Here it is, the final chapter. Thanks goes to my mom, who is without a doubt the coolest woman ever.

'Food coma' is based on a true story. Jo, you're awesome. xD

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We were all taken by surprise, but Stork was the first to recover.

"Yes!" he exclaimed joyfully, hurrying to a control panel and flipping some switches. With a final pull of a lever the metal walls went up, leaving us free to traverse the Condor as we pleased.

Cheers and rejoicing ensued.

"FOOD!" Finn and Junko shouted in unison, tripping over themselves in their mad dash to the kitchen. Aerrow and I stayed for a moment longer.

"How long 'til the Condor is up and running?" Aerrow asked.

Stork stroked the controls, an almost blissful look on his face. "Just a little while longer. The engines need a little time to warm up before use."

"Awesome," I grinned. "I can't wait to get out of here."

"Oh, yeah." the merb agreed, shuddering with relief. I could only imagine what kind of possible avoided horrible fates were running through his mind.

I turned towards the hallway to the kitchen. "Let's go join those two for breakfast while there's still something left." I suggested, only half-joking. I knew how huge their appetites were.

Aerrow smiled and nodded, following after me, but Stork stayed put, monitoring the now functioning gauges. I really didn't want to argue with anyone anymore today, so I made a mental note to bring him back something in a bit.

When we entered the kitchen, an unexpected scene greeted us. Pots and pans, dishes and silverware scattered the floor and tables, probably from when the monster shook the Condor the day before. Junko stood at open cabinets, cramming down a bag of chips. Finn almost shut himself in the 'fridge. But that's not what surprised us. What was odd was that Radarr was fast asleep on the floor, surrounded by wrappers, hands resting on his bulging stomach...and half a piece of pizza hung out of his mouth.

"When did Radarr get in here?" I wondered aloud.

"I don't know," Aerrow laughed, "but it sure looks like he's enjoying that food coma."

Junko and Finn turned and looked at the blue furball as if seeing him for the first time.

"Huh?"

"Ugh! Lucky!" Finn whined past a mouthful of...something. I really didn't wanna know at this point. "Why couldn't I be trapped with him?"

Aerrow kneeled down next to his dozing copilot and shook him lightly. "Hey, buddy, wake up. How'd you get in here?"

Radarr woke drowsily and pointed lazily to the ceiling. We looked up and found that the air duct that ran through the kitchen was dented and bent open enough to allow our little friend to squeeze past. Fortunately, it could easily be repaired by shoving it back into place and banging the dents back in place a la Junko.

Finn's mouth dropped open, revealing what he was currently in the process of chewing. "So, we coulda gotten in here the whole time just by crawling through the ductwork?" he asked in disbelief. Radarr just sighed happily and started making wrapper-angels. "Aw, man!"

While the marksman was distracted, I yanked open the refrigerator door, looking past him to see what was left. I was glad that our appliances ran on a separate crystal power source from the main system, so nothing melted or spoiled overnight. Knowing Finn, he would've eaten anything anyway and Stork starts freaking out if one of us gets sick. I liked to avoid sending the merb into hysterics whenever possible.

Quickly making a decision, I grabbed a cup of yogurt before the blonde could say anything. Then, I noticed the gallon of milk in Finn's hand. "I hope you're not gonna drink right out of that." I warned.

"Pff, I still don't see why it's a big deal," he rolled his eyes, uncapping the jug. "just don't tell Stork and it'll be fine."

"There's a reason he hates it when you do that. He doesn't want your germs or your backwash, and neither do I."

"Hey, I don't backwash!" Finn protested and pulled back as I made a grab for the milk. "Look, I'm wounded! I think I deserve to drink out of the bottle at least once."

I was about to mention that being hurt in a battle you didn't even fight in doesn't exactly earn you the right to have extra privileges, but I decided to just let it go. He could have it, it was only half full anyway, and there were a few more in the storage room 'fridge. But, I wouldn't let him get away with it for free.

"Okay, fine," I told him. "but you owe me."

"Yes!" Finn pumped his fist in victory, not thinking to ask why he owed me for something bought with the squadron's money. Sometimes, I take him for granted.

When I finished scrounging for the rest of my breakfast and something for Stork, I returned to where we had left him. I offered him the food, and he accepted with a nod of thanks before returning his attention to the gauges.

"It's been an...interesting last twenty-four hours." he commented.

"Yeah." I agreed. Then I smiled. "Can you believe that Radarr made his way to the kitchen through the air ducts?"

Stork twitched. "He did?"

"Yep. If we had thought of doing it, one of us could've made it to the hangar and left to get help."

"I'd forgotten about those," He twitched again. "I'll have to rewire things so the security system locks them up, too."

"Why? If this ever happens again---"

"It won't, as long as no one interferes with its maintenance again. If we could go through the ductwork, an intruder could just as easily do the same."

