Ever wondered what happened to Fox's mother so long ago? Here's my take on what happened.
Janus - don't worry, Andross won't let his biggest advantage go to waste.
Lylatian Fox - glad to see that my own writings have inspired another writer to
start his own fan fiction. May you keep reading my own works as well, and I'll keep an eye out for yours.
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Chapter 29: When Good Intentions Go Bad
I can't believe we pulled this one off. I don't
think anyone's ever seen that kind of offensive force and lived to tell
about it. Not only did we win, but we got out without any losses as well. Our
luck can't hold forever though. I'm just afraid at who's going
to die first under my command. – Fox
Back out in the main hallway, Fox debated on which goal he should accomplish
next. The choice was made for him by chance as he spotted Peppy leaving his
room with a book in one paw. The hare nodded in greeting as Fox said his own.
"Afternoon, Pepster."
Peppy looked over drolly as he never liked that nickname much. "Funny.
What's up?"
"Not much." Assuming that the hare was on his way elsewhere based
on what he was carrying, he figured that he might as well make this quick. "I
just have a question for you. Do you have any idea who saved my life in the
fight earlier? I never had a chance to ask before."
The hare thought for only a moment before responding. "Fara is the one
you need to thank for that one."
Fox looked surprised. "Fara?"
"That's right," said the hare with a nod. "The main
entrance was heavily shielded, so we had to resort to the Nova Bombs to blow
our way in. Hers was the only one that worked out of the three of us."
He nodded, thankful to hear that it was her, and not Falco, that had saved him.
"I guess I will then. Thanks for the info." Giving a wave to his
teammate, Fox walked down the hallway and passed by the other pilots'
quarters before reaching his destination.
He touched the door panel and got as far as taking in a breath to announce himself
before Fara's cheerful voice interrupted him through the speaker. "Come
in."
With a shrug, Fox walked through the door that swished open at his approach.
"Afternoon, Fara," he said as he spotted her sitting down at her
computer.
She spun around in her chair, a smile on her face as she looked upon the vulpine.
"Hiya, Fox. What's up?"
Fox looked for a seat before responding, deciding upon the spare chair that
sat up against the other desk. He pulled it out and spun it around backwards,
resting his arms upon the chair's back. "Nothing much. I just wanted
to thank you for what you did earlier."
Fara thought through the day's events and tried to figure out what exactly
he meant. Not finding the answer, she let out a confused, "Huh?"
Fox smiled inwardly as he thought about how modest the vixen was – she
had saved his life and didn't even want to admit it. "You know,
when you used a Nova Bomb at the end of the fight to blow open the main entryway
of the Negator. You saved my life doing that."
"Oh, that." She shrugged, wondering just where Fox was trying to
go with this. "I only did what I had to do to get you out of there. You
know that the others tried before me, right?"
He nodded. "I realize that. But if you hadn't succeeded, I would've
been nothing but a very crisp part of my former self. Thank you."
Fara smiled, wondering if she was hearing some of the strangest pick up lines
in the universe. But the vulpine seemed to be simply honest about his feelings
and nothing more, so she played along with his game for now. "Thank you.
I can tell that…" She quieted as she watched as Fox's once
happy face suddenly changed to one on the verge of tears. She stood up, not
sure what was going on. "Fox, you okay?"
He was anything but. With his mental defenses weakened after his harrowing escape
earlier, his last statement had accidentally triggered a flood of memories.
Memories that were better off buried. Memories of what had happened to him and
his mother, so many years ago.
Suddenly, Fox was no longer in Fara's room. He wasn't anywhere on
the base for that matter. He wasn't even the same age. Instead, he was
deep within his memories, back at that fateful day when his mother died. A day
that he tried to forget, but never could. A day that would probably haunt his
dreams for years to come.
It's one of the worst things a child could possibly experience –
watching a parent die right in front of their eyes. Fox had that experience
personally.
The images rushed to him, flooding his senses with their clarity. He heard the
same sounds, smelled the same smells, saw the same events as they were many
years before. It was twelve years ago in the suburbs of Corneria City when the
vulpine's joyful world came crashing down around him.
It was a bright and sunny spring morning for the McCloud household. It was the
weekend, which meant that all three members of the family had the day off from
their respective jobs and schooling. It was your average dull day, where everyone
was simply pleased to be around each other, wanting essentially nothing.
