Author's note:
You know what; you're waiting for this; I'm waiting for this. Let's just get to it.
Chapter 6: Reconciliation
Fox spent the day doing everything that he could think of to distract himself. He cleaned the house; mowed the lawn; did the laundry; washed his car. At three in the afternoon, he drove over to the school to pick up Marcus. Then Fox went back to fending off his worries with mindless chores.
While scrolling online during a much-needed break, Fox spotted an old photo of him on a tabloid post. '15 Celebrities Who Vanished from the Face of the Universe.' He shook his head with a smirk and flicked past it. He had taken up his mother's maiden name to cut away his past life and be with the woman he loved. It would require more than the paparazzi beating on dead horses to make him revisit it. Fox did wonder how his old teammates were doing these days, though. He hadn't spoken with any of them since he left Lylat all those years ago.
A message pinged on his phone. Fox's heart hammered as he read Kursed's name as the sender. His thumb opened it with no conscious thought.
'Fox. I'm ready to talk. See you when I get home.'
A breath that he didn't realise he'd been holding in escaped Fox. Before he could text back, a second message came through. 'I love you.'
Tears stung Fox's eyes. Drying them, he typed his reply. 'I'll be waiting. Love you too.'
Fox placed the phone down and covered his face in his hands. He thanked all the gods and spirits whom he did not worship. His chest tightened, but he kept his emotions inside. When he had them under control, Fox went about the rest of his day with the clouds parting from over his head.
"Is Mum coming home?" Marcus asked when the time came for Fox to put him to bed.
"She said she was going to be late," Fox rubbed his son's head. "But she did tell me that she will be home soon." He showed him the messages from earlier. "You see? Mum and I are going to talk things out when she gets back. There's nothing you need to worry about now."
Marcus almost choked him as they hugged. Fox kissed his brow and bid him goodnight. He turned off the light and went to watch television whilst he waited. There was nothing but crap airing. Fox couldn't pay an iota of attention to anything on-screen.
At nearly 10:00 PM, Fox heard a car pull into the driveway. He killed the TV and perched along the edge of the couch. His ear flicked at the sound of the front lock turning. Unable to wait any longer, Fox stood up. He made his way to the door, where Kursed dropped her keys onto the side table next to it.
He stopped. She turned to him. They stood apart, silent. Fox opened his arms; not quite beckoning for an embrace but just enough to let her know that the invitation was there. Slowly, Kursed approached him. She slipped her arms around his chest. Their tentative touch grew into starved, desperate pressure. Fox hugged Kursed as though it were for the first and last time.
"Welcome home," he whispered into her ear. She sniffled deeply as she nestled into his shoulder.
Fox wanted this moment to last forever. However, there was still an elephant in the room to address. "So… where do you want to do this? Dining room? Living room? Outside?"
Kursed looked at him. He stared into her cerulean eyes. "Do you mind if we talk in the bedroom?" she asked softly.
That was fine by Fox. There, he and Kursed closed the door behind them and each took a seat at the foot of the bed. They wrung their hands, waiting for the other to speak first. Fox decided to take the lead.
"Krystal… I'm so sorry about what I did in Lylat. I was stupid, rude, and arrogant towards you. I should have given you the credit you were due as a pilot, and I should never have tried to protect you when you didn't need me to. You deserved so much better than how I treated you."
Kursed sniffed. "Fox… I'm sorry that I never accepted your apologies. I was too proud and stubborn to give you a second chance. And even when we did get back together, I was suspicious that you'd try and hold me down again. So, I tested you for ages, waiting for you to slip up. But you never did, and I made you suffer in silence. I'm so sorry that it took hurting you in that way for me to learn to trust you again."
Fox fetched the box of tissues on his nightstand. He offered Kursed one, which she used to dry her tears. "After I ruined what we had the first time," he said, "I tried to stay out of your way from then on. I still wanted to be with you, but I also wanted you to feel free to be yourself. It scared me every day wondering whether you'd come home safely or not; but I was determined to always put your happiness ahead of my own."
"I don't deserve that," Kursed moaned. "After I helped Star Wolf and left you and the others in the dust, I realised too late how stupid I was being. I turned my back on you. And the whole Lylat System made sure I'd never forget it."
Fox hung his head. "I heard all the things that they said about you." His claws dug into his palms. "I hated it. I hated how they talked as though they knew anything! It shouldn't have mattered which side you took! You saved the system from the Anglars with the rest of Wolf's team! I was just upset that you didn't let us in on your plan! We could have helped!"