I thought going that far was a little much, but I guessed it was better safe than sorry. Besides, if Stork thought it was necessary, it would probably come in handy for something sooner or later.

"So, what are we gonna do about the window?" I asked after a moment, suddenly wondering how the big hole would affect things. We could probably get in the air alright, but it would be difficult to get anywhere fast.

"Ah, right. I was going to ask if you would plot our next course to a repair station Terra."

I nodded. "I'll get on it." Turning to go get my maps, I heard a shout from the kitchen that sounded like 'food fight'. "On second thought...maybe I'll go make sure the guys aren't destroying anything."

"Uh, yeah, that would be a good thing."

I went to head towards the kitchen, when something caught my eye. Wait, let me rephrase that. Something terrifying caught my eye. Outside. I couldn't breathe a word. Stork caught the look of horror on my face and spun around quickly.

Behind us, the guys tumbled into the room, armed with whatever food was left from the kitchen, laughing. "Duh, I aim better than you!" Finn shouted, apparently planning to hit one of us with a handful of goop that looked kinda like old pudding, some of which was tangled up in his mess of hair. Things were instantly quiet when they realized what we were staring at.

That monster from yesterday was back. And it had friends.

The silence was broken when the creatures dashed toward us, their voices mingling together in a deafening scream. We sprang into action, scrambling for our weapons and leaving Stork at the controls, willing the gauges to show that the engines were fully operational.

I dashed from one room to the next. Where had I left my staff? In my panic, I almost forgot that I had left it in my room.

BANG!

The monsters made impact with the ship and I was tossed to the floor, hearing the sickening sounds of shattering glass and bending metal. Picking myself up, I hurried to my room, using the wall as a support against the shaky onslaught. When I reached my destination, I quickly retrieved my weapon and headed back, driven by the need to stand with my friends.

I burst into the room, activating the striker crystal in my staff. Stork was moving from one panel of controls to another, setting off one defense mechanism after another, eyes wide and releasing a panicked cry or shout after each impact a monster made to the Condor. Finn struggled with his crossbow, his shoulder obviously giving him trouble. Aerrow and Junko were in the thick of it, punching and slashing, managing to keep the creatures from totally entering the ship. Radarr attacked a monster's arm, ripping out fur.

The screams seemed to grow louder, if that possible. Jumping into the fray, I whacked one of the giant hands coming after a distracted Finn, who was busy reloading. It recoiled from the shock and I earned a scared, grateful look from the marksman. Another arm reached blindly past the beasts closest to us, those that Aerrow and Junko were taking care of, and fell upon a panel of buttons and switches.

The disco ball came down, the Condor's horn went off, and the radio turned on, and we found ourselves fighting to the calming sounds of Airborne, one of the biggest bands in the atmos. Despite the situation, I laughed, and somehow I started gaining confidence. The guys followed suit, though Stork's sounded more like a nervous chuckle.

I struck the front of one of the monsters, helping Aerrow to keep it from getting any closer. I heard a thud and Junko's grunt of exertion to my left, and turned for a moment to see that he had just stopped one from grabbing at me.

"Thanks!" I called over the screams. "Behind you!"

He swiveled around and delivered a hefty punch to an incoming attacker.

This went on for a few long minutes. Stork used one of his contraptions to keep Aerrow safe, Finn fired a shot to protect Junko, I caught Radarr when he was flung from the beast he had latched himself to, and so on.

"Come on!" Stork shouted worriedly at an indicator. "Just a little---yes!" The Condor's engine's roared to life, and he leapt to the controls.

"Keep going!" Aerrow instructed. "We'll be outta here soon, we've got to push these things off the ship!"

Our pilot struggled at the controls and the ship slowly lifted off the ground. We cheered him on, continuing our battle.

A few mighty blows from Junko later, the beasts fell back, jumping heavily to the ground. Stork pulled up hard, leaving them, and the Terra, in the dust.

OoO

I sat topside, relaxing for a moment and enjoying the breeze as it whipped through my hair.

After we cleaned up the glass mess, I had gone to assess the damage the guys had done to the kitchen. Summoning my choresmistress powers, I deemed Finn and Radarr responsible for cleaning up, with Junko and Aerrow as helpers. Finn had refused to take the bigger part, of course, but I reminded him that not too long before he indebted himself to me. Suddenly, half a gallon of milk wasn't worth it. But, it was too late.

I would've helped them with their task, but I had a course to plot out. When I finished and presented it to Stork, I had come up here to think.

"Hey, Piper."

I looked up to see Aerrow approaching me. "Hey," I returned, sitting back and propping myself up with my arms. "what's up?"

"We're finished with cleaning up, and since you're the best cook, we wanted to know if you'd come down and make lunch for us."

"Even Finn?" I smiled. "The way he was looking at me earlier, it seemed he would believe I'd poison him if I fed him anything."

