Chapter Three: Decisions Made in Dreams

"…And that's the way it is," Peppy finished, watching his audience closely. He could still see disbelief on the three faces before him, and he sighed inwardly. Well, he couldn't blame them if it sounded a little strange.

"So you came looking for us?" Fox said slowly, making it more of a statement than a question. When the rabbit nodded, he continued, "And you want us to help out?"

"Yes, Fox."

"Excuse me, but just how to you plan to have us help?" Falco asked, looking at the rabbit with a hint of doubt in her eyes. Peppy gazed back at her with a slight smile.

"This from the girl who brought down a Venomian cruiser with a bazooka just a few hours before," he mused under his breath.

Aloud, however, he said, "As I explained before, we have a new unit of Arwings now. But we only have a very limited amount of pilots skilled enough to fly the space fighters. We have only five or so pilots who are able to control the things. One of those pilots is a raw recruit who has only flown in battle a few times, while many of the others serve other duties aside from flying Arwings. One of our best pilots even has command of an entirely separate unit, and is unable to always serve the team."

Peppy Hare raised his head and looked each of the three in the eyes separately before continuing, "General Pepper is desperate for new recruits for the team. I believe that, if you were to return with me, he would be willing to allow you to test-fly the Arwings in the hope that you would prove suitable pilots."

He let the offer hang in the air, watching the trio intently, hoping to gauge their reactions.

An Arwing pilot…just like my father…

Fox shook his head slowly, scarcely believing the chance fate had offered him. Staring blankly at Peppy, he could see the rabbit's sincerity in making the offer. For a moment, he considered accepting instantly, reaching over the table and shaking the rabbit's hand while thanking him over and over again.

Then he glanced over at his friends, sitting on either side of him. Falco's expression was unreadable, save for a gleam of…fear? Excitement? Shock? Fox had always had difficulty reading the female avian's emotions, never being able to figure out exactly what she thought at any given point.

With Slippy, however, it was an entirely different story. The amphibian mechanic's eyes were wide with surprise, and Fox could clearly see the struggle not to show any doubts or fears in the navy blue pupils.

Fox shifted his gaze back at Peppy, and noticed something else. The rabbit seemed to be genuinely happy with the notion that the trio might be chosen to fly, yet something else was hidden in that eager expression: an old memory, still tormenting the veteran after nearly six years.

Hadn't Peppy been there when my father…

The loss of his best friend still showed in the old eyes, like a shadow drawn forever over the rabbit's mind, never fading with the years. Despite himself, the vulpine wondered if he would ever end up with the same look is his own eyes, if one of his friends…

With that thought, Fox made his decision.

"I'm sorry, Peppy," he apologized, "but I can't take you up on your offer. My friends mean too much to me to risk their lives trying to fly an Arwing against Andross."

Peppy wilted at his words, and Fox kicked himself inwardly.

Wrong choice of words, he berated himself. He tried to apologize with his eyes, begging the old veteran to understand what he meant.

"Besides, I'm not so certain that I want to get tied into the military," he stammered in a lame attempt to repair the damage he had inadvertently done. "I mean, we've taken care of ourselves for years, and to suddenly be following orders…it'd be too major a change for us. So…I really don't think that…"

"I understand," Peppy interrupted, raising a hand to quiet the vulpine. Avoiding the gaze of the three youngsters, he got to his feet and murmured, "If that's your decision, then I'll leave you in peace. Good luck," and he turned to leave.

"Peppy, wait!" Fox called without knowing why. When the veteran turned to look at him, he stammered, "You…you'll never make it on foot. I'll have Slippy rig up some sort of transportation for you…"

"It's quite alright," Peppy replied, turning to leave again. But the young vulpine was on his feet and at his side in an instant, holding onto the rabbit's paw.

"Please…" the young McCloud insisted, staring into the veteran's face. "It's the most I can do…"

Unable to think up a good enough excuse to refuse him, Peppy simply nodded in silence. Fox smiled up at him, a little sadly.

"Stay here for the night," he offered, gesturing to another room. "I'll make some sort of bed for you to use. If you want, you might be able to leave in the morning…"

Slippy sighed and trudged toward his workshop as Fox continued talking. He knew exactly what this was leading up to. Looked like he'd be pulling another all-nighter tonight…

Falco, meanwhile, remained silent, watching as Fox attempted to make amends with Peppy by apologizing over and over again. Blue-green eyes narrowed ever so slightly, thoughtfully.

