"Where did you go after Peppy separated us?"

A good starter question. I broke off a piece of my pastry.

"I was taken to a family friend," I answered simply. "My life was pretty normal for the most part. I was dropped off and I didn't hear from Peppy until he came by to tell me that dad had died. After that, I never heard from him again. In fact, he didn't even recognize me when I came aboard your ship. That shows you how often he checked on my well-being."

He took a sip of his coffee as he thought of his next question.

"Did you go to the academy?"

"I did for a few years. Peppy told me to never try and contact you. When I started to get into the harder classes, I saw you all the time so, I dropped out. It was better that way."

Fox didn't like that answer.

"I'm not okay with the fact that you gave up on the academy because of me. I understand that you were doing what you were told. It still wasn't fair to you."

I took a sip of my coffee and shrugged. "You were the prodigal son. It was expected. And, believe me, it wasn't a big deal for me."

He seemed hurt by my words. "Do you really feel that way?"

I gently put my cup down. "Let's put it this way, Fox… Because of our separation, I didn't have to worry about following dad's footsteps. I didn't have to feel like I had something to live up to or try to surpass. I could simply live my life. And I did. I had everything to live for and nothing to hold me back or point me in a certain direction. I had freedom. I wouldn't change that even if I could. I say that only because, as you can see, even after I dropped out of the academy, I still became a pilot. I did construction to pay bills and that's how I met my best friend, Hara. I wouldn't change anything at all. Do I feel slighted? Maybe a little since I missed out on growing up beside my brother and not really knowing my father like I wish I could have. There are worse things and you're here with me now. That's all that matters."

Fox smiled at me. "I'm glad. Believe me when I say that I've missed you too."

I laughed. "That's all that you got out of that?" I took a bite of my pastry then continued. "So, you took over Star Fox. How is that going for you?"

"Very well actually. We're contracted by General Pepper quite often since the military can't cut corners and break rules like we can. And the pay is pretty nice."

I giggled. "And your team? Are they everything you hoped for?"

"They are the best there is," he boasted. "Peppy is talking about retirement already. I don't know if he'll go through with it anytime soon but, we'll see I guess. Slippy is young but he's a good friend. Falco is honestly the best pilot we have. He used to be the leader of his own gang before he joined."

"That doesn't surprise me," I snorted. "Which group?"

"The Hot-rodders."

"I've heard of them. That explains his stellar personality…"

"He really is a good person, Skye. He gets a little prickly with new people to size them up. Trust me, he means you no harm."

"I believe you. I'll give him a chance but I make no promises."

"In that case…" He leaned over. "There's a formal function that we've been invited to tomorrow night. Would you like to come with me?"

I stiffened at the thought of me wearing such dress. "Formal…?"

"We get invited to them all the time. Most of them military. This one is supposed to celebrate our victory at Venom."

"I don't know, Fox… I don't do well in crowds…"

"Come on, Skye. Don't be a pansy."

I gave him a dirty look then gave in to his trick. "I'm not being a pansy! Fine! I'll go."

We finished off our coffees then he drove me back to the school to pick up my vehicle.

"Tomorrow night. Don't forget. I'll pick you up from your place."

I ripped off a piece of paper with my address on it. "See you tomorrow then."

He drove off at that. I went straight home to find Hara lying on the couch. She got up as soon as I walked in.

"Welcome home," she said. "How was your day? You're a little late today."

"It was good. I ran into Fox and we went out for coffee to talk. I've been asked to be his plus one at a formal military function tomorrow night."

Hara lit up. "No way! My workplace coordinated that function. You should be excited!"

I groaned. "But now I have to go shopping and deal with Peppy…"

"What about Falco? Is he going?"

I paused. "Falco? Why would I even worry about him? My brother invited me, not Falco."

Hara gave me a devilish smile. "Come on, sweetie. We're going shopping. We're going to find something that will have all the boys coming for you!"

The next night, I was getting ready for the party. Hara and I had found a black, sparkly dress that had a slit on one side of it reaching about mid-thigh. The halter fit me perfectly and we had also gotten silver shoes to go with it. My hair was put up in a tight bun with curls coming out the bottom of it. I hardly recognized myself in the mirror.

I heard a knock at the front door and listened as Hara answered it.

"Skye!" she called. "Fox is here!"

This was it, no turning back now. I took a deep breath and left my bedroom to meet them. As soon as I entered the room, both Hara and Fox turned to me. Fox's jaw dropped while Hara beamed with pride over the ensemble she picked out for me. I immediately got embarrassed.

"It's too much, isn't it?" I asked sheepishly. "I'll go change into something a little more modest…"

Hara stopped me. "Are you kidding?! You look great! What do you think Fox?"

He blushed and instantly got uncomfortable. "She's my sister. I'm sure she'd look great even in a paper bag." He cocked an eyebrow at me and had a teasing gleam in his eye. "Who are you trying to impress?"

I huffed. "No one. Not anybody."

Fox offered me his arm. "Ready to go then?"

I nodded. "Yep. Let's hit it."

Fox escorted me into the ball in no hurry. I got a lot of looks from people around us. Fox squeezed my hand gently, assuring me that everything will be alright.

As soon as we got in, we went to get drinks. So many people were already dancing.

"You want to dance?" Fox asked.

I nodded and he took me out to the dance floor. We began to slowly dance then Fox saw my discomfort.

"You alright?"

"Yeah. There's just a lot of people. And, honestly, I don't want to catch hell from Peppy over being here at your request."

Fox made a face. I understood immediately what it was about. Peppy had already said something to him.

