Failure
By: Ersiffa Narman
A/N: Hey people! I'm sooo sorry about The Origins Saga, I'm just not feeling it at the moment, so I'm going to wait until I do. Anyways, I decided to do this 2-3 shot Star Fox story to cure writers block. I hope you guys enjoy! :D Has some slight Foxtal, but it's mainly friendship than romance.
Disclaimer: Blah Blah don't own Star Fox yada yada yada. Bueleck! Why do people even do this anyway? It's not like any of us have that much money anyway, lol.
Fox McCloud was always the one with luck on his side. Even if a major problem arose during a mission, his quick thinking and constant stroke of luck solved it immediately. He would never give up, no, it just wasn't his nature. He would never let an injury keep him from completing a mission; he would be walking around with a blaster wound to the stomach but still be fighting. He would never be laying in a hospital bed with an IV strapped to his wrist letting someone else take care of him; it would always be the other way around...
But here he was, lying in a hospital bed with an IV attached at his wrist watching people he usually saved work hard to save him. Here was my fearless commander being commanded by death, his eyes sunken back into his face, pale fur dully lit by the artificial lights of the hospital, and his lips curved into a seemingly permanent frown. If it weren't for the staccato beeps of the heart monitor and the weak rise and fall of his chest, he would be a picture dictionary's definition of death. It seemed unreal... Lylat's hero on his deathbed. I looked down as I blinked back the tears, rubbing my blue-furred hand in a solemn attempt of self-comfort.
Fox had been like my big brother since the day he rescued me from that crystal atop Krazoa Palace. He taught me how to speak the language, how to pilot an Arwing, hell, he even taught me how to play video games. The most important thing he taught me, though, was how to love... how to love a family. He gave me my family... and now it was about to be taken away from me.
I can remember the day he told me he was sick; I was the first person to know. I knew there was something wrong with him before he even told me. The first thing I noticed was how fast he became tired, barely even able to sit through a thirty minute sitcom without nodding off. When asked, he would tell us that he didn't get enough sleep that night, but when it began to happen every day for a week, it was obvious it was something else.
Falco joked that he was busy "having fun", as he put it, because of the sounds that he kept hearing coming from his room at night. I didn't believe it because I hadn't sensed any new presences in the ship. Peppy just thought that it was just because he was getting older (which wasn't completely untrue, all of us were slowing down slightly) but it still didn't seem right. Slippy even seemed to agree with me, saying that probably was sick but would never admit it unless it was something REALLY bad.
Then he stopped eating. No one really seemed to notice but me, but I kept my mouth shut because I felt that Fox would probably start pushing me away from him. He began to make sure that no one used things like a toothbrush of his, his reasoning being that it was disgusting and unsanitary anyway. It was reasonable, but it still seemed out of character for him.
Not too long after that, he began to have fainting spells that occurred when he stood up too fast. After fainting one too many times, I finally decided to confront him.
Fox was sitting down at the kitchenette table, reading the newspaper leisurely as he sipped a cup of tea. I watched him from the door, not wanting to disturb him just yet. He looked so humorously adorable with his eyes glued to the paper, twitching his tail like an annoyed kitsune. I entered the room and quietly walked over to him, making sure he didn't notice me just yet.
Just as he turned to the next page I leaned up against his ear and whispered, "Boo." I giggled softly as he nearly jumped out of his seat in fear. After a few moments, he calmed down (although it appeared as though it took him longer to recover than usual) and I was met with his playful glare.
"Krystal! You scared the hell outta me!" he exclaimed as he gave me a playful shove (it was weaker than normal...).
"Ha, if you think that was scary, you should see Falco's room," I scoffed, "That place looks like a tornado went through it!"
"Believe me, his room has looked worse," he said with his one of his trademark grins. I couldn't help but notice how strained it worked, as if he were forcing himself to do it. I silently shook the thought out of my head, deciding not to ask just yet. "So, hungry?" he asked.
"Nah, I was just bored. Slippy's adding new G-diffusers to the Arwings, Falco is... hell, I dunno. Probably at bar or something," I said, most of what it was true; Falco WAS nowhere to be found. Slippy, however, was doing the same thing I was doing: trying to figure out what was wrong with Fox.
Fox chuckled slightly, sitting back down at his chair. He looked over at me with his slightly sunken in eyes and replied in a weaker voice, "I guess we're all getting bored here. There really is nothing to do," he sighed. "Poor old Foxy gets lonely sometimes..." he chuckled sadly. I was getting genuinely scared at this point. I had never seen Fox look so depressed.
"Hey, don't feel too bad, I'll always be here for you, bro," I said, taking a seat next to him and gripping his hand in mine. It felt strangely cold, as if it had died. I visibly shuddered. I couldn't think about my big brother dying... My savior...