* * *

Not far away from the cave, another Venomian cruiser glided slowly over the ground, flanked by squadrons of fighters. Its captain gazed out over the horizon, running over recant events in his mind. Earlier that day, he had received a transmission from one of his fellow ships. The captain was bragging that he had managed to intercept a spacecraft carrying Peppy Hare, one of Andross's most wanted enemies, and had taken the rabbit captive. His Excellency had been thrilled to receive the news that the annoying wingman had been captured, and had ordered that he brought to him at once.

But something had gone wrong. The cruiser carrying the captive suddenly sent out a distress signal then was gone before anyone knew what happened. A few hours later, one of the squadrons sent out to investigate brought back word that the ship had been found completely wreaked. Teams sent into the crashed ship confirmed that no survivors had been found, and there was no trace of the rabbit. Andross had gone into a furor, killing both the unfortunate who had brought him the message as well as several soldiers standing by before sending out the out to find the former wingman.

The scaly captain settled back into his seat, a solemn grin twisting his grimy lips. He had no doubts that his cruiser would find the missing rabbit. After all, if they didn't, Andross would personally skin each of them alive for their failure. Not a pleasant thought, but enough to keep him and his crew motivated during the slow, fruitless search.

* * *

Peppy Hare lay on his back, staring up at the ceiling. The makeshift bed Fox had hastily rigged up for him was comfortable enough, yet the veteran knew he wouldn't be getting much sleep that night. His mind was too full of worries, doubts, and self-incriminations to relax. Images from the past whirled through his mind, each carrying a different set of emotions with it.

His team, the Starfox team, standing at attention for a military photograph, James McCloud standing with his two wingmen, not trying to hog the shot at all. The vulpine had his arms hooked over the shoulders of his companions, Peppy and Pigma, in an almost paternal matter, holding them close, and was flashing a peace sign at the unseen camera. A bright, triumphant smile lit up McCloud's face, and Peppy could almost hear his friend's laughter echoing around him.

A photo of James with his wife, the beautiful Vixy, with an infant Fox snuggled in her slender arms. He was holding her tightly, arms wrapped gently yet firmly around her waist, grinning down at his young son.

Another family shot, this one of Peppy himself standing with his own wife: Abby… And standing in front of them in this picture was a young rabbit in a pink sundress, a Band-Aid covering a scrape on her tan elbow. A rose-colored ribbon hung half untied in the soft fur on her tiny head, allowing her sandy bangs to blow free in the spring breeze.

The image of the small bunny smiling up at the couple behind her brought a lump to Peppy's throat, and he attempted to force it out of his mind. Groaning, he rolled over and covered his face with his arm, wiping away the tears that sprung to his pale red eyes.

* * *

In his room, Fox sat on the edge of his bed, gazing longingly at the picture of James McCloud clutched in his paws.

Father… did I make the right choice…? I don't want to endanger my friends or anything, but… What about the people of Corneria…?

Everything seemed to be happening so quickly. Until lately, he had never really considered the fact that the city of Corneria had survived the Venomian assault. To his childish eyes, the chaos he had glimpsed seemed a sure sign of the end of everything.

I figured this was game over. I thought Moo had destroyed everything, and Falco, Slippy and I were the only ones left…

…Well, he did destroy everything, after all… He killed my father in that assault.

Fox closed his eyes painfully at that thought. For a bare heartbeat, when it had dawned on him that this was his father's wingman he was talking to, he had nursed the small, faint hope that James McCloud was still alive. After all, if one of the best pilots had lived through the attack, then maybe…

But that hope had been just as quickly crushed again, when Peppy had told him, "Now that I've found you, I'm certain that James's spirit can rest in peace…"

My father is dead. He's not going to reappear one day just like Peppy did and say that everything's going to be all right.

A faint knock on the plank that served as a substitute door to his room caused him to snap up his head, surprised. His expression softened as he recognized the figure standing silhouetted in the entrance.

"Hi, Falco," he greeted the avian softly.

She walked into the room and slumped into a chair nearby, her eyes never leaving the vulpine's. Fox returned her gaze, noticing that she had changed into a simple, handsown white robe made from some bedsheets. The avian watched his face for a moment longer, then started to speak.

