Peppy strode briskly across the outside parking lot, raincoat pulled over his head as he muttered various profanities directed at the inclement weather. Fox came dashing away from the prison in an effort to catch up. Fox had already been given the things he was wearing at the time he was inducted into the prison. Faded jeans, a well worn T-shirt with "The Offspring" logo on it, and a jacket were all the things he'd owned. It wasn't much, but it felt good to wear them again.

"What kept you Fox?"

"Oh, nothing, just had a little message for the prison guard."

"A message? Was it the same prison guard that brought me down to you?

"Um, yes, as a matter of-"

"I would be careful Fox, if you fail he's going to make your life hell when you get dragged back here." Peppy chuckled softly under his breath. He knew Fox well enough to know that the message wasn't about having a nice day. Fox shot Peppy and injured look, which was completely lost on the back of Peppy's head.

"It was nothing like that. You don't even know what I said."

"No, but I believe I could hazard a few guesses."

"Actually, I didn't say anything at all." Fox said with the air of an arrogant six year old that had used a perversion of logic to "prove" that the sun and the moon were the same thing.

"Ah. Getting into obscene gestures, are we?"

Fox was caught off guard by Peppy's observation, but he changed gears.

"It won't matter. I don't plan on failing."

"That would be the best course of action. Here we are, hurry and get in. Let's go." Peppy was smiling still, although he didn't let Fox see it. He had enjoyed the entire exchange, from the cell to the walk to his car. He appreciated the fact that Fox could make him smile even during times as such. Peppy slowly sat himself into the drivers seat, as Fox took the liberty of plopping himself contentedly into the passengers seat. Personal AC. A soft seat. A job. Don't screw this up Fox, dammit, don't you dare. He reflexively wrapped his jacket tightly around him, and felt an odd bulge near the bottom left. This was his favorite jacket, he knew it inside and out, but the bulge... What was it? He tried to revive the memory of what it was from the dark and murky pool of his memory, His brow clenched with effort, he struggled to dig into his stained past that he wished he could just leave. After several seconds, with no luck, he gave up and made a mental note to check on the bulge after he'd gotten settled, wherever he was staying. As these thoughts were racing through his mind, his mouth ran on autopilot.

"Now what about those job details?"

"Right. Here's the story. At 1900 hours I received word that several groups of assassins had been contacted concerning me. One you know well, Panther Caruso."

As Peppy was talking, he slowly pulled a miniature CD player out of his glove compartment. He paused his speech, and hit play. The recorded conversation played over the small speakers. Fox recognized the smooth yet deadly voice of Panther. He could not place the other voice, however. It was grainy and clipped, and obviously wanted the conversation over as quickly as possible. The conversation ran it's course, and Peppy replaced the CD player into it's former place in the glove compartment, and shut the small door with an emphatic "click."

Fox interjected.

"Peppy, isn't recording conversations.. Oh, I don't know, against the law?" Fox's comment was laced with disapproval. Peppy sighed.

"Yes it is, and no, I don't approve either. But then again, what I did to get you out of prison wasn't entirely legal either, so you have no reason to complain." Peppy quickly steered the conversation away before Fox could object.

"If you'll notice at the end of the message, the person who hired Panther said he'd hired others. He wants me taken out, and isn't afraid of spending money to get me taken out. Now after hearing this, you may have figured out why I didn't want the police. Police, while being outstanding officers and protectors of laws, can at times be susceptible to bribes. This is why I wanted trusted friends."

Fox noted that Peppy had used the plural, "friends." He made a mental note to ask Peppy about that once he had finished.

"The job is simple. Don't let me die. Your pay is – well, actually, you aren't getting paid in the usual sense of the word. You won't receive money. You will receive a pardon and you will receive, during the time of your employment, free board and lodge. Seeing as you are an old friend, I see no reason you could not stay slightly longer after your job is completed until you find your footing in the world. This is again assuming I don't die. Any questions?"

Fox was carefully thinking over what Peppy had gone through. No, he had no problem with he plan, nor his payment, but the itching in the back of his head was still there. It had grown when Peppy had used the plural for friends, but he didn't know why.

"Just one. Who will I be working with?"

There was a slight pause, as Peppy pretended to be watching the road carefully for a few seconds.

Damn, he's stalling.

"A few old acquaintances of mine is all. Actually, you probably know them better than I do. Ah, we're here." Peppy parked his car, and motioned Fox to get out. They were standing in front of Peppy's personal home. It was rather expansive, Fox noticed, but he also noticed from a more practical standpoint that it would be fairly easy to spot someone attempting to sneak his way to the house. Fox shook the thoughts away though, and followed Peppy inside. I want to know who I'm working with first, before I forget.