All short of young Fox, anyway.
He was a very energetic little kit back then, always wanting to do something
to keep his mind and body occupied. His parents looked upon him proudly, knowing
that their son could easily excel at anything that he put his mind to, and that
they would be around to see it.
Today was the day that everything was going to change.
Fox wanted to go spend at least rest of the morning at a nearby park, a place
that the family had visited and spent quite a bit of time in before. He knew
many of the other kids in the medium-class neighborhood, and odds are that a
few of them would be there as well this fine day. Vixy, his mother, was more
than glad to take her son out, allowing James to enjoy his time away from work.
The young McCloud bounced around the house in excitement. He always enjoyed
the outdoors, but as he, nor the other families in the area, had much of a backyard
in the small subdivision, he never got out much except during their trips to
the park. Vixy packed a few sandwiches for the pair, smiling as she watched
her energetic son run around.
James walked over to his wife at this point, giving her a quick peck on the
cheek while cuddling her around the waist. "Vixy, my dear, why don't
you take the convertible instead of your bulky van? You know how much Fox prefers
riding in it."
She nodded, twisting in his grasp so she could return the kiss head on. "Sure,
dear. We'll be back soon." Raising her voice as she squirmed free,
she called out to her son. "Come on, Fox, I'm ready!"
"Coming, Mom!" he hollered as he raced out of the living room, running
right into her crouched form with his arms outstretched.
With a groan, Vixy picked up her son and ruffled his headfur. "You know
you're getting too heavy for me, cutie."
"Aw, Mom!" moaned Fox. He always loved being carried around by his
mother, and was upset at the thought of losing this.
She smiled as she put him back down, taking grasp of one of his paws. "Let's
go, Fox, shall we?"
"Yeah!" cheered the younger vulpine, all his problems instantly
forgotten.
The two walked out of the house, pausing long enough to pick up the car keys
to James' vehicle on the coffee table on the way out. In the excitement
though, they forgot their lunches on the kitchen counter.
That one little event probably prevented Fox from ending up like his mother.
James McCloud was the proud owner of a dark red convertible, one with a fold
down top. Fox had always enjoyed riding in the vehicle, in part due to the loud
rumble of the engine, and because he loved the wind whipping through his fur.
The only thing he liked being in more were the craft that his father flew for
a living, but those times were very few and far between, as the military heavily
frowned upon bringing such a youngster into the area.
Fox broke free of his mother's grasp and ran over to the car, as if somehow
knowing that was to be their destination. He jumped up and down in excitement
as Vixy approached, confirming his guess.
She unlocked the doors with the key chain remote, Fox clambering inside within
moments. Climbing in herself, she stuck the key in the ignition and was about
to turn it when she realized that she had forgotten their lunch. "Fox,
dear," she said, looking over to her son with a smile, "I forgot
our meals on the kitchen counter. Could you go get them for me?"
"Sure, Mom. Be right back!" Jumping out of the car, he ran back
inside, passing by his father who was standing just outside the front door,
ready to wave goodbye to the rest of his family. Little did James know that
his simple wave might have been his last.
Fox charged inside, picking up the paper bag without slowing down. He ran back
out and had just passed by his father once more when he happened to look up
at his mother's face. She smiled at him, having no idea what was about
to happen.
At that moment, she turned the key.
The internal combustion engine, which was still being used in all vehicles as
the electrical-based hovercraft technology of current times hadn't been
invented yet, exploded into a blinding ball of flame. Sparks traveled down the
fuel line in the process, causing the fuel in the fully loaded gas tank to detonate
moments afterward.
Vixy McCloud died instantly in the fiery inferno.
A column of flame erupted from what was the car, shooting into the morning sky.
Every window facing the front of the house shattered, glass showering everywhere
from the concussion of the blast.
Fox was blown backwards and miraculously crashed into his father. They both
toppled into the carpeted front entryway of their house, leaving them relatively
unharmed.
The young vulpine was knocked unconscious from the proximity of the explosion,
and his father was never forthcoming afterward over what had happened in the
few minutes he was out cold. When he groggily came to a bit later, all Fox knew
that there were more faces than he could count looking at him, and none of them
was James. While some were familiar, the faces of the families nearby, there
were also multiple people dressed in the standard white garb of medical personnel.
