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Disclaimer: I don't own Star Fox, Yugioh, or Star Wars.

Encounter

Chapter 22

Pain in my Heart

Serenity finally regained her conscience as she felt a cold draft around her. She looked around to see that her brother and all of her friends were gathered around her, making sure that she's all right.

"Serenity, you all right?" Yugi asked.

"Yeah, I think so," Serenity responded.

Joey was already trying to help Serenity up back onto her feet as she held her neck from Fox's grip. She's beginning to remember the events that happened before she blacked out, but she doesn't know if anything else happened.

"Serenity, do you know who did this?" Joey asked.

"Fox…where is he?" Serenity asked.

"If it's Fox that did this, then-"

"If Fox intended to kill Serenity, then he would've done it swiftly," Falco said. "Me knowing him, he probably got scared about something and ran off if what we see in this room is correct."

"Why do you say that, Falco?" Duke asked.

"Think about it. The door is open, we found Serenity unconscious on the ground here, and the room doesn't seem to be too terribly cold; making it that it was pretty recent when he did this. Right now, Fox is out there, probably trying to stay away from us if I'm thinking correctly."

"Falco…was Fox truly seduced to the Dark Side at one point in his life?" Serenity asked.

Falco stood there, looking at Serenity. He looked around the room, seeing that everyone's staring at him. Falco knew that the answer had to come sooner or later.

"…I hate to say it…but he was," Falco responded.

Everyone stood there surprised to hear that a good hearted person like Fox was seduced to the Dark Side. No one could understand why or how, but what matters the most to Serenity is where Fox is and why he's been acting the way he has been over the past month.

"Falco, do you think that Fox has finally lost it?" Téa asked.

"I can't be for sure. If I were to see Fox's condition now, then I'd know for sure," Falco explained.

"Serenity, what did you see before you blacked out?" Tristan asked. "Did you see anything different besides how Fox has been acting?"

"No…not exactly…except that Fox did seem to have a lot of anger built inside of him now," Serenity said. "I could see something different in his eyes, something that seemed unpleasant and scary if you looked into them."

"Did you see anything else besides that?" Mai asked.

"…No, that's when I blacked out."

Falco stood by the open door, trying to take a guess of which way Fox went, how fast he was going, and where he might be. The problem now is that there's a blizzard, which obstructed his view to a minimum range. He knows that Fox went to the right as the fading trail led in that direction. Serenity walked to the door, looking out in the general direction that Falco's looking in. Falco then walked back to the group, telling everyone what he thinks.

"I'd say he's pretty far by now, but I can't tell because of this blizzard," Falco said.

"There's no use in looking for him now; we have to wait until the blizzard is over," Grandpa explained.

"By that time, someone could easily be dead because of Fox," Duke said. "I'd say we all split up and go looking for him."

"I'd say no," Serenity said. "It's not your problem to deal with."

"If what you losers say is true, then Fox might be out there freezing his tale off," Seto said.

"Seto, don't say that," Mokuba said. "I'm concerned about Fox as well, but I don't want to get hurt either, nor let anyone get hurt."

"I'd like to go and give Fox a piece of my mind once I get my hands on him," Joey said.

"I highly suggest that you don't do that," Falco explained. "I'm pretty sure that Fox could deck you before you could even sneak up on him."

"If everyone else isn't doing anything, then I'm going out to find him myself," Serenity said.

Everyone looked over to the door to see that Serenity already went out the open door as she began to run off in the direction that Falco thinks he went. Joey began to run to the door, calling out to Serenity to not go out there. Falco grabbed Joey in a half nelson lock, trying to hold Joey down.

"Joey, if you go out there now, then you'd be lost after the first 30 feet," Falco explained.

"It's my sister; I can't let her go out there with a maniac!" Joey yelled.

"Listen to me, we can't go out there or else we'd all get lost within seconds."

Joey was still struggling to get out, trying to get to Serenity before she could get too far. The blizzard became more aggressive, obstructing all view not even 5 feet out. Yugi finally shut the door, feeling that Serenity isn't coming back.

An hour has already passed as Serenity finally got to Domino square after taking a number of turns around the corner. The blizzard finally calmed down a bit, but the snow kept falling heavily; leaving a pile of snow just under halfway of her lower legs. Despite for having a coat and jeans on, she felt numb all over her body, making it hard to walk efficiently. Serenity turned to theleft at the corner of a 4 way stop only to see someone sitting on a bench, slouched over as if something was troubling him. Serenity walked up next to Fox, wanting to help him in any way possible.

