A/N: OK here I am with the final two chapters of "Behind the Foxes Eyes". Well, maybe three. I'll be really sad when this fic is over with as I think it was one of the greatest fics I ever wrote before. My greatest accomplishment. Anyway, I'll save my thanks for when the fic is over with, and I hope you enjoy it! We're about to find out one of the biggest questions this fic holds, will Krystal still love Shane? And what will Fox do to Shane now that he's human again?

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters of Star Fox, Nintendo and/or Rare do. Any relation to my original characters in anyway is entirely coincidental _____________________________________________________________________

Chapter 24-Destiny

He was taller, and a blonde. Krystal had expected Shane o have black hair from the color of his fur. Shane stood much taller than Krystal now; it was like looking up at a giant to her.

Shane backed away from Krystal and looked at himself. The hands, the bare feet...human again. He was dressed in a white shirt and black pants, just about the same attire he wore when he was turned into a fox. Shane looked to Krystal and then to the side. He slowly turned his back to her when he felt a warm paw grab his human hand.

"Don't leave me now..."

"I can't stay here like this." Shane said, "I have to go."

"And you damn well better!" A raging Fox stormed into Krystal's home, claws unsheathed and a dagger in hand. His eyes were once again blood red.

"Fox stop it!" Krystal snapped.

"Why should I let him go? So he can go back to his human friends? So he can betray you like this?"

"I'm not betraying anyone!" Shane shouted. "All I ever wanted since I met Krystal and you was to BE one of you."

"One of us?" Fox said starting to lower his dagger, but then raised it again. "No, you'll always be nothing more than a human to me. I'm giving you this last chance Shane. It's now or be killed by my paws. You either leave this place and never come back, or you stay here and be killed by a fox."

Shane could see that Fox was serious. "Fine. I'll leave."

"Don't come back!" Fox demanded. "I don't ever want to see that hideous face of yours again."

"Fox..." Krystal shook her head.

Shane was about to climb out the window when he turned to face Fox one more time. "But you have no idea what a burden it was to hide behind a fox's eyes and keep this heavy secret. You have no idea how much I yearned to remain a fox forever."

Fox looked Shane dead in the eyes. It was true that Fox didn't know the pain that Shane suffered. But just the same, Shane didn't know the pain that Fox had suffered. "Are you leaving or not? I still have a duty to do Shane. My job is to protect this village, and the number one threat is a human, which you are. You're lucky I'm letting you go now. There has only been one other human besides you to actually leave this place alive. But I didn't let that one slip away. I'm giving you a second chance at your human life gone wrong."

"I never had a life as a human Fox. I was always alone. I don't like people too much. I was happier as a fox than I was a human. Krystal, Falco, Katt, Mia, even you, showed me what happiness was. But now I have to go back to THIS."

"I can only hold back for so long Shane. You either leave now or I'm going to kill you." Fox warned once more. He never let the dagger fall anymore.

"Hear me out Fox." Shane begged. His blue eyes started to sparkle again. "I never wanted things to be like this. I didn't ask for this, but perhaps this was meant to be. Everything happens for a reason Fox. This was my destiny. I was destined to be a fox. I was destined to find Krystal."

"I don't believe in any such thing as Fate anymore." Fox said with heavy breaths. He was about to lose it.

"I'm sorry Fox. Sorry for what I've done to you. I'm sorry that I took something so dear to you. Once I leave Fox, I probably will be back. But when you see me again, I won't be the human you see anymore, but the fox that you always knew inside of me. So what if I'm human? You saw me as something different. Would you have even known if I hadn't told you?"

At this Fox began to calm down and lower his dagger. He retracted his claws and his eyes began to settle. Shane had actually proved something to him. Fox would've never known Shane was a human until now if Shane hadn't spoken of it before. Fox then sheath his dagger. "I understand your point now. Go Shane. I don't want to see you again until you're reborn as a fox. I did see something different. I even accepted you for it. Now I see a strange new face. I'll give you this one chance Shane. But if you EVER set foot in this village as a human again, I won't hesitate to kill you."

Krystal's ears lowered as she squeezed Shane's hand. She turned and gave him a hug keeping silent the entire time.

"When you see me again fox, I'll be just like you." Shane's final statement came. Then he was out of Krystal's window.

Fox turned to leave when Krystal came up behind him and stopped him dead in his tracks. "Why Fox?"

"It's my job Krystal. I have to protect the furs."

"But why did you let him go?"

Fox was silent. "He may have been a human, but I did see him for a fox. Not just a fox, but also one of us. A fur that has lost his way. I'm no longer thinking of it as a man Behind the Fox's Eyes, but now as a fox behind a man's eyes."

Krystal looked perplexed. "You let him go...for me...didn't you?"

Fox was silent for a moment once again. "Maybe I did." He said and then he walked out the door.

***

Shane fled the village as fast as he could, but because of the fact that he was no longer a fox, he moved a bit slower. He didn't have the same dexterity he did as a fox. For some reason he felt like he was being followed. He kept getting this fear that Fox would come up behind him and kill him. The old Shane, he remembered, wouldn't have been scared of a fox coming after him. Shane really had changed.