He wasn't pleased being poked and prodded, the others trying to make sure
that he was okay. Fox only had one thought on his mind – find his father,
as he could make everything better.
Wriggling free of the paws that shot out to stop him from leaving, he ran to
the only place he could think of where his father might be – outside.
Racing out into once was a clear, peaceful morning, his eyes first fell upon
the car. Or at least what was left of it. The vehicle was a charred, unrecognizable
collection of steel and plastics. Water slowly dripped off the burnt pieces,
pooling around the feet of the nearby fire department before reaching the end
of the driveway. The ones in blue looked at the vulpine, not having any idea
what to say to him.
But their worries were for naught, as Fox finally found his objective –
the older McCloud. James was a vulpine of integrity, of steadfastness, always
paying attention to the rest of his family, and always able to do so without
any of the negatives of the world affecting him in the slightest. He made sure
to always have a positive attitude when his son was around, as he never wanted
him to experience the awful reality of what went on elsewhere. He wanted to
make sure that Fox had a perfect childhood.
Today, everything changed.
Unable to control his emotions anymore, James was doing the only thing that
would be natural in this situation. He was crying.
He had dropped to his knees a few feet from the destroyed vehicle, his shirt
soaked not only from the water that had been used to put out the fire, but from
the tears that refused to stop pouring out, even with his paws trying their
best to dam the flow. He was paying attention to nothing around him, short of
his loneliness and his tears.
Fox couldn't stand to see his father this way. Ignoring the arid smoke
drifting out from the wreck, he ran over, grabbed him in the biggest hug his
little form could possibly give out, and refused to let go.
It took a few seconds, but James finally noticed the attention, turning to look
at his son with bloodshot eyes. He blinked away the tears best he could, giving
a weak smile to the vulpine. "I…I'm sorry," he finally
rasped, his first attempts at speaking coming out as nothing but a sputter.
Taking a quick look at the mangled car, Fox finally burst into tears himself,
tightening his hold on his father. He had nothing to say, but he did let the
tears flow.
James pulled his son close and hugged him in return, searching desperately for
anything he could say to make everything better. There wasn't though.
Giving up, he said the only thing on his mind. "Don't worry, son,
Mom…she's gone to a much better place. I won't leave you,
ever. I promise."
Unfortunately, even the most simple of promises made in the most desperate of
situations couldn't be kept in the years to come.
Meanwhile, Fara looked upon Fox with increasing panic as he rapidly deteriorated
in her room. Not having any idea what was going on with the vulpine, she desperately
paged the first person she could think of that would be helpful – Peppy.
In the few seconds it took to make her call over the base's intercom system,
Fox had fallen out of his chair with a thump and curled up into a fetal position
on her carpeted floor.
Fortunately for both of them the hare was still nearby, having returned to his
room to swap the book he was carrying with him just moments ago. Little did
he know that he wasn't going to get much time in the way of reading anytime
soon. Hearing the fright in Fara's voice, he ran down the hallway to her
room, the door opening for him without a pause.
He looked over the room as he entered, his gaze coming to rest upon the two
figures on the floor. Fara had kneeled down over Fox, trying her best to comfort
his non-responsive self, but it was clear that she had no idea what to do. "What
did you do to him?" asked Peppy incredulously, possibilities running through
his mind at what might had transpired, none of them good ones.
She looked up with shock, having not even heard the hare enter as her attention
was so focused on the unconscious vulpine. "Nothing!" she practically
shrieked, stunned that he could possibly think that she would want to cause
harm to any of the team.
Peppy paused, taking a deep breath as he realized that jumping to conclusions
wasn't going to help anyone right now. He kneeled down next to her and
checked Fox's vitals. "I'm sorry," he said as he worked.
"Let me rephrase that. What were you doing when this happened?"
"We…we were just talking," she replied, calmer this time.
"We were both sitting down when he just fell apart with no warning."
She looked over at Fox again, uneasiness growing in the pit of her stomach.
"Is he going to be okay? Should I call for the medics?"