"Who in particular am I working with Peppy, could I have the names?"

Peppy had led him into his personal study, and preoccupied himself for a few minuets sorting out documents that were lying there. Fox still hadn't received his answer.

"Peppy? I'd like to know please."

"About wh- Ah, yes, the people you're working with. Well, um, lets see. There's two of them, actually. One of them is Falco, a very good friend of yours if I remember correctly."

How the hell did he lure Falco into this?

"The second is... well... is..."

Spit it out already...

"A bounty hunter, called, ah... Kursed."

"Who the hell is Kursed? I don't recall working with him."

"Ah, well, actually, it's a... um... her, not him. I'm fairly sure you'll remember when you see her."

Peppy was interrupted as the study door creaked open. The painful squeal of hinges that needed oil diverted Fox's attention to the door, subconsciously reaching for his blaster. A lithe figure wearing a full-length pink biking assortment complete with helmet, with tones of creamy white, strolled into the room. A quick scan by Fox alerted him that she was carrying a blaster. Fox tensed. His fingers tightened on his own blaster.

"Fox, this is Kursed."

What the hell? I've never worked with "Kursed" before.

The mysterious biker pulled off her helmet.

"Hello Fox. It's been a while." The voice was cold, unfriendly. But Fox knew all too well who it was. Looking at her face only confirmed it.

Oh damn...

A Quick Catchup on Krystal, AKA Kursed

"So, do you wanna come down to my pad? I'm sure I can think of some entertai-"

"No thanks, I have an appointment." Kursed cut off the advance with the quick and cold statement. She was in no mood to be hit on. She'd come in to the bar for a drink right quick, not to have some hormonal dog who thought he knew about picking girls up to try a line on her. Damn lame line. You'd think males would eventually think up new ways to go about it. Kursed finished her drink, ignored the Collie who had previously been eying her, and strode out the door into the street. It was chilly, with a slight drizzle, but Kursed didn't care. She had somewhere to be.

It had been three days since she'd received a call from Peppy, who had requested her help. I don't know how the guy found me, but he must have tried damn hard. Kursed had tried as hard as she could to leave everything in her past behind. She was first expelled from team Starfox, and then left team Starwolf of her own volition. Mainly because of Panther. The damn guy was an egocentric moron with nothing on his mind except how to get in the next girl's bed. She used to be known as Krystal, but to fully leave her past she needed a new name. She became known as "Kursed," a strangely fitting alias. She'd become a bounty hunter, and had run as far away as she could.

She ran from her friends. She ran from Panther. She ran from Fox most of all. But even though she tried, she could not run from her memories. They plagued her, they dogged her every step. She hated the memories with Fox most of all. Damn him. I thought he loved me, and the asshole went and.. No, no, don't think about it. Forget it. After all this time, she still could not come to grips with Fox removing her from his team, and consequently from his life. She thought at first that it was because he didn't want her to get hurt, but he'd never told her. So instead the seed of doubt took root. He did it because he didn't love me. He hated me. He didn't think I fought well enough to justify being on his damn team. Screw him. Screw them all.

These were the thoughts going through her mind as she rode her bike to Peppy's house, where she was asked to meet him. He hadn't given her many details, but that mattered little. She trusted him. Unlike a certain damn vulpine. She sighed, and pulled into the driveway. She noticed the car in the driveway. Good. He's home. She dismounted from her bike, and strode across the lawn to the door. She briefly consider knocking. Why the hell do I care about knocking? She strode right in. She tapped into her powers of telepathy to try and locate Peppy. He's in his study. And someone's with him. Kursed tried to identify the unnamed person, but she was unable to tell distinctly. Her abilities were confused by the large amounts of sadness and pain radiating from the visitor. Someones an emotional wreck here.

She quickly and surely strode through the house, until she reached the door. It was closed. I didn't give a damn about knocking the first time, why should I give a damn now. She pushed open the door. An annoying painful squeak announced her presence to the two in the room. She recognized one as Peppy. The other turned around to face her, hand on his blaster. It couldn't be... no...

Oh, damn...

NOTE

Well, here's chapter three. I haven't really made it clear, but the main part of the story is going to be Fox and Krystal/Kursed, if you haven't deduced that yet. The assassination thingy is continuous side plot that is necessary in order to bring them back together. If they actually end up together again remains to be seen.

I've double-checked this for typos, but if you see any please let me know. I have a horrible tendency to pass over typos repeatedly without noticing.