The song "Trust Me" by The Fray does not belong to me in any way. And none of its lyrics belong to me, either.

Chapter Two: Trust Me

'Looking for something that I've never seen...'

"This is costing a lot of the budget, and with Sargasso under close watch, we're not going to be able to afford more ships for a while. But these ships far outrank anything Star Fox can afford..."

"It's beautiful!" Leon practically attached himself to the wing of one of three brand-new planes standing in the small asteroid's shipyard. All three of the planes were of different models, but they all held the red and grey color scheme of Star Wolf ships. The one that Leon had designated as "beautiful" was the smallest model in relation to the size of its body, with large, downward-swept wings.

Wolf tried to remain solemn, but he couldn't help but stare at his own new plane. It was built just like his beloved Wolfen, but it was much newer and was built to harness far greater power.

Panther liked the new model of his own ship as well. It was the largest of the three models, and the speed wasn't too great, so he needn't worry about losing control. In fact, the ship was virtually perfect for him. But it was the reason behind getting the new fighters that he still wasn't sure he understood. Wolf was obviously thinking again of Star Fox. "I still don't get why you won't simply admit that you admire Fox. There is no shame in emotion, Wolf."

Immediately, Wolf snarled and flexed his claws, spinning on his heel to face Panther. "I don't know what you're talking about!"

"My, a bit defensive, aren't we?"

"He's always like that," Leon remarked, not once looking away from his "beautiful" ship. "I think it could be beyond his biological ordinance to show emotion."

Panther glanced at the lizard. "You aren't in much of a position to talk, Leon. You are just as bad as he is."

Wolf, seizing the chance to direct the conversation away from himself, managed a laugh. "Leon's not emotionless. You saw the way he killed that guy who stepped on that flower back on Corneria..."

"That flower was pretty!"

Wolf shook his head, looking back to his new Wolfen. "Come on. Let's go." He moved forward, climbing into the cockpit easily and running his hands along the controls.

Leon and Panther both boarded their ships, as well. Leon took immediate interest in a series of colorful buttons along the edge of the dashboard. "What do these buttons do?"

Wolf glanced over at the green lizard, shrugging. "I don't have them..." He paused, starting the engine of the plane, and shifting it into gear. "You'll just have to experiment to find out..." Not a moment after the words left his mouth did he regret saying them. And, as if on cue, a sudden burst of light shot through the air, only inches in front of his ship. The beam of light blasted upward, hitting a nearby asteroid and destroying it on impact. Cautiously, Wolf and Panther both turned to look at their co-pilot.

Leon was sitting there, frozen in place, for a moment, finger still on top of the bright blue button. Then he broke into an overjoyed fit. "I... love this plane!"

Wolf waited for Leon to calm down, and then he took off, into the air, leading the way for his team.

Fox stared levelly at the wall as he heard the door open behind him. "Have they found him yet?"

Slippy frowned but nodded. "General Pepper's got a squadron that just called in and said that they think they spotted him passing by Aquas. They think he's heading for Zoness."

"Will they actually find him?"

Slippy shrugged. "You know Falco. They'll find him if he wants them to." He then stopped, watching Fox. "Are you alright, Fox?"

The vulpine captain just nodded before turning around. "Yeah. It's just... Krystal was telling me about this weird dream she had about Falco... She thinks he might be on drugs or something, Slippy. He's been really depressed. I'm worried about him."

"Falco can take care of himself... And they'll find him. Don't worry."

Wolf glared at his radar, hardly believing what he saw. How could Star Fox follow him all the way out here? It didn't seem plausible. But there it was. Unmistakably, one of Star Fox's Arwings. "Panther, can you tell which one it is?"

Panther shook his head. "Whoever it is hasn't noticed us yet. I think the Arwing's trying to enter Zoness' atmosphere."

Leon just stared at the blinking blue dot on his radar. "I'll take care of it."

"Are you ready?"

"Yeah. I've been waiting... How're we gonna get out?"

"Simple. We sneak out at curfew. When the guards are checking the rooms. There'll be less keeping watch."

"You sure, Leon?"

Falco landed the Arwing easily, and he looked around at the small city he'd landed by. He wasn't sure where he was, but that wasn't much of a surprise. There were so many islands on Zoness that it was easy to lose track of them all.

Wherever he was, it was dark. Definitely sometime in the middle of the night. He didn't really care. That made things less complicated.

The city wasn't the liveliest place. Very few streetlights were hanging around, but the neon lights of a nearby building grabbed Falco's attention. He strode into the place and looked around, pulling his jacket around him tighter to keep away the chill in the air.

He took a seat at the bar.

"Can I get you something?" The bartender stared at Falco, but the bird shook his head.

"Nah, I'm waiting on someone." It wasn't true. Or, at least, he hadn't meant for it to be true. But sometimes things are said that are never intended to be true. And then they come true, anyway.

"Hello."

Falco's head snapped around, just in time to see none other than Leon Powalski take the seat next to him.

'I found a friend, or should I say a foe?'

"What are you doing so far away from your friends, Falco?"

The avian narrowed his eyes, crossing his arms. "That any of your business?"

The corner of Leon's mouth twisted upward in an amused grin. "I'd like to think so, yes."