The hare shook his head as he pulled his paws away, making a quick mental calculation
in his head as to his heart rate, trying to piece together the situation. It
seemed familiar to him somehow, but he just couldn't place it. "His
pulse and breathing are above normal, but other than that he seems fine. If
I may ask, what were you two talking about when this happened?"
Fara kept looking back and forth between the two males, the concern clearly
shown on her face. She absently put a paw into the vulpine's headfur,
stroking his head as if it would make everything better. "Fox was doing
all the talking. He was complimenting me about how I had saved him from turning
into a crisp part of his former self, or something like that, when he just dropped."
Peppy closed his eyes and sighed, dropping his head upon hearing what Fara had
to say. "You know better than that, Fox," he muttered under his
breath. "When are you going to learn?"
As expected, Fara had no idea what he was talking about. "What do you
mean?" she asked, completely confused. None of this made any sense to
her, and it worried her immensely.
Noticing the vixen's absentminded caress of Fox, he decided that it couldn't
hurt to reveal some of his past. "Fara, did you know that Fox currently
has no parents, no upper guidance from his family?"
She nodded. "Pepper told me some of his family history the other day."
He grumbled silently, wondering what else the canine had told of the team's
past and history. "Interesting. I take it you know what happened to both
parents then, correct?"
She looked over at Fox, a sorrowful expression on her face. "Yeah. Somewhat
anyway. I didn't get too many details."
Peppy debated for a moment on where to start. "Did the General tell you
how his mother passed away?" She nodded again. "Well, I don't
know too much more than this, but I do know that Fox was around when it happened."
"That's terrible!" she exclaimed, trying to think what she
would have done if something like that had happened to her.
"Unfortunately, I never learned how much, if anything, he saw. James basically
refused to tell me anything, and I never wanted to pry by asking Fox."
"Poor thing," commented Fara sadly. "Will he be okay?"
Peppy wandered through his memories, thinking back to when this had happened
before. "He should be. This makes instance three unfortunately, and I'm
worried that he'll break down like this in a tense situation one of these
days." He noticed the question on her unhappy lips, one that she didn't
want to ask. He decided to answer it for her without her prompting. "First
on Corneria, when he was told that his father was killed. The second was after
a mission gone horribly wrong on Papetoon. A real knuckle-biter, one that almost
got the lot of us slaughtered."
She closed her eyes, thinking quietly to herself. As she opened them again a
few seconds later, she noticed the caresses she had been giving all this time
and pulled her paw away slowly, hoping that the hare hadn't noticed. "Fortunately
for Fox, he has three very good friends."
"That he does," replied Peppy. "However, I think your count
is a tad off." He smiled gently, making sure he didn't turn the
affection that Fara had been giving into a negative. "Four seems to be
a bit more accurate. Don't think that I didn't see that, my dear."
Fara looked away from the hare's gaze, embarrassed at letting her feelings
known. There was something about Fox, something that drew her towards him. She
didn't know what it was exactly, nor did she know if that was a good thing
or not. Trying to change the subject, she asked, "How much longer is he
going to be like this?"
"A good question, and one I don't have an answer for unfortunately."
He looked over to the vulpine, trying to formulate a better response. "Mind
if I try something?"
"Sure." Fara slowly stood up and moved out of the way. "What
can I do to help?"
"I'm not quite sure yet." Peppy moved over to one side, grasping
Fox by the shoulders and flipped him onto his back. The vulpine resisted, more
than happy being on his side for the time being. "Fox, this is Peppy.
I know you can hear me in there. It's time to come back to us."
Fara watched sadly as Fox fought back, pounding his paws slowly on the carpeted
floor as he tried to turn himself back over. The hare refused to give up so
easily. Tightening his grip, he continued. "Fox, listen to my voice. Come
away from your memories. They happened in the past. They are uncontrollable
and outside of your reach. Come back to the present, where your friends are.
We're waiting for you to return."
The vulpine quietly groaned, his struggles growing weaker. "Come on, Fox,"
continued Peppy gently, "what are you hiding from? We're all right
here. Come back to us."
With a sigh, Fox stopped moving, lying on the floor like he was asleep. After
a few seconds, his eyes opened slowly, squinting in an attempt to adjust to
the light. His gaze fell upon Peppy, closing them once more as he recognized
the hare. "It happened again, didn't it?" he weakly asked
with a groan.
