"I think it's a great idea," Fox said that evening at dinner.
Gwen, who was leaning against the counter, gazed at him. "Really?"
Peppy smiled. "But really, girls, you've done enough for us already."
Monica, for the first time in a week, smiled and looked at Gwen. "I still can't believe actually want to come!"
"We still need to get the okay from our parents," Gwen said. "I have no idea what mine is going to say."
"When are you all gonna start heading over there?" Falco asked before taking a sip of water.
"As soon as Lucy hurries up," replied Gwen. She glanced at her watch before hollering. "Lucy! It shouldn't take that long to get dressed!"
"I'm coming!" Lucy called back as she entered the kitchen.
Gwen stared at her. "What are you wearing?"
Lucy looked down at herself. She was wearing a lacy summer dress covered in blue flowers, along with white high heels. Looking back up at her friend she said, "I need to make a good impression with my mom. She made me this dress last year."
Fox asked her with a mouth full of meat, "Why do you need to impress your mother?"
Lucy said flatly, "My mother is a little difficult. She's never approved of anything I've done. She always tries to run my life like I'm still a little kid. So, of course, one of the many things she dislikes about me is my wardrobe, and I wanna try to keep her in a good mood."
Fox smiled. "She's a protective mom."
Lucy shook her head. "She's a whiney control freak."
Gwen rolled her eyes. "Sound familiar, Lucille?"
Lucy simpered before leading the way out the door. "Have a nice evening, everybody."
Lucy's family lived northeast of the girls' cabin. Half a mile northwest was where Gwen's family lived.
The Ferns family owned a small cottage complete with two bedrooms – one for the parents Riley and Winnie and one for her two sisters, 10-year-old Zoë and 5-year-old Delaney. When she still lived at the house, Lucy shared the room with her sisters.
Smoke was billowing out of the chimney when Lucy arrived. After knocking on the creaky front door, Lucy waited until her father answered.
"Lulu!" he cried happily, embracing his eldest daughter in a hug. "I swear you've grown an inch since I last saw you."
Lucy laughed. "You saw me just the other day, Dad."
"How's your washing machine working?"
"Not at all," she replied, walking into her parents' house.
"Lucy!" came the high-pitched voice of Zoë as she bound out of her bedroom.
"Loozy!" came another voice as Delaney followed her sister to the front door.
Lucy kindly greeted her little sisters before saying to Riley, "Where is Mom?"
"Getting dinner," Riley said. "She's making a potato casserole. Are you staying?"
"Yes, I've got stuff to tell you," Lucy said.
"We heard about the aliens you were keeping," Zoë said. "And the fight you had with those girls."
Lucy frowned. "How uh…did you know about the 'aliens'?"
"It was in The Daily Flyer," Zoë relied. The 10-year-old went to the coffee table in the living room and retrieved a blue piece of paper to hand to Lucy.
Tesserone did not produce a paper. Announcements were published in a flyer that became The Daily Flyer. Lucy found this edition's talked solely about the attack and the "aliens" that were living with her friends.
"Your mother isn't very happy," Riley informed her.
"What else is new…"
"Is that what you came to talk to us about?" Riley gestured toward the paper.
"Sorta," Lucy handed the paper back to Zoë.
Riley seated himself on the couch. "You're wearing the dress Mom got you. This must be serious."
"Maybe," Lucy sighed, joining her dad on the couch.
"Mommy's coming!" cried Delaney in delight, peaking through the window by the front door by standing on a chair.
"Delaney, sweetie, off the chair, please," Riley instructed. When she did, Riley addressed his middle child, "Zoë, why don't you and Delaney go play with your dollhouse?"
Zoë frowned. "Delaney broke it last week, remember?"
"Then why don't you go play with just the dolls?"
"Delaney took all of their heads off."
"Then go play outside," Riley said through gritted teetch.
Zoë looked at her father suspiciously. "Oh, I get it! You want me and Delaney out of here because Lucy is going to talk about an R-rated topic…like she's going to elope! Or she's on drugs! Or maybe she's gonna tell you about the fight with all the gory details and –"
"Thank you, Zoë, that's enough," Riley said flatly. "Take your sister and get out."
Zoë, pouting, beckoned for Delaney to follow her and stomped outside, passing their mother Winnie as she walked through the front door with an arm full of groceries.
Winnie eyed at Lucy. "Hello, Lucille. Enjoying your new guests?"
Lucy said brightly, "Quite, thank you."
Winnnie disappeared into the kitchen to deposit her groceries. When she returned to the living room she sat upright in an armchair facing her daughter. "I trust your sisters showed you The Daily Flyer already?"
"Mmhm."
Winnie shook her head disapprovingly. "I ran into Debby's poor mother Alice at the marketplace. She is so depressed, it's heartbreaking. Look at what those aliens brought to Tesserone!"
Lucy cried, "It wasn't their fault! They didn't even know we existed!"
Winnie rolled her eyes. "Oh, sure, Lucy! Like we should believe that!"
"I don't have a reason not to!" declared Lucy.
"Well, of course you don't," Winnie said irritably. "Look at what living away from home has done to you! It's poisoning your mind!"
The comebacks went back and forth.
"It is not poisoning my mind!"
"It's certainly effected your judgment!"
"Well, pardon me for helping those in need of help!"
"They were insidious to your life at the very beginning when they first crashed here!"
"They're not insidious, they're magnanimous!"
"Ugh, how could you even think of using that word?"
"Maybe I'm just a nicer person!"
"You're a little low on the food chain to be mouthing off at me, young lady!"
"I don't exactly think you have any room to talk either, Mommy Dearest!"
"ENOUGH!" bellowed Riley.
Winnie and Lucy gazed at him.
"Can we have one meeting where you two don't end up arguing?" Riley said. To Lucy he said, "I'm disappointed in you for not telling us about these guys, and for the fight. But I know you were only trying to help them, and that you were defending them during this fight. So, I'm glad you took the liberty in being gracious enough to invite them in your home."
When Lucy did not reply, he said, "However, I know you didn't come over here just to bicker with your mother. You can do that easily by phone. So, what did you come here to tell us?"
Lucy took a deep breath. "The Star Fox Team is currently working on their transmission thingies so that their planet can locate them and come pick them up. Monica, Gwen and I are going to make a deal with Baron Harte: if we go with the team to help with the war effort, then he can drop all of the charges for fighting with Kylie and Mindy. This way, we can pay off our debt."
Winnie stared at her. "You're crazy! Absolutely insane! You'll be killed! No, you can't go! My answer is no!"
Winnie got up to leave. Lucy said to her, "I'm not asking you if it's okay for me to go. I am saying that I am going."
Lucy got up and headed toward the door.
"This is absurd!" Winnie cried. "Riley, do something!"
Lucy looked back at her father with a frown.
Riley cocked his head at her. To his wife he said, "I think her mind is made up. I wish her good luck and to be careful."
Lucy smiled, barely. "Thanks, Dad."
Without even a glimpse at her mother she left.
"This is ludicrous!" shrieked Winnie before storming to the kitchen.