It began to rain and for this Shane decided that he should make his trip a fast one. He went down the eastern path of the forest in hopes that Mia would actually be there. When he came out on the eastern side of the forest he looked down at the human village. It was the first time he'd actually been there before. Not only that, but it was the first time he'd ever seen it.

The hill, at which he stood at the top of, wasn't too steep, but when he took a step he tripped. The rain wasn't hard, but it was still good enough to make the dirt mud. Shane landed fast first in the mud in front of the human village. He looked up to see two signs. One read in capital letters: "NO ANIMALS BEYOND THIS PAINT." The sign below that read: "Welcome to Earth."

Shane came to a stance and walked into the village. The very first thing he noticed was that the humans he saw gave him much more suspicious looks than the furs of Corneria did. 'They don't get along that well with each other I suppose.' Shane thought. They seemed harsher on the outside than the furs did. Perhaps it was because they didn't look all cute and cuddly when he first looked at their face. At least he wouldn't have to deal with any claws.

Shane looked around for a bit. There was a pub in the center of town. Perhaps that was a place to get some answers.

When Shane walked in, the people stared at him for a bit. Shane noticed that his clothes were completely covered in mud and he looked like a slob. This didn't bother Shane much. The problem was that Shane didn't know how important it was to humans when you looked dirty. He had no idea they went strictly on appearance rather than who you actually were.

Shane walked over to the bar and sat down. He looked at the bar tender and the only thing he did was wink. "What?" Shane accidentally said aloud.

It was then that Shane felt a hand on his shoulder. He swung around so see that it was Katt. He took a sigh of relief and finally opened his mouth, "I was wondering where you or Mia were."

"We're not going to be here for long. See this pub? This is the only place we're safe. Everybody outside is superstitious towards Mia and me. Come with me." Katt said. "It's better if we discuss this is a more private place. Are you coming with us Pepper?"

"Pepper?" Shane scratched his head. Then he turned around at the voice of the bartender.

"I'm ready when you are." Pepper said as he came from behind the bar. "Let's go."

***

Jon was looking over some of Mia's logs on the humans that she had kept. The one thing that Jon found rather humorous was how Mia had put, "Humans seem to prefer the taste of coffee in the morning as opposed to a furs tea. What's so interesting about those cocoa beans anyway?"

Mia had finally made the final touches on the potion and it was black. There was fizzing just like in the last spell she had put on Shane, but the difference was that the spices were different. She didn't add spices this time. Instead she put in cut vegetables and fruits. Strangely enough, that's what it needed.

Katt and Pepper shortly walked in with Shane being pulled behind them. The sight of Shane made Mia feel a bit humble. "It's been a while since I've seen you like this. There's a bathroom in the back. Perhaps you should shower up first. I'll find you a nice pair of clean clothes.

It surprised Shane that Mia was in her vixen form with a human standing in the house. "Who is he?" Shane pointed to the bearded man.

"Shane, this is Jon. He's been traveling the lands and he stopped by here. He's been venturing for some time, but when he heard about you from us, he decided that he wanted to meet you."

"He has no biased towards furs?" Shane inquired. To him this was too good to be true.

"He believes in peace between Furries and Humans." Mia said and then pointed to the back. "Go shower up. You obviously need it. When you're done I'll explain what's going to happen."

***Later that evening

Fox was back at the hut, heartbroken. He'd lost Krystal, and he let Shane get away. Things couldn't be worse for Fox. It wasn't long before Bill came in. "Fox, there was a human in the village and many furs say they saw him leave Krystal's house. If I were you I'd secure the perimeter and then I'd--"

"I know Bill. I know there was a human in the village."

"Well you better go and find him don't you think? It won't be long until he brings some of his human buddies back here."

"I let him go..."

Bill looked shocked for a moment and then it finally appealed to him that something huge was bothering Fox this time. Usually Fox was right on top of these things. This time, Fox didn't act with any type of urgency. "What happened?"

"It's not important Bill. He's gone, and he isn't coming back. That's all you need to know. Now please leave me alone. I don't want to talk about anything right now."

As Bill turned to leave, he saw Falco and warned that Fox probably didn't want any visitors. Falco didn't heed anything Bill had said. Instead he let Bill walk off before he walked in on Fox. "Shane is human again, and he ran back to his brethren it seems."

Fox was silent and lowered his ears. It was clear that Shane wasn't Fox's main concern in this entire matter. "You probably don't care though do you? You're thinking of Krystal aren't you."

At the mention of her name Fox's head sank. "Falco, I don't want to see anyone right now."

"Cheer up Fox. No matter what, you'll always be number one on her list. She'll always love you."

"I messed up Falco. She doesn't want me. She wants...Shane."

"How do you know? Did you actually ask her? Or can you just read minds?"

Fox had a moment of silence. No, he hadn't asked. But with the affection he saw between them it couldn't have been more obvious. "I just know Falco."

Falco turned his back and was about to walk out when he finally realized that to leave Fox like this wasn't the best idea. "You want a drink? It'll probably cheer you up."