"Yes it did." Peppy looked over his teammate, trying to judge his
condition. "Are you okay in there, Fox?"
"What do you think?" he muttered quietly. With another groan, he
batted Peppy's paws away and slowly sat up. He rubbed his eyes, trying
to chase away the afterimages of what he had just seen. "I feel like I
was just run over by an Arwing."
The hare smiled, getting out of the way incase Fox decided to rise. "Glad
to see that you're okay. Interesting choice of words though."
"Thanks." He twisted around and got ready to push himself to his
feet when he noticed Fara sitting on the edge of her bed. He smiled weakly,
clearly embarrassed at being found like this. "Uh, hi."
She smiled back, her face quickly changing to one of concern. "You okay?"
It took a moment before Fox responded. "No," he said, looking away
from her in embarrassment.
Fara leaned down and offered a paw. "Need some help?"
He looked back, unable to miss the worry in her voice. "Yeah." He
reached up, grabbed her paws, and pulled himself to his feet. He looked around
for a moment, locating the chair where he started this ordeal, and promptly
dropped into it with a groan. "Sorry about scaring you like that, Fara."
"Don't worry about it." She smiled suddenly. "I mean,
I've had males fall for me before, so why not you?"
Peppy snickered at the joke, trying to lighten the mood in the room just a tad,
while at the same time not knowing how Fox would take it. Fortunately, he took
it well, the vulpine shaking his head, the grin on his face revealing his true
feelings. "Very funny."
"I try." She debated on asking the question that was just hanging
in the air, not knowing how he would respond to it. Her curiosity got the better
of her in the end though, and she hoped that he would comply with her not so
simple request. "So, Fox…what happened back there? What did you
see?"
His answer was swift. "Nothing," he said, dropping his head in sadness.
Peppy sighed. "Fox, you need to tell somebody. It doesn't matter
whom, but you just can't keep your emotions bottled up like this. We're
here to help."
His tone turned hostile as he looked up and spoke his mind. "Yeah, yeah,
I know. Talk about your problems. I hear it all the time from you. Maybe I don't
want to talk about it for once."
"Fox, please," pleaded Fara. She couldn't stand to see him
this way, so much sadness and pain trapped inside.
Fox looked at his teammates, one his friend for years, the other a friend for
just days. He could see the concern in their faces, how eager they were to help.
They just wanted to listen to his problems, nothing more.
Unfortunately, he would have to live through his mother's death again
to do so.
He glared at Peppy, still upset. "You know, you make my life so damn difficult
some days." He looked to Fara as he continued. "You on the other
hand…" He grumbled, not finding the right words.
Instead, the vixen tried to supply them. "I'm a royal pain in the
tail for someone you've only known for five days, right?" She grinned
afterwards, trying to emphasize the joke.
Fox simply wasn't in the mood for another laugh, nor did he want to explain
his past to anybody. He stood up and steadied himself for a moment, then proceeded
to walk right out of the room, neither pilot making a move to stop him.
At least not physically anyway. Realizing that he had no intention of staying
around, and wanting to do anything in her power to help, Fara shook her head
sadly as she said to nobody in particular, "Computer, door lock."
Inches away from the door, the vulpine came to a sudden halt, noticing that
his exit wasn't going to open like it should have. He turned around slowly,
aiming his now seething rage at the one who kept it closed. "Let. Me.
Out."
Fara stared him straight in the eyes, refusing to back down. "No. You
need our help, and we're here to give it. Take it instead of hiding your
feelings again."
Fox had hit the end of his patience. All he wanted to do was to leave and forget
this entire incident, and these two were pushing him beyond his limits, trying
to make him reveal something that he did not want to tell anyone about.
His common sense was buried as his rage took over, a rage that threatened everyone
around him.
"Let me out of here!" he yelled as he clenched his paws into fists,
advancing slowly towards Fara who sat only a few feet away. His only primal
thoughts were of going after the one who kept him trapped like this.
"Fox, no!" hollered Peppy as he jumped to his feet. He stayed put
though, having seen these rages before, knowing that provoking him further was
a bad idea at best. He just didn't know what he could do, as he knew that
he couldn't take the vulpine in a fight. Especially in this kind of mood.
