When Falcon awoke, it was to the glass cockpit of the Blue Falcon. As he yawned and stretched, his hands knocked over a can of soda he had left on the dashboard behind him, and a pain shot up his neck where his headrest had been stabbing into him.

The joys of being me, he thought as he ran a hand through his disheveled brown hair. What I wouldn't do to be back home again.

Dimly, he was aware that the whole point of this was so he'd have a home to get back to in the first place. That didn't help much, but it was the thought that finally forced his muscles to act and push him out of sleep and into a more comfortable, upright position.

"Falcon Flyer, what time is it?" he mumbled.

All the vehicle's lights instantly came to life, flickering like little dots in his vision. "Seven AM in the local time, sir. You've been asleep for seven hours," the Falcon Flyer's artificial voice chimed in, connected to the Blue Falcon over a private network.

"Seven hours? It sure didn't feel like it." Falcon groaned, and he reached back to rub his sore neck. He tried to roll his head back, only for his chest to bump against the steering wheel. The inside of his vehicle was a lot more cramped than his ship, and he began to wonder why he wasn't in his ship in the first place when the events of last night hit him like a high-speed crash.

The fight with Blood Falcon. The explosion.

He'd ditched his ship just like he ditched that policewoman to clean up his mess.

Again, Falcon groaned as he palmed his face. His elbow hit the dashboard as he did so, and a bunch of new lights started flashing. Apparently he'd hit some stuff he wasn't supposed to hit and caused problems for the Blue Falcon–not that he could be bothered to deal with all that incessant ringing when his head was still full of fuzz.

"Falcon Flyer, take care of this," he said, bringing his hand up to cover his eyes from all the buzzing and bright lights.

"Yes sir." Something in the vehicle clicked. "Sir, Jody Summer from the Galactic Space Federation is calling."

Falcon's eyes bulged. "She is?" He cursed and grabbed his helmet on the dashboard. His fingers fumbled as he turned it around. "Why is she calling now?"

"She just asked for you to pick up immediately."

"That doesn't sound very–" Falcon hissed as his elbow hit the edge of a door handle. His fingers tensed, and his helmet dropped onto a blue lever, forcing it back.

"Activating Boost Fire."

"No! Don't activate Boost Fire!" Falcon cried out, and he reached under the dashboard for his fallen helmet. "Dammit. I thought artificial intelligence was supposed to be intelligent."

"You pulled the activation lever."

"I didn't! That was my helmet!" As his fingers grabbed the top of his helmet, his arm slammed against a crank beside his seat. Immediately, the seat flung back, taking Falcon with it. He was only able to hold onto the helmet for a few seconds before it slipped from his grasp and crashed into the back of his vehicle.

"But that was you," the AI said.

Falcon groaned up at the top of his vehicle. "That's not helping things. Do you remember who owns you?"

"You do, sir."

"Falcon Flyer, please mute yourself."

From the corner of his eye, he saw a mute icon appear on the dashboard. He sighed, then returned to reaching for his helmet. As soon as he wrapped his fingers around the rim, Falcon dragged it back over and slid it back onto his head. He reached back for the crank, pushed down, and hauled himself back up.

And who else did he find staring at him through the front screen but Jody Summer.

Falcon yelped. "Jody! When did you get there?"

On the other end, Jody raised an eyebrow. "You didn't notice? Don't you have an AI for this sort of thing?"

"I do, but I–" He'd muted it. Oh, the irony.

Captain Falcon wasn't supposed to make mistakes like that. Captain Falcon wasn't supposed to look stupid in front of his allies.

"Nevermind that," Captain Falcon said, quickly straightening out his clothes and putting on a smile. "Jody. What do you need?"

"Don't "what do you need" me, Captain Falcon. The second I leave you alone, I get a call from the Ylisstol suburbs telling me that you've apparently blown up an airfield. Is that true?"

Captain Falcon allowed a wince to show through his face. "Yes, that is true. Rest assured, I still have everything under control."