"So, Fox, why did you lie to Peppy?" she asked, not beating around the bush. Fox found himself lowering his eyes.

"I…didn't want to drag you guys into something dangerous," he admitted. "I thought that…if we went off to fight…I'd be putting you and Slippy in danger."

"Foxy, we're always in danger out here," Falco retorted. "I want to know the real reason. And I want to hear it now."

"I…" Fox paused, trying to find something to say that would satisfy the blue falcon.

He knew that once she'd set her mind on doing something, whether it was bringing down an enemy fighter or throttling Slippy for some new transgression, she never quit until she had finished. And right now, she was intent upon finding out what had made Fox reject Peppy's offer. The avian knew the vulpine very well, and understood better than others –sometimes even better than he did himself– why he acted a certain way or said a certain thing.

"Don't bother," she sighed as he continued to fumble for an excuse. "I already know why. You're scared you'll let your father down."

Fox snapped to attention and stared at her in total shock.

She shrugged off his gaze, saying, "Don't deny it. I can read you like a book, Foxy. You want to fly an Arwing, just like your dad, but you're scared out of your mind that you'll turn out to be a horrible pilot and let everybody down. You think you'll be a big failure, and get Slippy and I seriously hurt, maybe even killed. You don't want to lose to Andross, and make everybody lose faith in the dream of somebody wasting that guy."

"………"

Fox lowered his eyes, suddenly finding something very interesting in the ground below him. Mainly the fact that, if he watched the floor, he wouldn't have to meet Falco's intense gaze.

"Fox. Listen to me."

Falco stood and walked over to his side. Seizing his chin, she gently forced the vulpine to look her straight in the eyes. The avian spoke slowly and deliberately, as if speaking to a child.

"You can't keep telling yourself that you won't be able to do anything before you even try," she said, keeping her eyes locked with his. "If you do, you'll never be able to accomplish anything. There's nothing I hate more than somebody who just gives up like that."

"…Falco…" Fox started, not sure what he was about to say. Falco silenced him by pressing her wing gently against his lips.

"Shh. Hear me out. I'm just saying that maybe you should reconsider what you told Peppy earlier. I think he could tell that your heart wasn't in what you said, anyway. Not all of it."

She rose to leave, pausing at the doorway to turn and glance back at Fox. A slight smile appeared on her beak as she added, "Although I think you should keep in mind what you said about not wanting to be connected to the army. He looks like he's desperate enough to bargain with us."

She swept out of the room, leaving Fox alone with his thoughts.

* * *

Slippy rolled out from under his new creation, wiping a greasy hand across his forehead with a sigh. Stepping back to admire his handiwork, he couldn't help but feel a flush of pride. He'd really outdone himself this time, he told himself. Still, he had more work to do if he was planning to have it done by morning. For the moment, however, he was more interested in relaxing a bit before slaving away again.

"She looks okay, Slip," a female voice chimed behind him.

Despite himself, Slippy felt his heart begin to pound in his chest, and he whirled to face his visitor with a short yelp.

"F-F-Falco!" he squeaked, his voice cracking.

The avian smiled at him, then strode over to his latest work and ran one wing along its smooth metal edge.

"Relax, Slips, I just came in to see your new cruiser," she assured him. "Looks okay so far. You're making it fairly big, huh?"

"Y-y-yeah, I guess so," Slippy stammered.

"Well, that's good. After all, it may end up carrying all four of us."

The amphibian stared at her. "Y-y-you mean Foxy might…"

"It's not certain yet, but if I know that fox…" Falco smiled again, turned and sauntered out of the room. Slippy watched her leave, then picked up his wrench and went back to his work.

"Oh, and Slippy?"

The amphibian spun to see Falco peeking back into the room. A smirk twisted her beak, and her aquamarine eyes sparkled faintly.

"Don't think I've forgotten. You'd better watch yourself, little man."

Humming brightly to herself, she disappeared out into the hall, leaving a visibly troubled Slippy to his work.

* * *

Peppy Hare leaned against a tree in the park and stretched lazily. Another fine day of peace in Corneria City. On days like this, he could almost make himself forget for a while that the calmness they enjoyed was paid for in blood with each conflict they had with the Venomians.

He could almost forget that this peace was constantly being threatened, that Andross's forces were slowly beginning to force their defenders to give up more and more ground with each battle. That the ape had managed to conquer a few of the planets closer to his base on Venom.