Fara's eyes grew wide as she cowered in fear, his sudden aggression coming
as a complete shock to her. Any rational thoughts were wiped clean as she looked
at the livid hatred on his face, the only thing now visible to her.
"Think of what you're doing, Fox!" shouted Peppy, desperate
to get him to stop, but not knowing how other than trying to get him to think.
"You will regret this the rest of your life if you continue!"
Fox stopped mid-step, a confused expression appearing on his
face as he stared at the diminutive vixen that was quivering in fright. He stood
there, his anger draining away as he realized what he had almost done. He collapsed
to his knees, tears starting to wet his furred face, his arms shaking as they
fought to hold him upright.
The others knew that the rage had left as quickly as it came, leaving them safe
for now.
Peppy kneeled down next to the vulpine, shooting an angry look at Fara for pushing
the issue. "Come on, Fox," he said quietly, "let's go
back to your room. We can worry about all of this later."
"No," he muttered. He looked up towards the hare, then at Fara,
his eyes still watering. "I…I'm sorry about this. But you're
right. Fara's right. I…I do need to talk about this."
The vixen moved to get off the bed, not really knowing how close she had come
to serious harm. She was still frightened as to his prior actions, however.
"I can leave you two alone—"
"No," interrupted Fox. "After what I just did, you deserve
to know."
She smiled weakly. "Thanks."
"Thank me later." Moving to a more comfortable sitting position
upon the floor, he began his story. It took some time to go through it all,
and he had to stop multiple times due to him falling into tears at the more
upsetting parts. In the end though, he went over in detail his incident, filling
them in on a little known part of his life.
As he talked, Peppy listened in, making comments and asking questions where
needed. He hated seeing Fox like this, his friend of many years in tears like
a kit. He hoped that this discussion would stop any additional relapses, as
he didn't want to see this happen again.
Fara on the other hand kept quiet the entire time, not knowing his past like
the hare did. She felt sorry for him as he continued to talk, having lost his
mother right in front of his face like that. Even worse was the fact that he
lost his father also in a situation outside of his control. She understood why
he was so eager to seek revenge against Andross, as according to what Pepper
knew, it was anything but an accident.
Fox finally finished his sad tale, ending with a short on some of the things
he remembered doing with both his parents over the years. It was a small list,
as he was too young then to keep track of it all, but he had a few good memories.
He eventually quieted, wiping his few remaining tears away, slumping to one
side as he relaxed.
The three kept quiet afterwards, none of them wanting to break the silence.
Peppy and Fara kept glancing at each other, as if trying to decide who should
speak first. The hare finally spoke up and looked at Fox with worry. "Thanks
for telling us what happened, Fox. It explains a few things that we never knew
about you after all these years."
"Are you okay though?" asked Fara, concerned with Fox's mental
well being after going through his tragedy a second time.
"I'll be fine," he said after a few seconds of silence. He
slowly stood up, looking over the other two. "If you'll excuse me,
I'm going to go now." He turned to leave.
"If you need us—"
"I know." He got as far as the door, almost walking into it as it
refused to open again. "Uh, Fara?" he asked without turning around.
"Sorry. Computer, door unlock." The door swished open, responding
to her request. Fox left without another word, the door closing behind him.
Peppy looked over at the vixen as he prepared to leave as well. "Nice
little feature there with the doors. Is that standard?"
She shook her head. "No. I'm working on getting the computer to
accept limited voice commands in my spare time. I haven't really done
much beyond that."
"Ah." He stood up and moved towards the exit, his tone growing more
serious. "Fara, don't do something like that again." She went
to interrupt him, but he just continued. "I know it had a positive resolution,
and I'm thankful for that. However, as you can see, Fox has a limit that
can be broken easily. When he goes beyond that, his violent nature breaks free
and lashes out at anyone around him. And that includes his friends."
She sighed. "Okay. He…he just needed our help. We had to give it
to him."
"I know. But don't push him. For your sake, as well as ours."
"I…understand. See you later."
With a wave Peppy left, leaving Fara alone once more. She sat there, wondering
if she did the right thing. Fox did need their help back there, but she didn't
know if it was beneficial to make him do the things they put him through. She
wondered how many other secrets he kept hidden from the rest of them.
At what point though would the costs of uncovering these secrets be too great
for him to handle?