"Do you now?"

"Yes."

"Then why were you going around, blowing up government property?"

"First off, that wasn't me. Blood Falcon blew up a plane to cover his tracks."

"And erasing any lead you could have found from there."

Captain Falcon winked at her. "Not quite." He reached under a compartment on his side door, plucked out a small vial, and held it before the screen. "Don't tell Blood Falcon," he said, tossing it up and catching it, "but I took this off him while we were fighting. I figured when he'd ambushed me, he'd already found what he was looking for and needed to knock me out to make his escape."

Jody hummed. "Impressive."

"I'm sure it is." Captain Falcon tapped a label on the side of the vial. "It says here that this is filled with "Subspace matter", whatever that means. I should send it over to you, right? Or do you think it'll be easier to have the department here take a look at it?"

"I think you should send it over to the YPD and–" Jody shook her head and scowled. "You're distracting me."

"That I am."

"Captain Falcon, you punched an officer of the YPD in the face."

Falcon winced again. "Did I?"

"You did, and I think you should be sure to apologize to them for it. Remember, you're supposed to work with the local police department, not smack them upside the head."

Captain Falcon waved her aside. "Apologize to them. Got it. I'll make sure to go down to the station later today, hand in the vial and say I'm sorry."

"Don't put it off Captain Falcon. You'll forget."

Captain Falcon blew air out through his teeth. "As much as I'd love to, I have another appointment today, remember? I've got someone I need to meet at eight thirty. An old friend of yours. Chrom, I think?"

"Oh. Right." Jody frowned, but she gave a dismissive wave of her hand. "Go do that, but after, you're going straight to the station."

"Don't worry. I won't forget it. Captain Falcon out." Captain Falcon reached over and pressed a button on the dashboard, and the screen in front of him blinked out.

As soon as Jody disappeared, the smile fell from his face and he sighed. Falcon lifted the helmet off his head with the heel of his palm and combed his fingers through his hair.

"What a bother," he muttered.

Apologizing had never been his strong suit, and now he was supposed to find some policewoman and make sure she didn't hold a grudge? Surely there were more important things he needed to do.

Did he feel bad about punching her in the face? Yes, he did. Falcon knew more than anyone that he hit quite hard, and a blow like that probably deserved an apology.

Did he have time for it? Again, yes. An apology, as awkward as it could be, would be short. He could just get it over with as soon as possible, but hunting down that policewoman would still be a waste of time. The more time he spent here, the longer it would take to get home, and that really was all he was here for.

Letting out a long breath of air, Falcon leaned his hands up against the steering wheel. If I ever do meet her, I'll be sure to say sorry, but right now, that isn't my top priority. That would be making sure I get this subspace stuff looked at.

Falcon paused to wave the vial in front of his face, watching the dark purple liquid inside slosh around. If I get this case solved within the week, hopefully I'll be out of their hair before I'll even need to meet her. Besides, what are the chances I'll ever run into her again? I might meet her when I go down to the station today, but she's probably too tired from managing the aftermath of the mess we caused to go anywhere.


When Lucina's alarm jolted her awake at seven in the morning, she wanted nothing more than to hurl it out of her window. That it was her old alarm clock, playing a high-pitched pop song from ten years ago that she'd only liked when she was twelve, did not help at all.

Lucina reached over and grabbed her clock off the shelf. She aimed it at her window, considered what she was about to do, then decided it wasn't worth having to pay for repairs. Instead, she settled for pressing the big snooze button on the top and dropping it back down.

Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, Lucina peeled off her blankets and dragged herself out of bed. She stumbled over to her closet and hauled out a bright leopard print shirt and pair of polka-dot jeans, but when she tried to fit her head through the top, she was confused to find that the collar squeezed her neck uncomfortably tight.

It took a moment for it to get through her sleep-addled mind that she hadn't worn these clothes since high school, and that her actual clothes were hanging over the chair in the corner.