Almost…

Childish laughter attracted his attention, and he gazed over at where a group of children were playing, chasing one another around pretending that they were flying through the galaxy instead of running through the grass. A few clutched miniature models of Arwings in their paws – Peppy shook his head at the blatant commercialism that even the army was getting into these days – while the rest used the tried-and-true method of sticking their arms out to their sides to mimic wings.

"Look out, Andross, here we come!" cheered a gray-furred puppy, pumping one fist into the air.

"Y-yeah, let's get him! Nobody can stop the Starfox team!" added a frog, jumping up and down with excitement.

Not all of the children were engaged in this activity. A young falcon with blue feathers was sitting off to one side simply watching the others run around, an amused twinkle in her wide aquamarine eyes.

"You boys honestly think you can take on Andross?" she teased.

"Of course!" shot back the canine, blue eyes shining with conviction. "That dumb ape's just an overgrown bully! There's no way he could stand up to us, especially 'cause we have McCloud on our side! Right, Foxy?"

"Right!" replied a young vulpine with orange-red fur. Beaming with youthful self-assurance, he pointed at himself and added, "Andross won't have his way with me! My father and I'll beat him up!"

"Blast him all the way back to Venom!" cheered a feline with pale pink fur.

"Oh, quit being so silly," piped up a young female rabbit with tan fur suddenly.

"What do you mean, silly?" snapped the gray puppy, looking peeved.

"I mean there's no point in claiming you can beat Andross," the female rabbit replied, shaking her head. A mischievous glitter filled her pale pink eyes as she went on, "Because that monkey's gonna get beaten by the real Starfox team really soon! That's all there is to it!"

"Aa-ah, no fair! I want to be able to fight, too!" the puppy whined. Turning pleading cobalt eyes directly on Peppy, he whined, "Hey, can you make sure to leave a piece of that guy for us to blow up, too?"

"Well… well now, we're fighting now so that you children won't have to," hedged Peppy. Seeing the looks of disappointment on the youthful faces staring up at him, he sighed and added, "But you'll probably find your own opponents to defeat when you're older…"

"Yeah!" the gray-furred canine cheered: in his innocent eyes, the concept of war and fighting was little more than a huge game, a competition. "Man, I can't wait until I grow up and get to fly an Arwing!"

"Me too," the vulpine agreed, beaming. "I want to be just like my father when I grow up!"

"Of course, none of you will hold a candle to my skills," chimed in the blue falcon, smirking as she looked at her friends.

"Oh yeah?"

The gray puppy attempted to tackle her, but the avian rolled smoothly out of his way and dove at his back. Within moments, the whole group of children had gotten into the play wrestling, and Peppy was torn between attempting to separate them and just watching them enjoy their youth. He ended up choosing the latter, keeping a careful eye on the mock-fight in case it got too rowdy, smiling slightly at their childish antics…

* * *

Peppy Hare groaned as his eyelids fluttered open. Somehow he had managed to force himself to sleep, yet he still felt as if he'd been up the entire night.

Yawning, the rabbit swung his feet over the edge of his 'bed' and stretched out his arms, gritting his teeth suddenly as his heard his back crack slightly. Getting to his feet, he wandered into the main den. Fox was waiting for him there, sitting at the metal canister that served as a counter for him and his friends.

"'Morning, sir," the vulpine said softly.

Peppy groggily returned his greeting, and an awkward silence fell between the two. The old veteran found himself gazing longingly at the young vulpine: he looked so much like his father. The only noticeable difference was the slightly lighter shade of the younger McCloud's fur, and the absence of the shades James had always worn, even in the coldest weather…

Peppy quickly shook off the feeling. Nothing he felt or did could force things to be any different than they were now. It was a lesson he had learned the hard way years ago, and he had no desire of being taught again. Instead, he nodded simply to the vulpine and said, "I suppose I had better get going. The others probably think I'm still in the hands of the enemy, and I don't need them worrying about me."

And I know a certain young pilot who's likely to risk her own permit to come after me, he admitted privately.

"Okay…" and Fox got to his feet to show the rabbit the way. As they walked down the corridor, the young vulpine took a deep breath and began, "Sir?"

"Call me Peppy, Fox," the veteran scolded.

"Um…Peppy…I thought about what I said earlier…and…"

"And?" Peppy prompted, wincing as he heard how eager his voice suddenly sounded.