"Fox…can I sit here?" Serenity asked.

Despite that she didn't get an answer from Fox, she decided to sit next to him wanting to help. She couldn't find the right words to say, but she had to do something to get him to talk.

"Fox…I need to know something," Serenity said. "Why can't you tell me what's wrong?"

Fox only sat there, ignoring her question. He doesn't want to talk about his emotions just as much as he doesn't want to talk about his past.

"Fox, you can't just let it all go by you," Serenity said. "I know you were seduced to the Dark Side once, but I'm sure that your friends don't want to lose you again?"

"Like that's the big problem?" Fox finally said. "The only thing you're doing is asking for you death wish."

"I can help. If you'd at least tell me what's wrong, then…maybe there's a way around this."

"What's the point if I've already tried to get others to help me?"

Serenity knew that this would be difficult, but what she anticipated was worse than what she thought.

"Fox, I want to help," Serenity said. "I want to know what's been bothering you."

Fox became annoyed by all of this and wanted this to stop. He doesn't want to cause harm, but he also doesn't want help either. Fox knows that no one can take the truth about his life, about what happened over his years of living, or even what's been destroying him.

"Fox, can't you-"

"YOU WANT TO KNOW HOW I FEEL? OKAY, I'LL TELL YOU HOW I FEEL!" Fox yelled. "I'M SITTING HERE WITH AN ANNOYING GIRL WHO DOESN'T SEEM TO UNDERSTAND HOW CRUEL LIFE CAN BE!"

Serenity sat there, staring at Fox after his explanation. She's never seen him this angry, nor has she seen him do this once. Serenity's eyes began to fill with tears, knowing how life can be cruel.

"Fox…you think life is cruel to you?" Serenity asked.

Fox kept sitting there, looking straight out. He doesn't want to hear a story about her brother nor does he want to hear how other's have a worse life.

"Fox…I don't know your pain, but I'm sure you don't know mine," Serenity stated. "I was going blind because of a birth defect that I have. The operation allowed me to see again…but the operation was only a temporary reprieve from the end result. I'm going to go blind within the next few months if I don't get the operation again. The problem with it is that it gets worse with every operation, but I'm prepared to go blind if I have to."

Fox didn't look to Serenity, but if he did, he'd see the tears that were slowly running down her face. He knows that she's crying just because of her weak emotions; however, Serenity wasn't done talking yet.

"Fox…about Lisa…she was my only true friend that I ever had," Serenity explained. "She's the only one that knows of my greatest problem. The pain in my heart."

"What of it?" Fox asked in a low tone.

"You want to know what it is? It's the pain of loneliness. When Lisa died…I…I felt lost again. I can turn to Joey if I wanted to, but the truth is…Lisa seemed to understand the situation more. My life was falling apart when Joey and I were separated. Everyday since Lisa's death, a piece of my life was lost in my emotions, washed away from me; and it began again, starting with you."

With that, Fox's ears perked up as he knows how that feels. He turned his head to look at Serenity only to see her looking at the snow covered ground as her tears began to flow faster.

"Physically, I haven't died yet; but I've already died emotionally," Serenity said. "And because of it, I wanted to end my life there. I wanted to die so that I don't have to go through this pain anymore. But what's holding me back…is death itself. If I do die, then the pain will go away, but I won't be able to see Joey ever again."

Serenity's tears began to flow faster as her heart began to ache from this. Before she could wipe her tears, she felt a finger on her cheek, wiping up a tear that was running down her face. She looked over to see something different with Fox; this time, the look in his eyes appeared to understand the situation with her.

"Serenity, my life is hell at this point, but I understand how you're feeling," Fox said. "You seem to understand how cruel life can be."

"…Fox…"

"Serenity, I'll give you a chance just because you understand the pain in one's heart from life's cruelty. You're a victim to life's cruelty, so I think it's fair for me to tell you…tell you the things that I've been through…as well as why I've been falling apart all my life."

Serenity began to smile again, happy to see the old Fox that they all know and love. Just as Fox was about to get up, Serenity wrapped her arms around Fox's neck, thanking him for giving her a chance. Fox lifted Serenity up into his arms to carry her back. He knows that her whole body is numb from being outside for so long, making it hard on her body to move a lot. Fox began to walk down in the direction of where he lives so that they have a place better suited for this. The one thing that concerns Fox is the truth.

"Serenity, I don't know for sure if you can take the truth, but I'm sure you're strong enough to understand it."