We left Gilford Station and headed to Katina. Slippy and Fox flew on either side of my carrier to keep an eye out for pirates. The trip to Katina wasn't going to be long. The longest part of this whole mission was unloading everything.

We headed into the asteroid field to get to Katina. Right on schedule, Star Wolf was waiting for us.

"Going somewhere, Kell?" Wolf's voice took over my com.

"Don't you have something better to do, Wolf?" I asked. "I figured you would find someone more worth your time by now."

"Skye, they are all around us," Fox reported.

Just as he said that my ship was encircled by Star Wolf. My ship was at a standstill. Fox and I were surrounded. Wait…

"Fox, where's Slippy?"

Right after I spoke, some lasers came out from beside me and Fox and hit Leon on the side. Wolf, Pigma and Andrew all spread out as soon as one of their own was shot.

"What was that?!" Leon cried.

Slippy came swooping in. I let out a laugh.

"Don't worry, guys," Slippy said through the com. "I got your backs."

"Good work, Slip," Fox said. "Now we're even, Wolf. Let us through."

"We're not even close," Wolf argued. "Her ship has no fighting capabilities. And, believe me when I say that we've tested her shielding. It might last a while against one ship. But against four?"

"We know how this usually ends," I told them. "You loot my ship, decide there is nothing for you to take then either let me go on my way or shoot me down to where I usually wait several hours until help comes or I fix the damn thing myself. Do us all a favor and find someone else to pick on. If you're never going to finish the job then go away."

A loud cackle went through my com.

"She wants us to finish the job," Pigma squealed.

"Me and my big mouth…" I muttered.

"Skye…" Fox said through gritted teeth.

When it all seemed lost, a familiar voice came through the com.

"I order you to stand down, Star Wolf. Skye Kell is under military protection. I suggest you take your business somewhere else or you will be shot down on the spot."

I let out a sigh of relief. "Bill, as always, your timing is impeccable."

"Bill?" Fox asked. "You know Bill?"

"We're not talking about this now…"

"It would seem that you've won this round, Kell," Wolf spoke up. "We'll be back."

All four members took their leave.

"Whew! That was too close!" Slippy cried.

"Is everyone alright?" Bill asked.

I looked again to see a ten man fleet behind the bulldog pilot. I chuckled.

"You weren't taking no for an answer, were you?"

"We desperately need those supplies, Miss Kell. Not only that, but we knew Star Wolf would be after you again."

"Again?" Fox croaked.

"Fox? Is that you?"

"It's good to see you again, Bill. I would say long time no see but…"

Bill laughed. "We can catch up later, Fox. For now, we need to escort Miss Kell to Katina."

After that, it didn't take us long to get to one of the outposts. I was docked quickly and Bill's men went to work on unloading my ship. Slippy came to stand with me while Fox and Bill talked.

"Why don't you help unload with them?" he asked me.

I smiled. "It's company policy. I don't touch the goods so no one can blame me if something is wrong with any of it. It's my boss's way of protecting his pilots."

As soon as I said that, Bill and Fox walked over. Bill eyed me strangely.

"Are you sure you're related? You look nothing alike."

I gave Fox a hard glare. "I would appreciate it if you didn't tell everybody our connection. It's nobody's business but ours."

"No need to get saucy with him, Skye," Bill said. "I asked and he answered. Simple as that."

I arched an eyebrow at him. "Saucy, huh? Is that what you really think of me, Bill?"

He smirked. "Hardly. You make sure that we get what we need. You just happen to keep life interesting when you get here."

I laughed it off and went back to supervising the unpacking of my ship. They got done quickly and we were sent back on our merry way. We got back to Gilford Station without a hitch and Craig and Melissa were waiting for us.

"Your payments have all been wired to your accounts," Melissa said.

"How do they know when to pay us?" Slippy whispered.

"The client calls them when the goods are delivered," I told him. "Melissa then pays us as soon as that phone call ends. It's nice to immediately have money to spend right after the job."

"How was the trip?" Craig asked.

"As expected, Wolf came after us. Bill came to our rescue when it got too sticky. Other than that, everything went great."

"Good to hear. That's the only thing I needed from you. Have another few days off. You've earned it."

"Hold on a second," Fox said. "This is your job? You nearly get shot down by Wolf, he sometimes succeeds and yet you keep coming back to this?"

