Chapter 2

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

Katt groaned as her six o'clock alarm blared from the cell phone on the floor. "If you didn't cost six hundred credits, I'd smash you." She threatened, rolling over with one eye opened to disable the alarm. She slid her finger across the touch screen and cringed as she realized she had habitually enabled snooze instead of turning it off completely. "Kill me," she muttered, closing her eyes. Sleep gripped her again, despite the uncomfortable position of hanging part-way off the side of the mattress.

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

That was the shortest fifteen minutes I've ever experienced in my life. Katt sat up, gripped the phone, and turned off the alarm. "I'm awake." Her eyes adjusted to the dark, empty room. It wasn't a dream... I'm really with Star Fox. There were many reasons she had wanted to join the small band of mercenaries. For one, her own gang-for-hire had recently disbanded. At first she thought she would like flying solo, but the vast emptiness of space was getting to her. Things had just began to settle down from the recent war with Andross. She had flown in to aid them on a few planets, and realized immediately how much she loved being part of a group. Star Fox had done their rounds to collect favor and fame, and then left Corneria to drift out in peace. With them left Falco, the only man who had managed to so completely steal her attention.

Her bare feet hit the cold metallic floor, and she forced them to carry her out of the room and down the hall. Having none of her belongings with her, she had slept in her clothes. Her luggage was still waiting for her in a room she was still paying for on the space station nearby. She stretched her arms and yawned as she entered the bridge. Aside from ROB, the room was empty.

"Morning, Rob."

"Correct. It is 6:17AM Corneria Standard Time." The robot said in monotone.

"It's an expression, Rob. You're supposed to say "good morning" when it's morning. Some people shorten it and leave out the 'good', like I do."

ROB hesitated for a moment as his electronic brain processed the information. "Expression noted. Good morning, Katt."

She gave the robot a half grin. "If anyone asks, I'm going to get my luggage. I'll be back in a few hours."

ROB hesitated again. "Affirmative."

Katt walked still barefoot to her ship, The Catspaw, and climbed in. She wiped the sleep out of her eyes, suddenly regretting the decision to not make coffee before she left. Oh well. She switched on the engine and coasted out of the hangar. I wonder if Falco's still asleep...

The avian in her thoughts was in fact not asleep. He had heard the alarm go off through the thin wall, and was now, like her, unable to reenter the land of dreams. He was too tired to get out of bed, but too awake to sleep again.

He glanced out his window as a familiar pink ship flew past. Where the hell is she going?

His mind was finally awake enough to inspire the rest of his body, starting with his bladder. A trip to the bathroom was his first groggy action. He rinsed his face and brushed his teeth before exiting. The entire team shared one bathroom, aside from Fox. It made for some interesting interactions when one was in the shower and another had a bowel emergency. This ship needs a goddamn makeover.

Falco walked down the hall to the kitchen and switched on the coffee maker. He opened the fridge and buried his beak in the cold air that burst forth. He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, immediately regretting the decision. He gagged slightly and coughed. "Christ, what died in here?!" He slammed the door shut, feeling as if he'd been betrayed by an old friend.

The coffee maker dinged, and coffee began to spill onto the counter. "God damnit. Not again." He grabbed a cup from a cupboard and managed to catch the last half of the hot coffee.

From the doorway, a snicker was heard.

"Fuck off, Slip-up."

"I hope you're gonna clean that, cuz I'm not." The green toad walked in and opened the fridge.

Falco cringed. "What the hell went bad in there?"

"Aww, my cheese!" Slippy cried, removing a block of white cheese covered in green fuzz.

The bird gagged again. "Get that away from me!"

Slippy sighed sadly, tossing the cheese into the garbage disposal slot. "Hey, I heard we have a new teammate!"

"Yeah.." Falco cautiously opened the fridge and removed a small carton of half-and-half. He warily lifted it to his nose. To his relief, it smelled of milk. He poured it into his coffee mug.

"Who is he?"

"She."

"It's a girl!?" The frog gaped.

"It's Katt."

"Oooh..." Slippy gave his teammate a knowing grin and a wink. "I see how it is."

"No, you don't. It's not like that. She's a good pilot. Fox agreed that she'd be a good addition. Besides, her gang broke up. She's been out on her own lately. She could use the backup." The extent to which the purple-feathered bird went to explain away any romantic affiliation with her wasn't fooling his green skinned friend.

"You keep telling yourself that, Falco."

He gave an exasperated sigh. "It's not like that. You'll see when she gets back. She's not even my type."

"Not your type, as in doesn't immediately hop naked in your bed, right?" Fox chuckled from the doorway.

"God damnit, you too?" Falco scoffed. "I just wanted a peaceful cup of coffee." He walked towards Fox with the intent to shove past him.

"Is that your mess, coffee boy?" Fox asked, raising an eyebrow at the spilled liquid on the counter.

Falco closed his eyes and threw back his head in an exasperated manner. He grabbed a paper towel and sloppily wiped up the coffee, and then grumpily left the kitchen.

He sat on his bed with a scowl and sipped the no longer hot coffee.

The pink ship he'd seen earlier coasted by again. He chugged the coffee and dressed himself properly. It's just Katt... I've known her for years. Sure, we've gone years without seeing each other... but I mean, I knew her in kindergarten. I need to calm the hell down. He stepped into the hallway and strode to the bridge.

"Good morning, Falco." ROB said.

Falco paused and stared at the robot. "When did you learn to greet people?"

"Today at 6:18AM Cornerian Standard Time."

The bird chuckled. "Well, good morning to you too." He sat in his chair and pulled up his laptop, pretending to be doing some sort of work.

Katt docked her ship and entered the bridge carrying several bags. "Morning."

"Huh? Oh. Good morning." Falco watched as she crossed the bridge without so much as a second glance in his direction. He frowned as she left down the hall, a giant bag of luggage dragging at her heels. She didn't even ask me to carry her bags.

Katt entered her room with a sigh of relief, dropping her luggage. There was no furniture to put her clothes in, so she arranged the suitcases against the wall in an orderly fashion. "Gonna need to go shopping for some damn furniture soon."

She walked down the hall to the bathroom after changing her clothes to wash her face. She set her pink toothbrush and its pink holder on the small sink next to the holder with the rest of the toothbrushes. She sighed and wiped down the mirror, which was covered in water spots. "Boys never clean anything."

The feline found herself in the kitchen, being called by her stomach. She searched the cupboards for a mug, and then switched on the coffee maker. The fridge was stocked with food, but smelled as if something had recently died. She took out the milk, and then searched back through the cupboards. A box of maple and brown sugar oatmeal called her. She smiled and pulled it down.

After both the coffee and the oatmeal were done cooking, she took them into her room to eat.

Today's going to be a good day. I just know it.


Author's Notes: I realized the first chapter was a bit rushed and not very well put together. I apologize. I hope this and the future chapters make up for it. (I might also go back over Chapter 1 and re-do it if I have time.)