- In the medical bay on the GreatFox-
" Well other than a few bruises, small cuts, and a broken bone you'll be fine." Falco said in a light hearted manner.
" Falco you should a little more serious. Dad's hurt pretty bad." Emerald said in an irritated tone.
" Yeah, why don't you do me a favor and find out what Charlie's up to. I'll keep an eye on Fox." Falco said a little more of a serious tone. Emerald didn't really want to but a look from Fox made her leave quietly.
" So Fox, what really happened between you and Jessie. I don't think her holding a blaster to your head means there was an accident." Falco said with both a concerned and serious look on his face. Fox was nervous about telling Falco the truth. Fox didn't know how he would react. He just stared at his old friend.
" Falco do you remember where we were 10 years ago?" Fox asked looking away from Falco for a moment. When he looked at Falco again, he looked as though he didn't know what Fox was getting at.
" What does that have to do with this Fox?" Falco asked frustrated with Fox for stalling.
" You remember Falco, it happened here. We finally got Wolf and Leon." Fox said.
" Oh yeah, that was great. The look of pure terror on Leons face when he knew I had him. And I remeber the 'pleasant' conversation between you and Wolf before you fried him." Falco said with a very pleased smirk on his face. But when Falco looked at Fox he saw Fox didn't seem very proud of it any more.
" Yeah I used to look at it like that to. Do you remember when we arived, how Wolf landed then took off again?"Fox asked.
" Yeah I do. I've always wondered what that was about. He really didn't want us going over there to think of it. He and Leon both kept avoiding that area." Falco said rubbing his chin.
" I found that out today, from Jessie." Fox said then grew silent. There was a few moments silence between them, then Falco couldn't take it any more.
" Well tell me Fox. It's been bugging me for a long time." Falco said.
" Wolf landed to let Jessie out. She was with him that day. A father spending time with his daughter, showing her the sights of Macbeth. Just trying to be a good father. There was no mischief planned, only an outing to make up for a missed birthday." Fox said in a soft vioce lowering his ears. " Jessie said Leon was there because she had asked him to come. Not only did she lose Wolf but she saw him die. She went up to the wreckage and looked on, powerless to help him. She also discovered her mother had an accident that day and and was dead as well. She was alone from then on"
There was silence after that. Falco couldn't believe they had Wolf O'Donnel's daughter on the GreatFox. The whole time she was there he never would have suspected it with how respectful she seemed to be towards Fox. And how close she seemed to be with James. Falco couldn't help but wonder if she had used James to learn bout Fox's weaknesses and vulnerabilities. But soon a small twinge of guilt began to form in his stomach.
" That, could really mess a kid up. I'm surprised she didn't attack you while you were sleeping." Falco said
" No, she had a plan. A plan that she had put together over ten years. She wouldn't ruin it after so long of waiting for her opportunity." Fox said. " She's been harboring nothing but hate in her heart for the last ten years. This must be the first time since the incident that she's felt anything else."
Falco lingered on this thought for a moment. He felt that no matter how she appered to feel now, she counldn't be trusted. He feared the thought of what would happen to Fox if he was left alone with her. Even if she felt remorse for what she had done, she was still a threat. Falco also felt he should inform James. But he didn't think James would believe him. Falco felt he should express these thoughts to Fox.
" Fox I don't think it would be a good ideaa if you were near Jessie from this moment on. She may have had second thoughts but if she remembers that hatred she may try to kill you again. And we should probably tell James, even though he may not believe us." Falco said, then added." After all they say love is a fools game and James can be pretty foolish on his own."
" Maybe, but we have to do this carefully. We can't let the others hear about this. If they find out, Jessie may never have a chance to actually live and not be bound by hatred." Fox said softly.
" You know McCloud, you sure have changed. If this sort of thing happened in the past you would have killed Jessie as she held that blaster to your head, no questions asked." Falco said watching the stars in space.
" I could say the same about you. In the old day's you would have destroyed her with your Arwing." Fox said then sighed with a small smile." Maybe the wisdom of time and experience is responsible for our change."
" Well it's that or being married to Katt and Krystal with a family and no missions for such a long time." Falco said jokingly. " I mean look at Slip, He's not married and his skills were used nearly every day. He's as sharp as he's always been. Hell, he's probably gotten better."