"You have no right to judge me, Mr. Leader of Star Fox," I spat. "You get to go around the galaxy, saving the people, defeating Andross. But you freak out over the fact that your younger sister is doing a delivery job? Yes, Wolf comes after me. The things I carry from planet to planet are precious. It's a given that I will be chased, pilfered from and, on some occasions, shot down. It happens. The best I can do is get back on my feet and move on." I took a deep breath. "The whole protective brother thing is getting on my last nerve. You haven't been in my life since we were kids and now you suddenly think you own it. Do us both a favor and butt out. And take your team with you." I turned to Craig. "I'm going home. Call me when the next job comes up." I took my leave at that.

I went straight to my fighter and went home as promised. I walked into my apartment to find Hara on the phone. She looked like she was ready to punch something.

"The phone has been ringing off the hook since you left," she said.

"Are they all for me?"

"Thankfully, no. Only a few came in for you. Most of them are work related. But you did get a call from the construction company that you used to work for. They want to know if you can do some side work for them. They will pay of course."

I sighed. "I'll give them a call later."

She hung up the phone. "They seem to think that I'm not too important. Anyway," she turned her attention to me. "How was your mission?"

I groaned then plopped down on the couch. "Fox and Slippy were called in to escort me to Katina. Wolf headed us off but, luckily Bill came to help. When we got back to base, I told Fox off and left."

"I'm glad to hear it went well."

"You're not going to ask more about it?"

She shrugged. "Nope, I figure he got what he deserved. This is something you will have to figure out for yourself. Just, do me a favor… Keep in mind that he is blood. Eventually, you'll have to reconcile if only to save face."

"I suppose you're right… But until then, he needs to stay away or I may end up seriously hurting him."

A few weeks passed with only a few missions from Craig here and there. I hadn't heard from Fox or anyone from Star Fox for that matter. Not that I was complaining but, still. It was boring while Hara was at work. I went to the dance studio in the city at least twice a week to keep busy until I heard from Craig again. It was one of these days that Falco finally decided to show his face…

I went to the dance studio with my CD player and my book bag in hand. I walked in, said hello to some of the regulars then went to a small room by myself. The room I always took had large floor-to-ceiling windows that looked out to the sidewalk by the building. Everyone and their mother could watch me as I did my stretches and dance. I didn't mind though. Most of the time, I didn't notice. Once I was in the zone, nothing else mattered.

I turned on my music and started my stretches. A few minutes later I was moving across the room in a perfect rhythm. Time seemed to be nonexistent as I stepped and twirled and leaped. The track ended and I came to a stop. When I straightened up, I froze at the sound of clapping coming from the door. I whipped around to find Falco there, leaning up against the doorframe. I immediately got flustered.

"What the hell?! What do you want?"

"Please, don't stop on my account," he said as he walked in. "I was walking outside and happened to see you. I never pegged you for a dancer."

"It's just a hobby," I huffed. "I do it on my time off. I'm not a professional." I paused. "Why in the world am I explaining myself to you? It's none of your business."

"Then maybe you wouldn't mind showing me a few moves," he grinned.

A fast-paced song came on the CD player. My heart began to race from the expectation of what was coming next.

"You dance?" I asked.

He took off his jacket and put it on the barre, uncovering a green tank top and ridiculously toned arms. "I'm not as uncultured as you may think." He offered his hand. "Are you going to dance with me or are you too scared?"

I hesitated. As soon as I put my hand in his he pulled me roughly to him. My body reacted just as it did before regardless of my own discomfort. Falco noticed and chuckled.

"Enjoying this close encounter a little too much, aren't you?"

"Don't get your hopes up."

We began our rumba to the beat of the music. The intimate dance did wicked things to me. He moved and dipped me just right. It was a game he knew how to play a little too well. That fact alone made me nervous. He manipulated me to stay close to him at all times. And his hands… The way they roamed my curves…

The music came to an end and he had me dipped low again, his face inches from mine. We heard some clapping from the door. Apparently, we had quite a crowd at the door, including Hara.

"Holy crap!" Hara cried. "It was like… watching sex without the penetration! That was steamy!"

I righted myself and pushed away from Falco. I was winded and, from the look of him, he was affected by our dance as well. He cast me a glance then went to get his jacket. I packed up quickly and grabbed Hara's arm to drag her out with me.

"Skye! Aren't you going to introduce me? You just had the most erotic dance ever and you don't even want to talk about it?"

"Right now, I need to go home and catch my breath. I just did the rumba with a man that I don't even know or like…"