Of course, that meant Lucina had to go through the pain-staking process of squeezing out of her shirt, arranging it back in her closet, and picking up the clothes on her chair and putting them on. By the time she was fully dressed, her neck still ached and she was already finished with the day, even though it had only begun.

Lucina started for the door with a sigh. And this likely won't be the worst I have to deal with today. I still have plenty of work to do when I get back home, and–

Before she could even reach the door, her alarm was going off again. Lucina stiffened, and her eyes snapped back to her desk.

This again? I could have sworn I turned it off!

Her gaze traveled upward to the buttons on top, and with a groan, she realized that she'd pressed the snooze button instead of the off button. Lucina stormed back over to her bedside, slammed the off button with the side of her hand, and fumbled out of her room before she could change her mind about throwing the alarm clock away.

Thankfully, the empty hallway was a little quieter. The lights were off, but the faint yellow glow coming from below lit it enough for her to navigate to the stairs. She could already hear her father moving in the kitchen, and the smell of breakfast soothed her and settled her nerves as she headed down to meet him.

Almost as soon as she walked into the kitchen, Lucina was greeted with a loud popping sound. She ducked, startled, and a streak of silver shot over her head and buried itself in the wall.

"Sorry!" her father said.

Lucina glanced back with a huff. The kitchen... surprisingly enough, the kitchen was still intact. Mostly. The walls were still the same bright shade of yellow and orange. Five cabinets still had their doors on–make that four. Only one of the burners was on fire, and–

"Is that my pan?" Lucina choked out.

Her father looked at her, then at the half-burned pan dripping with some yellow substance and replied, "No. It's mine."

"That's my pan! That's the one I gave you yesterday. Have you already damaged it?"

"It's still intact."

"Like the rest of our pots and pans?" Lucina motioned to the rack by the sink, where a row of burnt and ruined cookware sat on display. "Father, couldn't you have used one of our older pans for... whatever this is?"

"If you hadn't intended for me to use it, you shouldn't have given it to me."

"It's not that, it's just..." Lucina frowned and made a helpless flailing motion. "I had simply hoped you would take better care of this one."

"It still works," her father replied. "Besides, I made you scrambled eggs and toast without burning it for once. I believe that earns me some credit."

Her father tilted the pan, sliding the yellow substance onto the plate waiting below, and he plucked a piece of toast from the toaster with his bare hands and placed it beside the eggs. As he handed it over to Lucina, she gave it a quick sniff.

"This is... good. That's a surprise," she muttered. Lucina glanced back at her father, who returned her look with a grin.

"I've had a lot of practice. I've already made myself a plate. Now let's sit down. I'm starving!"

"But the kitchen–"

"I'll clean it up later." Her father pulled a chair out from the table and pushed her into it. "Now eat. I'm sure you have quite the busy day ahead of you."

As much as Lucina wanted to protest, she knew it would be a fruitless endeavor. Sighing, she stabbed her eggs with a fork and shoved it into her mouth. She hummed happily, closing her eyes as she chewed.

And chewed.

And chewed.

And chewed.

"It tastes fine," she mumbled around a mouthful of egg, "but it's a little tough."

Her father chuckled from his side of the table, and he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "I know. It's not as light as your mother used to make it, but I think I'm slowly figuring out how to replicate it."

"Oh." Lucina swallowed her eggs with a wince. Suddenly, the food didn't smell quite as enticing as it had before. She stared at her plate with a frown, and she poked at her eggs with her fork, but made no attempt to eat it.

Her father noticed–because of course he would–and with a sigh, he reached over the table and pushed her plate toward her. "Come on. Eat. You look like you could use the energy." His lips pulled down. "Speaking of which, did anything happen last night? You look more tired than usual."

She'd been punched in the face. She'd been forced to stay up all night, telling the men in the air base what had happened as soon as Captain Falcon had left her to clean up his mess. She had come home at three in the morning, and she had only been able to sleep for four hours.

"Nothing happened," Lucina said, rolling her eyes. "I'm not sixteen, father. You don't have to worry about me anymore."