Fox shook his head. "All I want is to be alone right now."

Falco turned to face the back of Fox once more. "You haven't lost her Fox. She still has a large place in her heart for you." Then Falco walked out to leave Fox alone to himself.

***

Shane sat down in a chair next to Mia when he looked at the potion on the table. "More 'soda' I presume." Shane chuckled.

Mia grabbed the potion and looked at Shane. "This is going to change your destiny forever. I'm warning you Shane, if you take this potion, you'll be a fox forever. There is no going back this time."

Shane looked at the potion and then decided that this is what he wanted. "Anything to be with Krystal again." He said and took the potion in hand.

"Wait until morning though." Katt warned. "You can't take it here. If you walk out there as a fox they'll kill you for sure."

"It would probably be best to take it in the woods." Mia suggested. "When you take it is entirely up to you though. But when you leave Shane, we're going with you."

Shane looked at Mia for a moment, then back to the potion. He then set the potion down. "Tomorrow morning."

"Now I've got some things to ask you." Jon butted in. "Tell me why you refused to be with anyone as a human. How come you didn't like people?"

Shane didn't expect that Jon would be there to ask that. "I can't remember anymore. I was always alone. I liked the solitude I guess."

"Then what about your dislikes towards animals?" Jon popped another question.

"Please, call them furs." Shane corrected him. "Back then I thought that humans were quite possibly the greatest species in the world." Shane then looked at Katt who frowned and then at Mia who laughed. "But now I realize that we're actually a bit weaker. Most furs have claws and more abilities than humans do. I'm not as fast as a fox and I don't have any claws to fend of enemies."

"So from the moments I saw of you, you really changed. Tell me, what was it like to be something you hated." Jon sat back on the couch.

"I didn't like it at first. It took me a few months to accept it. Then it took about a year after to actually begin to like it. To be truthful Jon, humans and furs aren't much different. Well, personality wise. Physically furs seem to have a better build." Shane looked at Mia who nodded. "I think this whole antagonism is stupid."

"Then why don't you come with me?" Jon asked. "When you become a fox again, travel with me. We can spread peace between humans and furs."

Shane took a moment to think about it. "I can't go with you Jon."

"Why not?"

"As much as I'd like to see peace, there's someone I'd like to see much more."

***

Shane was gone and he probably wasn't coming back. "How is going to be back as a fox again?" Krystal asked herself. Krystal had to admit that she liked Shane much more as a fox. But when Shane had turned back into a human, it didn't turn her love away. "Why is Fox being so rational about him?"

Krystal went and had a seat in the chair in her living room. It was the same chair that she had slumped into Shane's lap in. She was starting to miss him already. "But he isn't coming back." Krystal kept telling herself. She had hope that he would though. But what she didn't understand was how he was going to come back as the same black fox he was before.

There was a knocking on Krystal's door. Though she didn't feel like answering she did so anyway. It was rude to leave your door unanswered when someone came knocking. When she opened the door, Falco stood before her.

"Falco? What are you doing here?"

"I came to ask you a little bit about Shane and Fox." Falco quickly replied as if he didn't hear Krystal say anything.

"I don't want to talk about either of them right now." Krystal said and was about to close the door but Falco forced his way inside.

"Surely you have the time to answer my questions."

"Not if it concerns those two." Krystal said.

"You haven't seen Fox yet have you? He looks terrible." Falco stated. At that point, he had Krystal's full attention.

"What's happened to Fox?"

"I was hoping you could tell me. It has something to do with Shane though. I have no doubt about that. I'm also assuming that it has to do with you?"

"I guess it does." Krystal spoke in a low shy voice.

"He looks terrible. What exactly happened?"

"Shane happened!" Krystal exclaimed. It was the first time Falco heard Krystal raise her voice.

"What do you mean 'Shane happened?'"

"He's so sweet and even though he was human the entire time, he was generous. Shane was one of the greatest..people I'd ever met." Krystal was sure that humans referred to themselves as "People" and not to one another as "Human."

"What makes Shane so great?" Falco somewhat demanded.

"He seems like a bad man but he's innocent and kind. He's gentle and sensitive." Krystal spoke. "He reminds me of Fox."

"Reminds you of Fox?" Falco suddenly looked puzzled.

"Yes...that's why I love him. He reminds of Fox...before Fox had attacked him that is."

"Interesting." Falco commented.

"But Fox is stronger than Shane is. Fox isn't scared of anything. But Shane is just as sensitive as Fox is. Shane is much more than a fox. But Fox is much more than any regular fur."

Falco was silent and continued to listen to Krystal.

"Fox is stronger and wiser than Shane will ever be. Believe me Falco, I love Shane a lot, I really do..."

"But?" Falco's eyes suddenly went wide.

"But there could never be any fur who could take Fox's place in my heart." Krystal said and then put her finger to her lips and closed her eyes, once more remembering that kiss on the night of her birthday. Happy Birthday to Krystal indeed. _______________________________________________________________________

A/N: There you have it! We know whom Krystal loves, but things are already so screwed up right now. So how could this possibly be a happy ending for everyone? Well, the next chapter reveals all!