"Thanks, Krys," he smiled, "That means a whole lot to me. I just hope that the rest of the team does to..." He then looked down at the table, seemingly interested in the patterns etched in the wood. I was half tempted to look into his mind... but it was obvious that he was sick... and was terrified. Just as I was about to finally ask him what was really making him like this, he got up from his seat and tried to turn around. It was then that he collapsed on the cold white tiles of the floor.
"Fox!" I cried as I ran to his side. I immediately checked his pulse, and relieved to find one, albeit a bit weak. I then dashed towards the sink, rinsing a cloth in cold water, which I put on his forehead. After a few seconds, he came to.
He looked disoriented for a bit, but regained his composure and sat up when he saw me. I looked down at him in concern and anger. I was sick of him not telling us what's going on with him! It was tearing me and the team apart.
"Fox... this is not normal! You shouldn't be fainting every single time you stand! You're not well!" I yelled at him, his face contorting into guilt and pain. I continued, "Fox... what's going on? Really... we all want, no, NEED to know."
He averted his gaze to the floor and sighed. After a moment, he finally looked back up at me and spoke, "Krystal... I have to tell you something... Do you promise not to think less of me?" I nodded. I guess he hadn't figured out by now that nothing would make me think less of him. "Krys... I am... really sick. I have a disease... that is very deadly."
A tight gasp rose from my throat. I didn't expect him to say that. But what really shocked me was what he said next.
"Krystal... I have AIDS."
I remember how fast my heart sank when I heard those four words. It just wasn't something you would expect to hear from HIM of all people. I mean, he's Fox McCloud! He's survived multiple encounters with Andross, bouts with strange alien insects, and even a full blown war within his own home... but now he was going to die because of a simple virus. One virus... is all it takes to kill him.
When I asked him how he contracted the disease, he reminded me of the stab wound he received a few missions ago. We figured it had been coated in a simple poison because of the amount of swelling that was around the wound. We gave him an antidote, thinking that it would solve the rest of our problems. Unfortunately... that knife was the carrier of the virus. That knife was the carrier of the demise of Fox McCloud.
Eventually, we had to tell everyone in the team about it. I would never forget that day. He was in a cold sweat. I could sense a large amount of worry and fear in his thought patterns. Much to his surprise, everyone was more relieved that the cause of his illness had a name, and could careless what that name was. I could tell he was very thankful for that.
"Krystal," I was startled out of my reverie by Fox's weak voice coming from the hospital cot on the right. I looked over in his direction and saw his pitiful form shivering against a cold only he could feel. I met his emaciated facade with my eyes.
"Yes, Fox?" I replied, my voice barely above a whisper.
He fumbled with his bed to get into a more comfortable position before he spoke, "Do you think I'm a failure?"
I looked into his eyes, noticing how much more duller they had become during his stay at the hospital. This wasn't the Fox I knew... this was just a shell of him. I then got up and walked over to him, pressing a hand on his, and replied, "No... No, Fox, you are not a failure. If anything, you are the greatest accomplishment in all of Corneria. You've been through a war, numerous battles, and even rescuing missions. You've saved millions of lives, Fox. They would all be dead if it weren't for you. You are a wonderful man, sick or not."
He looked me in the eyes once again. I could see the edge of a smirk crossing his pale muzzle. He shook his head, "I don't know how you do it, Krystal. You could make the most depressed man feel as though he had just won the lottery. It's a shame that you weren't around before, you could have gotten me through some rough times." He chuckled lightly.
"But you didn't need me. You survived by yourself," I told him as I gave off a light smile.
"Yeah... but this time I won't survive," he sighed, leaning his head back into the pillow, wincing if he moved a joint the wrong way.
I didn't know what to say to that. It was true, he wouldn't survive this. He was going to die soon, that was no lie. I looked back at him with sadness, but I had to say something to make him feel better.
"You may not live, but you will leave a wonderful legacy. A legacy that children will continue to follow generations from now. You have no secrets, you are a clean, pure soul. You will survive, Fox, because people will still listen to you long after your death."
He switched his gaze from the floor to the communicator on my wrist. His eyes brightened as if he had just gotten an idea.
"Could you call Wolf for me? I need to talk to him," he said to me. At first I was a bit shocked. I wondered why in the world he would want to see him. I looked at him questioningly, and seemed to take the hint, "I need to end this rivalry, I want to be friends with him... because I wouldn't feel right dying without at least saying good-bye to him."
I realized just how serious he was to do this, so I quickly flipped to Star Wolf's comlink channel. At first it just rang for a few times, but I soon caught a glimpse of the person in the screen. It wasn't the gray lupine, rather, it was the black panther with the scar on his right eye.
"Well well well, if this isn't a surprise. Hello, beautiful, what do you need?"
End of Part I