"I'm your father. What else can I do but worry about you?"

"I'll be fine. If anything, I should be worrying about you." Lucina motioned around them. "You can't make breakfast without burning down the kitchen."

Her father laughed. "I guess so. But just because I may need a little advice in the kitchen doesn't mean you have to get me new pots and pans for my birthday every year." He lifted the burned pan for emphasis. "It's useful, yes, but I'd like something new next time."

"If I could afford anything else, you would have it."

"Something other than kitchenware, perhaps?"

Lucina excused herself from replying by shoveling another forkful of eggs into her mouth.

Her father huffed, and he started to chew on his own toast. Lucina knew that he did not appreciate being ignored, but with his kitchen in constant disrepair, she could not, in good conscience, buy him anything else.

Behind her father, another cabinet door popped off its hinges and dropped to the floor.

"On the topic of money," he said over the resulting crash, "how's that promotion coming along? You've been part of the force long enough, haven't you?"

Lucina nodded. "I have. They assigned me one last case to finish as part of my examination."

"I see. That sounds fun." Her father smiled. "Care to spare me any details?"

"Father. You know I can't." When her father reached for the case files she'd left on the coffee table next to them, Lucina nudged it away with her foot. "I know you were a former member of the YPD. That doesn't mean I can give you classified information."

"Come on, Lucina. There's nothing that says you can't receive help, is there? I'm sure I could give you advice on how to handle whatever you're dealing with."

Lucina hummed and closed her eyes. She picked at her eggs for a bit, then set down her fork with a sigh. "Don't tell anyone I said this, but Blood Falcon is here in Ylisstol, and I've been tasked with apprehending him."

"Blood Falcon? Isn't he an international criminal from Mute City?" When she nodded, a concerned frown crossed her father's face. "That seems like a tough case for a detective. Are you sure this is a case you want to take?"

"I'll be fine. Someone needed to take the job."

"And someone will." Her father changed into a grin. "Robin told me this morning that someone was coming here to hunt him down. You've heard of Captain Falcon, haven't you?"

Lucina groaned, and the memories of last night replayed in her head. "Know him? I met him last night."

"You did?"

"Yes." Lucina scowled. "He seemed like an arrogant fop, but he isn't a world-renowned bounty hunter for nothing, so I suppose it isn't exactly unearned."

"It sounds like he could have made a better first impression. Still," her father said around a mouthful of eggs, "he is pursuing the same target as you." He paused, and a speck of yellow fell from his mouth. "Hey, here's an idea. Why don't you work with him to make the task a little easier?"

"Work with him? If I do, I fear he may take all the credit."

Her father reached over to tap her on the head with a fork. "Don't sound so jealous. I'm sure he would appreciate the assistance. You and him might not be as different as you believe."

"I don't see how we could have anything in common. I'm a police lieutenant. He's a world-famous bounty hunter. I live by myself in an apartment that I pay Robin for. He probably lives in an extravagant mansion out in the middle of nowhere."

"Of course. Whatever happened to the little girl I raised? You were always happy to ask for my help. Why can't you accept any other help with your case?"

Lucina scoffed. "Well, it's my case, and I need to finish it on my own if I am going to get that–" By chance, her eyes drifted over her father's shoulder, and when she saw the clock somehow still hanging on the wall by a half-burned down cabinet, she almost choked on her eggs. "Naga's teeth, it's ten past eight already?"

Her father glanced over his shoulder and followed her gaze. "What time did you think it was?"

"I thought it was seven!"

Her father's face scrunched. "That's odd. You didn't get that from your old alarm clock, did you?"

"Is there something wrong with my alarm clock?"

"Yes. It's an hour early. I've been meaning to adjust it for months, but I've never gotten around to doing so."

"Father!"

"What's the matter? Is something wrong?"