"Well, actually, he did mention something about food poisoning," Aerrow laughed. "and Stork really didn't help things by listing off the different kinds that could possibly be cooked up in our kitchen, but I'm pretty sure he just wanted to mess with him."

"So, everything's back to normal again?"

"Pretty much." When I didn't get up, he came and sat down next to me. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I'll be down in a minute. I've just been thinking about...everything."

"Ah."

After a pause, I spoke up again. "Y'know, I learned a lot about everyone yesterday and this morning, but not much about you. What was your life like before we met?"

Aerrow leaned back. "I lived with my grandparents, that is, my dad's parents, on Atmosia for as long as I can remember."

"What happened to your parents? I mean, I know your dad was the skyknight of the Storm Hawks before you, so...but, uh, what about your mom?"

"She was in the squadron, too. Grandma told me that she was always babysitting me while they were out on missions. They were killed when I was only a few years old, so I don't remember them, but...sometimes I really wish I could, y'know? I mean, Grandma and Grandpa did a great job, but I always wondered what it would've been like if they had lived."

I could understand that. "What were your grandparents like?"

"They were pretty awesome. Grandma was definitely the motherly type, but she was cool enough to know not to embarrass me. Grandpa was the skyknight of the Storm Hawks before my dad, since that privilege is in the bloodline. He still had the passion for being part of a squadron, even though he retired to let Dad take over, and he taught me a lot, about flying and fighting and everything. They were both the closest to parents you could get. I'm really lucky to have had them."

He was lucky. I was happy that he didn't have a ton of issues, but at the same time I was really jealous. Out of all of us, he had the most perfect life. I guess it shouldn't have come as a surprise, though. He's pretty perfect at everything else he does. Yeah, we've had a few moments, but there are a lot of times when it's hard to really connect with him. I try hard and do my best to be something that he pulls off easily every day, and it can get kinda discouraging. But, I know he doesn't mean to make me feel that way and I'll probably never tell him that I do. He's a great friend, and that's all I can ask of him.

Listen to me, I sound like a selfish mess. I shouldn't be that envious just because I have a few insecurities. That's another thing I don't like about myself.

"I'm lucky to have you guys, too." Aerrow added. "I'm glad I have you to back me up."

"We'll always be here for you." I replied, hiding behind my smile.

Junko came bounding up, grinning sheepishly. "Hey, um, Stork sent me to ask if you two were gonna be out here all day. If you don't wanna make lunch, Finn's gonna try using the stove, and Stork's afraid he'll end up burning everything but food."

"I'd better come then, huh? I'll be down soon, I just need a minute."

"Okay." Junko nodded.

"I'll go, too." Aerrow looked at me. "Is there anything you want me to start for you?"

"You could start boiling water in a big pot," I told him. "just make sure you keep Finn away from it."

"Got it." The skyknight beamed, then stood up and followed Junko downstairs.

Gazing out into the clouds, I thought over what Aerrow had said. We were all really lucky to be together. We may not all get along at times, but we don't always have to. Our differences keep us at odds with each other, but they also strengthen us as a team and as friends.

And you know what? It doesn't matter where we came from, or what kind of past we had. I'll admit it, I strive to be better to prove myself. I joined the Storm Hawks because I didn't want to be a nothing or a nobody. I wanted to feel like I had some worth, and being able to show off my knowledge of crystals in a squadron seemed like the best way for me to go. I wonder now if that's kinda why Finn joined, if not for the adventure.

But now, I knew that I didn't need to prove anything to anyone. My friends are still my friends even when I totally mess up or lose my patience, though some may not come right out and say it, and that's really all I need. In fact, they were starting to feel more like family.

Family. That's what we are, and I didn't realize it until just then. I allowed a warm feeling to enter me, lifting my heart. It wasn't luck. Somehow, we were meant to be together.

How did a day stuck in the Condor do all this? I didn't know, but I was glad it did.

I hoisted myself up, ready to join everyone downstairs. We would have a lot ahead of us in the future, good and bad, but we'd get through it all as a team.

Together.

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an then tehy all diyed an piper went emo an cut herself an killd herslef a week l8r. ---Sorry, the ending was cheesy, and I couldn't help it. It's like finishing a marathon, with the feeling of victory and accomplishment, then stabbing yourself in the foot. Whoo!

Now that this fanfic is over, I'll be reading and reviewing other stories a lot more often. Also, I must direct you towards Ambrel, .PhaerynTao., Xibrei and other cool people's stuff. If you haven't read their 'fics yet, GO. NOW.

Writing this has been awesome. Before this, I didn't really have a whole lot of fanfic writing experience, but I think I'll continue writing. If you'd like to author-alert me, I'll be doing at least a few more oneshots. I have plans for four of them, and they'll be uploaded randomly. No one shall know when I'll strike next...

Thanks to everyone who has read and reviewed. You guys are amazing. Hugs for all!