Chapter 2: Things Get Better
Fox slowly opened one of his eyes to a much busier Great Fox bridge. Fox let out a groan and opened both of his eyes.
"Did you have a nice cat nap, Fox?" asked a high voice from over near the large bridge window.
"I sure did, Slippy. Wait a second, where's Krystal?" Fox said with a hint of worry now lingering in his voice.
"Oh, she's down in her new room, I took her down there, because she said she didn't want to disturb your sleep." Fox held his head in his hands.
"Man, I told that I would take her to her room. I'll be back in a while, just don't break anything, Slippy." Slippy blushed and said,
"I'm not that clumsy, Fox." Fox shook his head and made his way to room number 7.
Well, I kinda screwed that one up. I hope she's not made at me for dozing off on her. Krystal doesn't really seem like the kind of vixen that gets angry with people easily. I hope I'm right, the last thing we need is an angry vixen aboard the Great Fox…
Fox stopped mid-thought as he was standing right in front of a door with the number "7" engraved into it's metallic surface. Fox was about to open the sliding door, but then remembered his manners. He knocked lightly on the door and coughed into his fist. Fox waited patiently for about 10 seconds, and the door finally slid open. Krystal was standing just inside now wearing a piece of cloth tied around her head.
"Hey nice doo-rag." Fox observed.
"What is a 'doo-rag', Fox?" asked Krystal. Fox chuckled, remembering that Krystal was in no way familiar with modern fashion, or modern anything at that.
"Oh, nothing. Krystal, I just want to apologize for falling asleep on you back there, that was awfully rude of me." Krystal giggled a little and replied,
"Oh, it's alright, I'm just glad you took me onto your ship, it is the utmost honor to be here!" Fox gave off a toothy grin. Krystal smiled back and asked,
"Fox, would you like to come in?"
"I wouldn't have it any other way, madam." Fox said, kissing the top of Krystal's hand. Krystal laughed and blushed underneath her blue fur. Fox stepped inside, baffled at what he was seeing. Inside Krystal's room were blue streamers made of a silk material strung from each of the corners of the ceiling, dipping down in the middle to form a sort of convex X. The ceiling light above them was shining a soft whit-bluish color down across the room matching perfectly with an elaborate crimson rug sort of at an angle in the middle of the room. Back against the far wall from the door sat a king-sized 4 poster bed with long, see-through curtains attached to the tops of each post, surrounded by various items from Krystal's travels. Each wall was painted a mix between a light pink and a deep purple to make a soft light blue color that was textured with little blunt points coming out. Fox said not a word as he quietly strode into the bathroom. His eyes were met with an even more opulent sight. The bathroom was painted a cheery canary-yellow, with candles all lit up in a random order across the flat part of the porcelain bathtub. The candles complemented the small purple bags of bath-salts scattered willy-nilly across the vanity. Krystal was beaming from the doorway.
"So, Fox, what do you think of my humble abode?" Fox turned with his mouth hanging.
"Honest to God, I…love this room…" He now wore a confused look across his visage.
"Please tell me, how did you do it? The paints, the streamers, the bed, the bath-salts…how?"
"Well, all of the needed supplies were packed up in boxes that were in this room before I decorated it." Fox frowned.
"Krystal, you're making me feel guilty, I was gonna clean this room out for you. Did you do it by yourself?" Krystal giggled.
"Well, your metal assistant unpacked the boxes and painted for me, but I did the rest." Fox nodded his head slightly; amazed that one person could extravagantly decorate a room in a matter of hours. Fox's thoughts were interrupted by a loud and obnoxious knocking coming from the door. Krystal made her way to the door, and opened it. A blue avian stood at the door, wearing a smug look on his beak.
"Oh hey, Falco, what is it?" asked Fox. Falco made his way into the room uninvited, not even acknowledging that Krystal existed.
"Just coming to tell you that General Pepper requested that we land at Corneria tomorrow to receive our money. Oh, and he also mentioned something about wanting to talk to you about something in private. Wipe that stupid grin off your mug, McCloud; you're a mercenary, not an immature little child." Fox scowled at Falco for a moment, but then smiled and said,
"Sure, Falco, I'll get ROB to set a course." And with that, Falco left just as quickly as he had come. Krystal looked concerned.
"Fox, why is Falco so rude?" Fox grinned and replied,
"Oh, don't mind him, he's not much of a people-person, he's always been kind of a loner." Krystal nodded.
"We are going to Corneria, are we not? I'm so excited; I've always wanted to see what it's like there!" Fox couldn't help but chuckle at Krystal's naivety.
"Yes, we are, I'm going to go set a course for Corneria right now." Fox walked out of Krystal's room, with Krystal herself following not far behind. Each animal was lost in their own thoughts.
Wow, I get such a strange feeling when I'm around Krystal, it's like my stomach is in my throat. I think I'm really starting to like her, she's pretty great. She's got a great personality, and she's so kindhearted. She reminds me of someone I know, but I just can't put my finger on it. I think I'll ask if she would like to join the team tomorrow, I think she would make a great addition.
They arrived back at the bridge a short time later, and was met by the monotone voice of ROB.
"Captain McCloud, would you like to set a course for Corneria of the Lylat system?"
"Affirmative, ROB, set a course and prepare the Great Fox to enter hyperspace by 0200 hours."
"Roger that, captain, carrying out assigned duties." ROB walked away to go about his business. Krystal yawned quietly from next to the bridge door. Fox noticed and said,
"It's getting late, Krystal. You should probably get some sleep." Krystal nodded. She suddenly reached out and took Fox's hand in her own.
"Can you take me back to my room, Fox? I might not remember the way." Fox smiled.
"Of course. Let's go." Together, two vulpines walked hand-in-hand through the corridors of the Great Fox until they arrived at Krystal's room.
"Well, good night, Krystal. I guess I'll see you in the morning when we wake up." Krystal nodded. She reached out and took Fox in a warm embrace.
"Thanks for everything…" she whispered quietly into his ear. Fox returned the embrace and just held Krystal in his arms for a few moments, gently rocking her back and forth. Fox let her go and she smiled wide at him, and retreated into her own room.
Wait, Krystal, don't leave me…
Fox reached out for the door of Krystal's room. He sighed and walked off towards his own room. Once he was there, the door silently slid open. Fox's room was dull, if not depressing compared to Krystal's room. The only thing decorative in the room was a few shiny medals and trophies he had won years previous to the current one. Some were from the academy, and some were from the ceremony held when he defeated Andross eight years before. Fox sighed again, and plopped down onto his own very comfortable bed. Fox lay there, thinking.
Wow, that Krystal. She's something else. That embrace back there, when I was just holding her in my arms, I never wanted that to end. I could feel some energy from that gesture that I've never felt before. Could I be starting to love her? Who knows…
Fox let the overwhelmingly large amount of thoughts going through his head put him into a deep sleep.
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Authors Notes: Let me just start by introducing myself. My name is Deegan McCallister, and this is the first story I have ever posted on this website, so don't flame me, please. I will humbly accept your reviews, good or bad, it matters not to me, but please try to keep them reasonable. Oh, and if there's anyone out there interested in writing parts of my story for me, then please, do let me know.
Peace out,
Yutaka Minase