A thousand other boys could never reach you
How could I have been the one?
I saw the world spin beneath you
And scatter like ice from the spoon
It was your womb
Goo Goo Dolls, "Black Balloon"Fox suddenly stopped as he and Krystal came to the door to the main dining area. Krystal looked back at him and rolled her eyes, knowing why he'd stopped.
"Fox, they're your friends. They're not going to judge you, and they'll understand when you tell them what happened. If they don't, I can tell them what I told you, about my people going through the same thing when they first colonized our planet."
Fox didn't look so sure. "Falco will never leave me alone about it. Slippy will turn me into a science project. Peppy... I'm not sure about him. I think he'll leave me alone, although he'll probably make some comment about how I'm really going off the deep end to get to you like me."
Krystal laughed. "Eventually they'll have to accept you as you are now. It's not exactly temporary, you being that way. I can't fix it. And I'm pretty sure nothing you or anyone else can do will, either. Face it, Fox. You're mine, now!"
Fox smiled. "That's not the part I'm worried about." He sighed. "Fine. Let's get the freak show over with. I'm too hungry to sit here and pout."
Krystal ruffled his headfur. "That's the spirit, love!"
Fox sighed again. He was going to be doing a lot of that lately. "Yeah..." He pressed his paw to the panel beside the door. Let the gawking begin...
The door swished open, and the thing Fox had been hoping wouldn't happen, happened.
All eyes fixed upon the doorway.
Krystal was nice enough to go first, which actually drew the first comments to her.
"Good morning, Krystal," Peppy said cheerfully. "Nice of you to join us."
Krystal smiled. "Good morning, Peppy. You seem well rested. Find a better mattress?"
Falco snorted. "Yeah, he found one, all right. On the couch in the rec room. I almost sat on him when I went in there to check out the vid streams."
Peppy grinned a toothy grin. "Not my fault you were trying to find a contract!"
Krystal looked confused. "Contract?"
Peppy turned to her. "He was checking the news for chaotic unrest in the galaxy that we could use as an excuse for the good General to hire us."
Falco snorted again. "Damn right. And would you believe it? Nothing! The worst thing I saw on the news streams in a half hour was that someone was put into an ICU after sustaining injury at a metal concert!" That part he added trying to sound as neutral as news anchors often do when reporting their stories. "Pathetic! It's like the world is suddenly becoming a nicer place to live! That's not good for business of people like us! Not even a pirate raid on some filthy rich guy's cargo transport!"
Falco remained silent, indicating he was finished ranting for the moment.
Fox was trying to sneak over to the kitchen unnoticed. It didn't work.
"Hey! Who's that behind you, Krystal?" Slippy said in a voice that was completely innocent, but one that made Fox almost forcibly exit his fur.
Krystal looked behind her at Fox. "Oh, him?" she tried to sound casual. "Just a... um, friend. I found him... um, in Fox's room." Fox started snickering. "I don't know how he got there," Krystal continued, wondering why Fox was starting to laugh.. "But he was... in the bathroom. Half naked. He must be a pirate or something."
Fox broke out in laughter. "Krystal, you're a lousy liar!"
"Hey, wait a minute!" Falco said sitting up, glaring at the blue fox behind Krystal. "He sounds like Fox!"
Slippy was looking at him now, since Fox had come out from hiding behind Krystal. "He sure doesn't look like Fox!"
Fox stood up and raised his hands in surrender. "Okay, you guys caught me. I'm Fox. I don't look like it, and even the computer thinks I'm not me. But I am. I can hardly believe it myself."
Peppy nodded. "It's definitely him. It is his voice, and his mannerism. I would now him anywhere. Heck, I can hardly tell him from his looks anyway, my eyes are so bad!" He laughed. The others laughed with him, even Fox and Krystal.
"Sorry, Fox," she said with a shrug. "I'm not the lying type."
"I know," Fox chuckled. He sat down in an empty chair. The only empty chair that was left. Krystal glanced around, and found there were no other places to sit. Fox saw this, and patted his lap, inviting Krystal to have a seat. She smiled, and took him up on his offer. She eased comfortably into his arms, as if she were made to fit there.