"Is something wrong?" Lucina paused for a moment to raise her plate to her mouth, tilt it up, and scoop the rest of her eggs in her mouth. She snatched the toast from her plate and stuffed it into her pocket, before she turned to her father and said, "Robin messaged me last night. She said I was supposed to meet my new roommate at eight thirty. I can't be late!"

"You needed a roommate? When did you–" But Lucina wasn't listening. She jumped out of her chair and bolted for the door, grabbing her blue coat from the rack by the entrance and shrugging it on as she did so.

Her car, a small blue thing that her father had gotten for her on her eighteenth birthday, was waiting for her by the house when she burst outside. Lucina threw the door open and hurled herself in. When she fumbled in the middle compartment for her keys, however, all she found was a few old receipts and a box of chocolates she'd stuffed in there a week ago and had completely forgotten about. She patted her coat pockets, but there was nothing in them as well. She could feel her panic beginning to rise when she heard a knock on the window

Lucina glanced to her left. Her father stood outside, one hand pressed to the glass, the other dangling her keys behind him.

With a scowl, Lucina stepped back out of the car and held out her hand. "Father. Could you hand me my keys?"

"Not until you tell me what is happening." Her father gave her a curious look. "I was under the impression that you were handling your rent just fine."

"I am!"

"You're not going through any financial troubles?"

"No, father, none at all. I just thought having someone else share the rent would let me save more money for your treatment."

"My treatment? What treat–" Her father blinked. "Oh. That treatment."

"Yes. Now, father, could you please hand me my keys?" Lucina said, and she reached to grab her keys out from her father's hand.

Her father stopped her with a hand on her shoulder. "Lucina. You don't have to keep worrying about me. You don't need to put yourself through all this for my sake. We'll be fine."

"But you're my father. What else can I do but worry about you?"

That got her father to pause. He frowned, and he looked away. After a moment, he sighed and dropped her keys into her waiting hands.

"I don't think you need to do this–"

"But I want to, father."

Her father nodded. "Yes, I can see that. Promise me you'll take care of yourself."

"I will, father. I will."

Lucina stepped back into the car and closed the door behind her. She turned the key in the ignition, but as she pulled it into gear, she heard her father knock on her window again.

Lucina frowned. She wanted to leave, but she still pulled down her window to hear what her father had to say.

"Do you know who it is?" he asked.

"No. But Robin said that you knew her."

"I did?" His eyes narrowed. "Wait. Don't tell me. You're the person Robin needed to find a roommate for?"

"I am."

Her father groaned, but his face held the faintest hints of a smile. "Naga dammit. I should have known. Well," he said, leaning over to tussle Lucina's hair, "I do know her, and I know you'll be in good hands. Tell Jody I said hi."

"I will, father."

"Now go out there and solve that case, won't you?"


First update of December! I've got some catching you all up to speed to do, so this note is going to be a bit lengthy.

Yes, I know this isn't Tuesday, which I think was my update day for this fic, but I'd only had this half-written on Tuesday and couldn't put it out. Yes, I've been gone for a while, but I was busy over November participating in National Novel Writing Month. Maybe I could have found the time to cobble something together in between, but I also had college business to take care of too, so that didn't help any.

Recently, I've been thinking about this story a lot. I'd consider it the better of my two stories right now, and it's been more fun writing for me than my other one right now. As much as I want to say that this means I'll be updating more frequently in the future, I think I've said that so many times and failed to deliver that I shouldn't be allowed to say that until I actually start updating more often.

I've also got another Smash story in the works. If you've spoken to me at all on the Super Smash Prose discord server (really cool place by the way, it's where I give all my excuses for why the updates are so late, join code is gDK48ua, wink wink, nudge nudge), you'll know what I'm talking about.

I think that's all I'm willing to cram into the notes section. College applications are still unfun. It's not gnawing away at my sanity that much now, so hopefully I'll be able to push out a new chapter... soon-ish. I'd like it to be two weeks, but I also tend to go do a Christmas fic over Christmas break, so it might take a bit longer. Hopefully, it'll be on a Tuesday next time.

Until then, I wish you all well, and stay safe!