" You better not let Katt catch you talkin' like that or you'll be in a world of hurt." Fox said adding on to the joke.
" No kidding. I'm not looking forward to returning home any time soon. She looked like she was ready to kill me when I saw her last. Maybe it would be best if I got somebody guards." Falco said in a sarcastic manner and Fox had a good laugh.
They sat there in silence for a few minutes. Fox lost himself in thoughts of the past. He could here Peppy telling them to be more respectful of their wives. Falco noticed Fox had that dazed look on his face. Falco waved his hand in front of Fox's face but Fox just sat there. Falco leaned close to Fox, waiting for him to snap back in reality. When Fox did he nearly fell off the bed. Falco let out a loud laugh as Fox sat there confused for a second before joining Falco in his laughing. Fox felt they must have been under a lot of stress recently.
" Well, Fox you should get some rest. I'll check on James and Jessie. And then I'll delete this conversation from R.O.B.s memory banks. That way this conversation stays secret." Falco said then turned to leave but stopped. " Hey, Fox. Do you want me to tell James for you?"
" No Falco, I'll do it myself later. But thanks for offering buddy." Fox said before lying down.
Falco stood there a moment longer before leaving Fox to rest. He walked down the hall and first stop was the ships docking bay where Slippy was working on Fox's Arwing. He had a lot to keep himself busy. It seemed to help him calm down after this entire ordeal. Falco took a step inside for a quick moment to see how Slippy was doing.
Slippy looked up and he could see Falco heading his way with a tired smirk on his face. Slippy wasn't in the mood for any of Falco's smartass remarks. Slippy felt a little tense as Falco got closer. He hated being the butt of Falcos jokes so often. Slippy believed it was just one of Falco's ways of venting, but enough is enough. Slippy didn't mind when the team broke up because he didn't have to put up with Falco's crap. Falco leaned against the Arwings frame and Slippy expected one of Falco's famous lines like 'Hey Slip-up'. Slippy decided to try and ignore him if he gave him any crap.
" Hey Slippy, how are things?" Falco asked innocently. Slippy just shrugged as he set down his tool.
" As well as can be expected. The Arwing took quite a beating when it crashed." Slippy said looking up at Falco, who just nodded, his smirk gone. " How's Fox? He doin' alright?"
" Yeah, Fox will be fine. He'll need bed rest for a while but he'll recover like nothing ever happened." Falco said softly. He seemed tired, especially since no one had slept in the ten hours they've been working hard to patch Fox up and recover his Arwing. Falco pushed himself off the Arwing and stretched.
" Maybe you should get some rest Falco, you look exhausted." Slippy said, slightly concerned for Falco's well being.
" Sure, once I've checked on James, I'll do that. See you later Slippy." Falco said as he walked out. Leaving a stunned Slippy, who had been suprised that Falco didn't try to crack a joke at him.
Falco continued to head down the hall and stopped in front of James' quarters. Falco couldn't hear anything so he peeked in, not wanting to wake James if he was sleeping. The room was empty. Falco had a hunch where James was. He went down the hall a little way's and stopped in front of Jessie's quarters. Falco knocked but there was no answer. He decided to chance a peek in the room. Prepared to fend off Jessie if necessary. He opened the door only to see her sound asleep in James' arm's, who was also asleep. Jessie looked a little upset but comfortable in James' arm's. Falco quietly slinked out and left them to sleep. Across the hall was Charlie's room. Falco peeked in, only to see him half on the bed and half on the floor, out like a light.
Falco continued down the hall until he reached the bridge of the ship and found Emerald drifting off into sleep curled up in Fox's seat. It looked as though she had been crying some. Falco quietly opened R.O.B.s memory banks and deleted the data of the conversation. He then checked to make sure all of R.O.B.s security systems were running. Emerald had now fallen asleep. Falco carefully lifted her in his arms and carried her to her quarters and tucked her into bed. Falco then made his way to his quarters. He kicked off his shoes and crawled into bed. The avon was exhausted from the day. He didn't realize this until he felt his head rest on the pillow. Allowing himself to relax some but not completely. Falco passed out.