"So this is what was wrong with you, right Fox?" Slippy asked excitedly.
Fox nodded. "You got it, Slip. I was undergoing a transformation. It just took a little longer than it was supposed to."
"So, what the hell are you supposed to be?" Falco said gruffly. "You're not you anymore, at least not on the outside."
Fox tried to look at all of his friends at once. "I'm a Cerinian."
They all looked at him in disbelief.
Fox sighed and pet Krystal on the head. "Would you mind conducting your history lesson again? I don't think they get it."
She smiled at him. "Sure, love."
Falco almost gagged. "Could you guys like stop it with the pet names already? I'm gonna puke if it keeps up."
Fox stared at him. "Then you'll be the one to clean it up, Falco."
Falco crossed his arms and sat back in the chair, closing his eyes. "I always hated history. Wake me when it's over."
Peppy, who was sitting next to Falco, was in easy range to whack him upside the head, and he did so.
Falco sat up quickly. "Hey! What the hell, Peppy! Jeez, what crawled up your fuzzy- Ah! Jeez!" He was cut off mid-sentence as Peppy hit him again.
"You know, if my memory serves, you were the one who asked Fox what he was! You can at least show the decency to listen to the explanation to your own question!"
Falco cringed as Peppy threatened him again. "Okay, okay! Fine! Just quit with the wailing on me already!" Peppy grinned at him, and Falco just sat, trying to look attentive.
"Sorry about that, Krystal. Please, continue. I'm curious to hear this," Peppy said, noticing the impatient look on Krystal's face.
After a moment, Krystal began to tell the others what she had told Fox a little bit ago.
She ran through her story rather quickly, and soon everyone had been brought up to speed. Though she was trying to be serious, Fox hadn't left her alone the whole time. He had been fiddling with her tail for a good portion of the time, and she did her best to ignore him. Then he'd started rubbing her behind her ears, which helped her relax, but it was still kind of awkward, as she knew the others could see what Fox was doing to her. But they seemed to pay no attention to it; they appeared to be too interested in the story. Even Falco seemed interested. But then again, Falco was a good actor when he wanted to be. He acted tough all the time.
Krystal concluded her story, and the others were nodding, having had the situation finally fall into logic.
Slippy was the first to speak again. "So Fox doesn't just look like a Cerinian, he is one, inside and out. That's pretty amazing."
"Yeah, you're telling me," Fox said, remembering how afraid he had been finding out that even the computers didn't recognize him.
"I hate to say this, Fox," Peppy chimed in. "But the General is going to pass a brick when he hears about this."
Fox laughed. "Yeah, he probably will. Enough to build a wall around me. But there's nothing I can do. Krystal can't even change me back. But even if she could, I don't know that I'd want to."
Slippy looked puzzled. "Why not? Don't you want to be remembered the way you were? I mean, the only people who will remember you that way are us and you."
Fox just shook his head. "That doesn't matter. I'm still me. Even if every scanner in the galaxy says I'm not, I'm still me. Being of logic mind, you probably won't understand that, Slippy. And unless you find a way to go through what I have, you never will. There are other things, now, that are more important to me. Things that wouldn't be so important if this hadn't happened."
Slippy was thoroughly confused now. "Like what? I thought flying was the most important thing to you."
Peppy chuckled, and even Falco kind of laughed at Slippy's obliviousness. "Boy, Slippy, if you and you're big freaking brain can't get why Fox doesn't want to change back, you are really in trouble!"
Slippy dismissed that as an insult, and decided to look to Peppy. "Peppy, tell him to quit making fun of me!"
Peppy just smiled. "He's not making fun of you, Slip. Just look at those two over there." He looked over at Fox and Krystal. Slippy looked as well. Fox and Krystal were totally absorbed in each other. Fox was gently stroking Krystal's fur, and Krystal was rubbing her head against his. Neither of them seemed to be aware that they were being observed. And if they did, they certainly didn't seem to care.