"And…I still believe that I shouldn't join up with the military. You understand, right? I don't think that Falco and Slippy would like to join the military just because of me."

"Oh." Peppy couldn't hide the disappointment in his voice. "Well, then…"

"I'm not finished."

Peppy looked at the vulpine in surprise.

Fox swallowed to relieve the dryness in his mouth, then went on, "That is…I discussed it with Falco for a bit, and she hinted that she might be more willing to come if you could promise that we wouldn't have to join up directly. So I was wondering if…we might be able to head out with you…just to check it out, you understand…"

"Yes…" Peppy replied, slowly. "But what about your other friend? Sli…Slippy, right?"

"Oh, him?" Fox laughed, nervously. "He'll follow me wherever I go."

"Oh." Peppy tried to sound disinterested, but his mind was secretly screaming in celebration. Struggling to sound detached, he replied, "Well, if you're really certain that you want to come along, then you can."

"T-thank you," Fox stammered, unable to think of anything else to say.

A few minutes later, the two walked into an open area, where Slippy's newest vehicle stood with the engine already running. The amphibian mechanic was already loading the airbikes into the back of the long, thin cruiser, and Fox watched him with mild surprise.

"H-h-heya, Foxy!" Slippy greeted his friend brightly, jumping down from the deck. "A-a-as you can see, I'm already finished with her!" Seeing the startled expression on the vulpine's face, he added with sudden uncertainty, "We are heading out with Mister Hare, right?"

"Um, yes…"

"Don't call me mister, Slippy," Peppy told the amphibian. "And yes, you will be coming along, all of you. In fact, I have something important to show you when we get there."

"R-r-really? W-w-what is it?"

"You'll see." Peppy strolled up to the gleaming cruiser and ran his fingers along the side, admiringly. "This is a fine piece of work. And you built this from spare parts?"

"Y-y-yes," Slippy said, face flushing slightly from a sudden shyness. "A-a-although most of them came from the wreck yesterday."

"Really…" Peppy turned back to examining the ship for a moment, then swung himself over the edge and leaped onto the deck. "No roof," he commented.

"I did that on purpose," Slippy told him as he climbed into the driver's seat. "I built this to be more like a boat than a ship. It's not as heavy that way. You'll want to buckle up, though, it'll be a fast ride."

"Hey, where's Falco?" Fox asked, clambering into his seat. There was no sign of the slender avian anywhere.

"She's coming," Slippy replied simply.

A few moments later, the falcon came into the room, loaded down with what looked like several suitcases. She swung them unceremoniously over the side of the ship, and one landed on Peppy's foot.

Biting back a scream, the veteran stared at the bags and began, "What on Corneria…"

"My clothes," Falco explained, settling daintily into her own seat. "I wouldn't want to be caught unprepared."

"Ah," Peppy said simply. Part of the wisdom of age includes the ability of knowing when to keep your thoughts to yourself.

"Everybody ready?" Slippy asked. "Then here we go!"

The amphibian pressed a button, and the small cruiser launched itself into the air, racing out of the cavern. Fox took one last glance at his home of nearly six years as it faded into the distance behind them, then turned back to watch the skies ahead.

"A ship this fast from spare parts in only one night!" he called up to Slippy, admiringly. "You're quite a guy!"

"It's nothing!" Slippy replied, his face turning red again at the compliment.

The ship cut a sharp path toward Corneria City, leaving a trail of stirred-up dust in its wake.

* * *

The Venomian commander stared at the display screens idly, not really expecting to notice anything. His units had been scouring the area all night with no luck. The only possible clue they had gotten to the rabbit's whereabouts had been a discarded Venomian fighter they had discovered abandoned in the wilds. All that told him was that he was probably on foot, unless someone had picked him up…

A flashing light accompanied by a blaring siren informed him of an incoming transmission. Flicking on his communicator, he glared at the lowly soldier who appeared on the monitor. The lizard gave his superior a hasty salute, then explained that he had noticed a small cruiser zooming along a few clicks away. Should he investigate it?

"Of course, idiot!" the commander bellowed, glaring at the image.

The grunt shuddered and nodded a hasty reply, then signed off. Sighing, the captain issued an order to his crew to take their ship to those coordinates. It was highly unlikely that a little sand-cruiser held their intended target, but one could never be too sure…