done!" Cosmo angrily said to Rouge.

Cream had just finished lighting all twelve candles on the cake because she heard something. "Shh, listen!" she said. Then she began to listen closely to a faint sounds coming from the forest. As it got louder, it began to sound like someone singing. And they already recognized whose voice it was.

"It's Ruby!" said Rouge, realizing who's singing.

"She's back! Enough of this foolishness." said Cosmo, as she and Rouge changed their clothes back to their original colors.

Rouge zapped the dishes clean and put them in a cupboard, and Cosmo set the dress and a pair of ankle-length bloomers and silk gloves on the chair and set a pair of shoes on the floor. "Make it jade." she said. She turned the dress, bloomers, gloves, and shoes jade and turned to Rouge. "Now hide! Quick!" said Cosmo, motioning Rouge to hide.

Before going, Cream turned to the jade dress, bloomers, gloves, and shoes. "Red!" she whispered, as she turned the dress, shoes, bloomers, and gloves red without Cosmo and Rouge noticing. Then she ran to the attic to join the Seedrian.

Ruby was running to the cottage. "Aunt Cosmo!" she called.

Then Cosmo was surprised to see the mop still washing the floor. "Good gracious! Who left the mop running?" she exclaimed.

Rouge also noticed the mop and realized that she had forgotten about it. "Stop, mop!" she said, as she zapped the mop, making it drop to the floor, lifeless.

Ruby opened the door, walked inside the cottage, set the berries on a small table, and unbuttoned her cloak. But she was surprised to find Cosmo and the others nowhere in sight. As the hedgehog looked around, Meowth peeked into the door and sees her. "Who could she be?" he asked. He became very suspicious about the hedgehog. Her fur and quills are pink, her skin is fair, her eyes are green, and her nose is black, but is it the same Princess Amy? "Aunt Cosmo! Cream! Rouge!" she called, as she hung up the cloak. "Where is everybody?" said Ruby, wondering where they were.

Then she suddenly gasped when she saw the red dress, gloves, shoes, and bloomers, and the cake and became very happy. "Surprise, surprise!" Cosmo, Cream, and Rouge cheered in unison, as they all came out of their hiding place to surprise Ruby.

"Happy birthday, Ruby!" said Cream, hugging Ruby.

"Oh you darlings, this is the happiest day of my life. Everything's so wonderful! Just wait till you meet him!" said Ruby, hugging them back.

"Him?" said Cream, being startled when Ruby mentioned someone.

"Ruby!" gasped Rouge, who also seemed surprised.

"You-You've met some stranger?" asked Cosmo.

"Oh he's not a stranger," Ruby explained. "we've met before."

"You have?" said Cosmo.

"Where?" asked Rouge.

"Once upon a dream!" Ruby said dreamily, and she began to sing *Once Upon A Dream*.

Ruby: *I know you*
*I walked with you*
*Once upon a dream*

The Seedrian, rabbit, and bat looked at each other with confused looks. They didn't know what was going on with Ruby. Then Ruby took Cream by the hands and danced with her. Then Cream noticed the cause of her behavior and realized. "She's in love!" said Cream.

"Oh no!" said Rouge.

"This is terrible!" said Cosmo.

Then Ruby stopped singing and dancing and became confused by what they said. And she didn't understand what was going on. "Why? After all, I *am* twelve." said Ruby.

The Seedrian, rabbit, and bat then began to know that it was time to tell her the truth. "It isn't that, dear." said Cosmo.

"You're already betrothed?" said Cream.

"Betrothed?" said Ruby, still confused.

"Since the day you were born." answered Rouge.

"To Prince Knuckles the Echidna, dear." Cream agreed.

"But that's impossible!" said Ruby, "How could I marry a prince, I'd have to be..."

"A princess?" Rouge finished, smiling.

"And you are, dear!" said Cream.

"Princess Amy Rose!" said Cosmo.

Then Meowth became surprised when it heard this. "Ah! So *that's* the princess! I must tell Sailor Galaxia right away!" He smiled evilly, knowing that he has found the princess. Then he ran off to tell Galaxia the news.

"Tonight, we're taking you back to your father, King Edward." Cosmo told Ruby.

Ruby's eyes started to fill up with tears. "But...but I can't!" she said, "He's coming here tonight. I promised to meet him."

"I'm sorry, child," said Cosmo, taking Ruby's hands in her own. "But you must never see that young echidna again."

Ruby became shocked when she heard it and began to cry, thinking she would never see that same echidna again. Soon, she began to shed tears. "Oh, no, no!" sobbed Ruby. "I can't believe it. No, no!" The Seedrian, the rabbit, and the bat tried to comfort her, but she suddenly ran upstairs to her room, crying.

Cosmo, Cream, and Rouge sadly looked at each other. "And we thought she'd be so happy." said Rouge. A tear slid down Cosmo's cheek.

Ruby continued to cry on her bed throughout the afternoon, thinking about the echidna she fell in love with.