Falco just stood still for a moment, staring at the chameleon's deranged smile and trying to decide if Leon truly was insane, like so many people seemed to think. Who just pops up randomly in the strangest of places? "You know, Leon, when I first met you, I thought you were a pompous asshole. Now I've realized... You're just an annoying lunatic."

"Ah, and I always found you to be an irritating half-wit, Falco. But really, I've learned, you're just a brash simpleton."

"Moron."

"Dullard."

"Freak."

"Ribald."

Falco raised an eyebrow. Then he smirked. "Oh yeah? And what exactly does that mean?"

"Ribald. A person who frequently makes use of vulgar and offensive language."

"...Prick."

"Yes, just like that."

"What the hell are you doing here, Leon?"

The lizard clicked his tongue. "Tsk, I believe I was the first to ask a question. Which you skillfully avoided."

"Fine. What am I doing? I'm taking some time off. I was planning on getting some time to think, but I see that's not happening anytime soon, since you dropped in."

"So you don't think when around me?" Leon's skin faded to a paler green, but he smiled. "Well, that explains most of what you say, then. I didn't realize you were intelligent in the prescence of others."

There was a break between their words, then. It wasn't difficult to understand what Leon meant by his voice. There was always a jeering taunt lingering there at the end - but beneath that were the implications... Falco slammed his fist down on the counter, drawing the attention of everyone within twenty feet of him. "Damnit, Leon! What are you playing at?"

Leon, unlike most everyone else in the bar, didn't seem surprised or upset in the slightest about Falco's sudden action. "I wouldn't call it 'playing'."

One of the bartenders approached the two, impatiently. "Hey, you two! You're upsetting the customers, an' if you don' buy something in the next thirty seconds, I'm gonna have to ask you to leave."

Falco stood up instantly, and, without a word, headed out the door. He through the dimly lit streets, looking for no place in particular. Just walking. He was fuming, frustrated. And that feeling only intensified when he realized that Leon was following him. "Why won't you leave me alone?"

"Why do you act like you want me to?"

"It's not acting!"

"You're a horrible liar, Falco."

The blue avian stopped suddenly, turning to face the short reptile. "Would you cut it out?"

Leon's face no longer held that jeering expression, though. "You know, we weren't always enemies..."

'Said just a few things you should know...'

"Don't remind me."

The chameleon took a deep breath. "...Why?"

"Oh, I don't know. You're a serial murderer with a bounty on your head. You tell me."

"No, I meant why did you leave?"

Falco's eyelids slid together, covering his tired, blue eyes. "You asked that already."

'We don't want you to see...'

"I asked why you left your friends just a while ago. Back then, I'm talking about. Why did you leave me?"

'We come, and we go...'

"I don't believe in friendship. Hell, Leon, we were all made to survive. We were made to hunt and kill and use each other. That's what life is." Falco opened his eyes slowly to look at Leon. "If you didn't chase me down here to start a fight, then you're wasting your time. We're not friends. We never were." Leon's color faded until it was almost white. "I needed someone to help me survive on the streets. That's all. I left when I didn't need you."

'You need me less than I need you...'

Leon's unblinking eyes stayed on Falco, perfectly still. The words stung, though. And not in a good way... No... Not in a good way at all. "You're lying." Leon's voice was shaking as he spoke, but it was filled with conviction. "I know you're lying."

'Take it from me... We don't give sympathy.'

"What does it matter? That was nearly fifteen years ago. I was a kid, for cryin' out loud! We dropped out of school and had nowhere else to go, right? That's all I needed you for. Trust me, Leon. I don't care."

'You can trust me: trust nobody.'

"I don't believe you." Leon shook his head. "You might be able to get everyone else to believe it. And you might even believe it yourself. But not me. You can't fool me, Falco. I know you."

"What are you talking about?"

"You didn't leave Corneria back then because you didn't need me. You didn't leave because you didn't care. You left because you were afraid. You were always afraid!"

"Falco, watch where you're going..."

"I don't want to leave, Leon..."

"You don't have to. You can stay."

"No, I want to. I just... I changed my mind. I don't want to go... My mom's still out there..."

"She can't get to you... There's nothing to fear from her..."

"But... it's not just her I'm afraid of..."

"What the hell are you going on about?" Falco glared, ready to fight.

"Why were you afraid of me?"

"I definitely don't remember ever being afraid of you. But if I was, then I guess it was because I'm just a pretty good judge of character."

'But I said, you and me, we don't have honesty...'

"I still remember. You do, too, don't you? We're both alike. We live in those memories..."

"Living in memories? That's called dementia. You're insane, Leon!"

"We all are. I'm just not afraid to accept it."

'The things we don't want to speak...'

It was only then that Falco heard all of the footsteps. Several creatures, heading in their direction.

'I'll try to get out, but I never will.'

"Leon Powalski. You are under arrest for treason. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in the court of law." There were at least a dozen officers. They all had their eyes on Leon, and it took three of them to handcuff him. Not because he put a struggle. But everyone was simply afraid to touch him. Leon's eyes didn't leave Falco as they dragged the chameleon away.

'When you're older, you will understand.'

A single officer approached Falco, then. And told him that he needed to return to Corneria with them. Too tired and confused to argue, for once, Falco just followed the officer.

'And then again maybe you won't...'

'It's true, we are... We are destined to fail...'