Kursed began crying. Her tissue soaked through completely. Fox wrapped his arms around her, stroking her hair soothingly. "Oh, God! I'm sorry, Krystal! I didn't mean to upset you. It's okay. It's okay."
"I betrayed you."
"I forgive you."
"I used you!"
"I deserved it."
"No! No, you didn't!" Kursed wailed. "You were right! I should have let you, Falco, and Slippy help us! But I didn't. I wanted to prove that I was better than you. But all I did was prove that I was worse!" Another heavy sob racked through her. "I had no right to be with you again after what I did."
"Please stop beating yourself up," Fox sighed. "We've both done too much of that for too long." He kissed her forehead. "Krystal… I want to make a fresh start with you. That's all that I hoped for after I found you on Kew. Can we please do that?"
Kursed hugged him back. Her grip was so tight that Fox could barely breathe. "I'm not sure if I can be who I once was, though."
"That's okay," Fox whispered to her. "I don't mind whether you want to be Krystal or Kursed. I fell in love with both sides of you. If Kursed is all who you want to be, then I'll support that. If you want to be Krystal instead, then you can be her again. It's up to you."
For a while, she merely held him. "I want to stop lying to myself… But I don't think I know how to be Krystal again."
"I'll help you," he promised. "You're a lot closer to the old you than you think you are."
"I'm scared, Fox. I've ran from my past for so long. I'm not strong enough to face it head on."
"I'm right here with you. Whatever happens, we'll deal with it together."
Then, Kursed pulled away from him. She looked into Fox's eyes and touched his cheek. "Can I… Can I touch… your mind?"
Fox smiled lovingly. "Of course."
Kursed pressed their foreheads together and closed her eyes. Warmth leaked inside of Fox's skull. He bit back a sob as he heard her inner voice for the first time in over fifteen years. The trickle of her thoughts seeped further into his. They touched memories, feelings, and deeper parts of his soul. Kursed wept into his arms. Her anguish and joy quaked through Fox in sync with his. He kissed her passionately, taking in everything about her and this experience as he could without gifts of his own.
"I want to be Krystal again," she whispered.
"Then you'll always be Krystal to me," Fox cooed.
Krystal kissed him. Their contact was prolonged and deep. She then pulled back and shuffled herself onto Fox's lap. Her hands fiddled with his belt buckle. Fox kissed her again as he removed her jacket and top. Krystal unbuttoned his shirt, casting it carelessly to the floor. When Fox reached for the hooks of her bra, she stopped him.
"Wait one second." With their minds still tethered, Fox felt Krystal reach out to seize another presence he had not yet noticed before.
'Marcus!' she growled. 'Stop spying and go to bed!' The tiny presence then sucked straight back into his body.
"I really need to teach him how to use his powers," Krystal sighed irritably as she turned back to Fox.
"Sorry I can't help in that department," he replied.
She caressed his cheek. Sadness overtook her face. "I'm going to look for a new job. I want to be home for Marcus more; and I know that you want to go back to working again."
It was a wish that Fox buried deep inside of himself, yet he appreciated Krystal unearthing it. "I can book us in for some career counselling starting tomorrow, if you want."
"I could use the help," she chuckled. "I'm not sure what else I can do when all I know is how to fly and shoot people."
"Me neither. Getting back into the workforce in my forties is gonna be tough with my skills," he grinned. "But I'm sure there's something we can find."
For a moment, they spoke no further. Then Krystal swallowed. "I'm sorry that I lied to you for so long."
"I'm sorry too," Fox said woefully. "I lied back, so I'm just as bad." He touched her hand on his cheek and stroked her fingers. "Can we do one more thing, if that's okay? I want us to stop keeping secrets from each other. I want to be honest with you from now on."
"And I want to stop lying to you," Krystal wept. "I want to know exactly how you think and feel all the time. I want to connect with you more."
"Does that mean more telepathy or…?" Fox then added, "Because I don't mind if you do."
She giggled. "That'd be nice. But I also want to hear you voice your thoughts. I want for us to talk more and be able to listen to each other. I've really missed being able to do that with you."
Fox understood what she was saying. He'd like that; to do away with skirting sensitive subjects as they talked, day in and day out. He wanted to tell Krystal exactly how much he loves and worries about her constantly; and hear her speak her mind more openly with him.
"That sounds perfect to me," he answered.
Smiling down upon him, Krystal leaned forward to kiss him on the lips. "I love you, Fox."
"I love you too, Krystal."
Then, Krystal pushed him back over the bed and they went on to finish what they had started together.
End note:
One more chapter coming up to close this story off. I'll release it in a few days.