Peppy continued to speak, his voice soft with knowing and wisdom. "There is no place those two would rather be than right where they are now. Fox has finally realized that there are things more important than himself. And Krystal has fought her way to the top of his list. Very few people in this world can break Fox's barriers down the way she has. And I think he's going to be a very different person inside because of it. Fox has changed in more ways than one. We won't really notice it in his public life; that part hasn't changed at all. But when you are where he is, you'll understand."
Slippy was still looking at Fox and Krystal, trying to understand. "Where's that, Peppy?"
Peppy patted him on the head. "Fox is in love, Slippy. And it does some strange things to people."
Slippy got it now. "Oooohhh. Okay."
Falco finally found himself feeling rather jealous of Fox and Krystal. You know, the world could come to an end right now, and those two wouldn't give a crap, as long as they were together. Damn. I wish I could be there... Maybe I'll just lay off those two. Hey, maybe if I do, I'll get there, too! Ah, who am I kidding? I'm too good for that stuff!
A while later, the team had finished breakfast. Fox and Krystal had snapped out of the land of milk and honey long enough to finish eating. Then the two had gone down to the hanger together. Fox had something he wanted to ask Slippy, and Krystal wanted to get her "Cerinian soccer ball" as Fox had jokingly named it. She intended to build a little shrine in her quarters for it, so she could have a nice place to meditate.
They entered the hangar to find Slippy tinkering with something. He was always doing that, Fox recalled. He smiled and shook his head.
"So what's cooking in the mad scientist's lab today?"
Slippy looked up, some interesting looking glasses magnifying his eyes to unnatural proportions. "Hey, Fox!" he said excitedly. "Working on that energy siphon for Krystal's... uh, crystals."
"How's it coming?"
"Pretty well. Another few minutes and it'll be done."
"You don't need the big one right now, do you?"
Slippy hemmed a second. "No, I don't think so. But I'll need a small one later to test this."
Fox nodded. "Got ya. Hey, Krystal, you can take it."
Krystal nodded, picking up the large glowing orb. "Okay. I'll see you later, Fox. I have some catching up to do." She left the hangar.
Fox waved to her as she left. Then he turned to Slippy again. "Hey, when you're done with that, could you do something for me?"
"Sure. What do you need?"
"Well, it's not pressing or anything, but, is there some way you can... um, soundproof my quarters?"
Slippy's eyebrows went up. "I think so. I can install sound-damping force field generators in the walls. I'd only need to use a few of them. What for?"
Fox was trying not to blush. He had hoped Slippy wouldn't ask. "Uh, you know. To keep the noise, uh, in the room..." Fox glanced nervously around the room.
Slippy looked confused. "What noise?" He thought a second. Then he smiled evilly. "Ooooohhh."
Fox nearly fell backwards. Did Slippy know why he wanted to soundproof his room? He certainly appeared to! "Oh... what?" Fox's voice quivered.
Slippy continued to eye him knowingly. "You're sneaky, Fox! I know why you want me to soundproof your quarters!"
Fox felt like fainting. "Uh... y-you do?"
Slippy laughed. "Of course! It's so obvious! You want me to soundproof your room so Peppy will quit yelling at you to turn your stereo down!"
Fox was sweating, and his heart had skipped a beat or two, but he was relieved that Slippy had absolutely no idea why Fox was asking him this. "Uh, yeah! Yeah! That's right, the stereo! Darn, you caught me red-pawed Slip." He scratched his ear, grinning sheepishly.
Slippy smiled. "I heard him yelling at you the other day, and you couldn't here him, it was up so high! He said he had to override your door command to tell you to turn it down!" He was laughing now. "Yeah, sure. I'll soundproof your room, Fox. It won't take long. But I have to finish this first."
Fox had no problems with that. "Sure. Thanks, Slippy." He started out of the hangar.
"No problem, Fox!" Slippy called back. He chuckled to himself. Fox, you're a sly one. I guess that's why you're a Fox!
As Fox left the hangar, he smiled and shook his head. "Slippy, you're never going to change. Your ignorance is my bliss."
A/N: Okay, I just want to say to everyone that I'm really happy you all are enjoying the story so far. I'm not sure how much longer to continue, but I guarantee that it'll go for at least another chapter, so don't worry about that. I'll take any suggestions you might have, as well. Thanks for reading this story. Keep up with the comments.