The young vulpine gazed out at the clouds as the great fox descended onto Corneria. A week had flown by since they left Fortuna and the team was eager to be back on their home land. No one was more excited than James, due to the fact he hasn't seen his home planet in three years.

"Never get tired of the view, do you?" Fox's god father, Peppy, asked.

Fox felt the air enter his lungs as a sigh took over him. "Nope."

"Seems like it's snowing." Peppy pointed out.

It was around the winter holidays on Corneria, snow blanketed the gentle planet like mother's hug. The Yule season usually depresses Fox, due to the fact father supposedly 'died' just a few days before Yule. Decorations still hang inside James's abandoned house, gifts still left unwrapped and a tree still stood. Fox never found the strength in himself to take it all down let alone enter the house.

"Yeah." Young McCloud answered. "Snowing."

"What, don't like snow anymore?" His father asked as he came up from behind, embracing his kit into a hug. Fox missed these hugs.

"I don't know, Yule hasn't really been my thing."

James rose an eyebrow. "Really? But you used to love Yule, you'd go all out each year."

As Fox stayed silent Peppy looked over to his friend. "Well, you 'died' around Yule, so ever since he stopped celebrating it."

"Oh, well I'm not dead and you should start celebrating again." James explained as he ruffled his sons fur and ears. "Because ill be making you."

Fox couldn't hold back the large smile growing across his face as he shooed his father away. "Okay, okay but you gotta stop messing with my fur."

"Deal." James nodded.

Soon after they landed, Fox was the first one to exit into the military base. His father had started the team as a mercenary group, but Fox brought it back and agreed with Pepper that they would technically be part of the cornarian military. So, thus a base was built. This made it easier on both Pepper and Star Fox.

"Welcome home star fox!" General pepper greeted as he spotted Fox.

Fox only nodded and gave him a wave before exiting out into the frigid air of the planet. Behind him the rest of the team came. James, finally setting his eyes on his city once again.

"Ah. I was afraid my home would have changed." James spoke, stopping next to his son. "I just can't wait to get home and spend time with you."

Fox didn't know how to tell him this; to tell him he left his father's house untouched. "Dad, I don't live there anymore."

James looked over at his kit. "Well, you are grown I wouldn't expect you to."

"Dad come to my place. Your old house is untouched, no water, power; you'll be more comfortable in a place with power."

Slowly James nodded, feeling a bit bumed by the fact going home wasn't an option. "Alright, but tomorrow I wanna at least go get my power back on."

Fox walked up to an apartment door, fiddling his keys. All his father could do was frown. All that money his son made and yet he still lived in an apartment. Opening the door, Fox let them inside. It was small, dark and a bit cold. A bit messy but not horribly, and little furniture filled the place. It was obvious his son rarely ever came home. What warmed James though, was the sight of countless photos of him and Fox. The covered the walls, along with recent photos of his life without him. Fox seemed to smile more in photos taken before James's disappearance. Any picture taken after was like a hollow shell.

"There is a spare bedroom, made it for when a team mate needed to crash." Fox explained as he threw his keys down on the table.

"Well, it's that time of year Fox, lets put up your tree."

A shaky sigh left his sons chest. "I don't have one."

"Oh. Then, we can go get one tomorrow."

Sitting down all fox did was nod in response. Worry filled his father; Fox wasn't acting like the kit he knew. Sitting next to him James drug him into a cuddling session. Wrapping his around him and letting his paw find his way to scratch his ears.

"Alright Fox talk to me I know something is wrong."

His son stayed quiet for a moment. "I guess this still all feels like a dream. After you vanished I changed and I'm not the same fox anymore. I guess I'm just afraid you'll find the new me too hard to love and leave."

These words send daggers into James. "Fox McCloud, don't you EVER say that again!" The older vulpine scolded as he forced his son to look up at him; their eyes locked. "I could never stop loving you! Fox, you are the most important thing to me in all of existence and no amount of you 'changing' is going to change that. So, don't you ever let me hear that you think im going to stop loving you because I love you more and more each day."

Fox was frozen, it's been some time since he pushed his father's buttons that bad and it never really happened often. "Sorry." Was all he could say in reply.

"Fox, I am back now okay? No more being sad, no more being alone and no more skipping important holidays."

A quick smirk made its way on Fox's muzzle if only for a brief moment. "Dad, how'd you know you were in love with mom?"

This question shocked the old fox. "h-how... well I don't know. It just kinda happened; I first saw her in a café back when I was only seventeen and I knew that she was the women I was going to marry. Don't ask me how I knew, I just sorta... knew?"

Fox nodded. "I think I know that feeling now."

Raising both eyebrows in surprise his father glanced over to him again. "Oh? Fox is there a girl?"

The young fox felt his heart start to race rapidly. How could he tell him? That him, son of James McCloud and hero of Cortainia was... 'gay'?

"Sorta?"

"Well, who is she?"

Fox tried to take a breath but on faltered; panicking he began breathing rapidly in an anxious meltdown. "Well, about th-that."

James didn't like the nervous tone in his son's voice. "Fox, you can tell me anything."

"He."

Blinking, James took a moment to process that word. "What?"

"H-he." Fox repeated. "Not her, but a h-he."

A long silence crashed over them, so tense you could cut it and use it as butter.

"I knew... I knew it. Dad I'm sorry, I'm not supposed to be like that. It's sick." Fox scolded himself, burying his face into his paws.

"Fox." James spoke, gently taking fox's paws from his face. "Baby, I don't care that you're gay. Did I expect it? Well, no but that's okay. It's not 'sick', Fox, it's normal."

Slowly, his sons emerald eyes gazed up into his sunglasses. Taking them off James locked eyes with him; he only took them off around Fox and Vixy. "It's okay Fox, nothing you say will make me not love you. You have my full support."

A smile grew across Fox's muzzle. "That's a relief!"

James returned the smile. "So, who is he?"

Now this part was the hard part, telling his father that the man he fell for... was Flaco, whom was once a criminal.

"OH, well... you know Falco?"

James shook his head. "Oh no, not that loud mouth."

Fox's smile melted into a frown. "What's wrong with him?"

"Fox, I just got a sick feeling about Falco. I like him, but I wont trust him with my baby. Over my dead body."

"Dad, he's not the way he seems. When we are alone he's a different person and I know I... well I..."

James saw the confused sorrow in his son's eyes. "Love him?"

Fox nodded feeling his chest heave at the thought of not winning him over.

"Alright, but he isn't to lay a feather on you until he gains my trust."

Fox looked back up at his father. "Okay, I'll take that."