"No… Really?" I said. "You've got to be kidding me…"

"He's not happy but he understands. He's said his peace and that's as far as it goes with him. As for Falco…"

Before he could finish his sentence, Slippy came through the crowd. He was excited when he saw me.

"Skye! You're here!"

Fox and I stopped dancing so I could focus on Slippy. I smiled at him.

"Yep. Per Fox's request."

He grabbed my hands. "It's so great to see you! How have you been?"

"I've been great. Surprised that I'm here."

"Aww, don't be. Enjoy yourself!"

"I will certainly try."

Slippy looked to Fox then back to me. "You wanna dance, Skye?"

I giggled at him. "I would love to."

He took me to a different part of the dance floor. We began spinning around like kids and couldn't stop laughing. A few minutes passed when I finally stopped long enough to catch my breath. I excused myself from Slippy and went to get a drink. It wasn't long before I was joined by the senior member of Star Fox.

"Hello again, Skye," Peppy said from beside me.

I looked up at him. "Peppy."

He let out a sigh. "Look, I've done all I can to protect you and Fox over the years. I want you to know that, although I'm a little wary, I am thankful that you and Fox are reunited. Now that Andross is gone, you and he can get to know each other again. I know I haven't been the best guardian to you. I hope to make that right. If you'll let me, of course."

I thought it over. The right thing to do would've been to forgive him on the spot. I wasn't ready for that though. He left me with a family then only stopped by to tell me that my father had died. No checking up on me, no phone calls…

"I'm sorry but, I'm not ready to forgive you yet," I told him honestly.

"I understand. Whenever you're ready to talk, I'll be here."

"You have no idea how much I appreciate that."

After that, I got a light tap on my shoulder. I turned slowly to find Falco. He was dressed in a nice suit to match the occasion. I was amazed.

"My, my," I teased. "Who knew you could clean up so well?"

He smirked as he gave me a once-over. "Who knew that you could actually look like a lady."

Peppy noticed the friction and stepped in.

"Now, now you two. Can we get along for just one night?"

"I don't remember being the one with a problem," I told him.

Falco held out his hand. "Then you shouldn't have any issue dancing with me."

I looked at his hand then back to him. I took it with some hesitation then he took me out to the dance floor. I didn't want to get too close to him. He noticed and, instead of putting his hand at my waist, he placed it strategically at the small of my back, crushing me to him and keeping me there. It caught me off guard. It also threw me for a loop when I felt the instant connection between us. My body melted into his like I was meant to be there. It was unnerving… He didn't seem to be fazed at all. Actually, he looked like he was taking some joy out of my discomfort. He wasted no time getting to his more pressing questions.

"As interesting as this is, I want to know what your angle is."

I cocked an eyebrow at him. "Angle?"

"You and Fox," he clarified. "What's the deal? We save you from Titania, he lets you finish the mission with us then a few days later he shows up with you here. Working a little fast aren't you?"

I couldn't help but laugh at his ridiculous assumptions. Of course, he had no clue that Fox and I were related so he was going by what he was seeing. Still, it seemed silly to me.

He took my laughing at him personally.

"What's so funny?"

"It's funny that you think that Fox and I are an item. That couldn't be further from the truth."

"Oh?" he questioned in an unbelieving tone. "Enlighten me."

I looked him in the eye so he would know I wasn't lying to him.

"My surname, Kell, is the name I took from my adoptive parents. My real name is Skye McCloud. Fox is my older brother."

I watched as the understanding of what I just told him washed over his features. Even his hand at my back loosened its grip.

"You're not kidding," he murmured.

I shook my head. "Not even a little bit. And no, I'm really not in the mood to tell you my life story."

"I'm sure it's very boring anyway. Besides, it's only natural that your father would choose Fox over you to carry on his legacy."

I shoved him away and gave him a good solid slap into his cheek. I managed to make him stumble back. I was fuming.

"How dare you," I told him harshly. "How dare you assume that you know anything about me or my brother. Or my father for that matter! You know nothing about me or our circumstances! I suggest you get your story straight before you think you can make comments like that."

By then we had a crowd growing around us to see what was going on. I quickly took my leave of the whole party with the full intention of going home. Fox saw me leaving and called after me. He even followed me outside. He grabbed my hand to stop me.

"What happened in there? Come on, Skye. Talk to me."

I turned on him quickly and jerked my hand away. "You need to get a handle on your pilot. He has no right to judge me. And he certainly has no right to assume you're better than me because dad chose you."

Fox went to reach for me again but got interrupted by Peppy coming out of the building.

"Skye, it wasn't supposed to happen like this," Peppy said. "It was supposed to be a good night. Come back in. Enjoy yourself."

I gave him a dirty look. "I liked it better when you decided to have nothing to do with me. I'm going home if I have to walk all the way there."

I took off at that. After I had gotten far enough from the building, I called Hara.

"Hey, Skye," she said over the phone. "How's the party?"

"Please tell me you're at home…"

"Uh, yeah. I'm home. Why? What's up?"

"Could you come pick me up?"

There was a pause. "What happened?"

"I'll tell you about it when you get me."

"Alright, I'm on my way now. Hang tight."

I waited on a bench for her. A few minutes later she pulled up. I wasted no time getting into the vehicle.

"Goodness," she said. "You look like you need a punching bag and a drink."

I snorted. "Between Falco and Peppy, I need to skip the punching bag and go straight to the voodoo dolls. It's high time that I forget about them and do my own thing. I was much better off before they came to rescue me on Titania…"