Chapter 3

Fox managed to get through the night without having another nightmare, to his relief. It was a threat every night, but he couldn't just avoid sleeping. He managed to make up for some lost sleep the night before, sleeping until 1:00 in the afternoon. The first thing he did after getting out of bed was going downstairs to check his phone.

Fox was still nervous, hoping Krystal had already left a message. He also figured it was possible she might just ignore him, assuming she had no interest in seeing him outside of Star Fox. When he checked the phone for messages, he did discover he had one. And it was from Krystal. Eager, and scared, Fox played the message.

"Fox – I got your message. It's been a long time. You're welcome to come over for dinner tonight, at 5:30. Bye."

That was it. Fox was glad to receive the invitation, but Krystal didn't exactly sound enthusiastic about it. He still wondered how she felt, but figured the invitation was much better than nothing.

Fox spent the time leading up to dinner by worrying, and thinking of exactly what he should say. He hoped Krystal would be fairly open to what he'd say. He had no idea what to expect.

What if it just turns into a bunch of arguing? I'd get nowhere. She might still hate me! But if she really hated me, she probably wouldn't have had me over. What if she wanted to kill me? Actually kill me? Could she hate me that much? No, that's stupid; she'd never go that far. She wouldn't, right? I mean, she came back to the team and everything. Is there any chance she'd want to get back together? She'll probably just say let's forget all about it and just stay out of each other's lives. I don't know. It has been a long time…

As the day went on, Fox continued to think it over and worry. He knew it was unhealthy. He knew he should try to stop being so anxious. He had been this way for so long though, he didn't know how else he should think.

Shortly before 5:00, Fox got ready to go. He still remembered how to get to Krystal's house; it took about twenty-five minutes to walk there from his house. Fox knew it was good for him to get outside again, and it was something he should make a habit of. He left the house just after 5:00, trying to time it perfectly.

The streets were busy today, like usual. Fox figured it wouldn't be as empty outside as yesterday, unfortunately. He had to maneuver his way through the crowds to make sure he would get there on time. If there was one thing he could change about living on Corneria, it would be having fewer crowds.

Eventually Fox did make it. He hadn't been to Krystal's house in a long time, but he hadn't forgotten about it at all; how long it took to get there, where it was, how it looked, and so forth. He stood outside to stare at the house for a few moments, very anxious to see Krystal again. He took a deep breath, and he made his way for the door. He knocked three times, and in less than five seconds, Krystal opened the door.

When they saw each other again, they stood still for a moment to look closely at one another. They each looked more haggard and dispirited since they had last seen each other, but not much less attractive. Fox still found Krystal quite beautiful, and he was glad to see her face again.

"Hello," Krystal plainly addressed Fox.

"Hi," Fox said back, still nervous.

"Let's go inside," Krystal said.

Fox slowly followed her inside. He closed the door behind him, and started to nervously look around before making eye contact with Krystal again. He remained anxious, hoping he would start to feel a little more comfortable soon.

"Thank you for having me over," Fox said, as calmly as he could.

"Of course," Krystal replied hastily. "Excuse me."

She rushed away to the kitchen. Fox looked over the house, noticing it was much neater than his own. He used to be quite organized, but over the last year or so he had become lazy, so he didn't clean often. It was a small house, like his, but still plenty of room for one person.

"Please, come in and sit down; the food is almost done!" Krystal yelled from the kitchen.

Fox made his way into the kitchen, and found Krystal taking care of the food. It was spaghetti. Fox went to the other side of the kitchen to the table, which was fairly small; it would only seat 4 people at the most. There were already plates and utensils set up for the meal. He took a seat and patiently waited for Krystal to bring the food over. She did soon enough, bringing a bowl of spaghetti and a bowl of sauce, and she took her seat across the table from Fox.

"Spaghetti; hope you like it," Krystal said.

"Thank you very much," Fox replied politely.

It was still awkward between them. Krystal had put a large spoon inside each bowl for them to take what they wanted. Each was waiting for the other to get their food, until eventually Krystal served herself first. Fox followed suit, and the two began to eat in silence for a while. Fox was thinking of what he should say first, and decided it was best to start with small talk.

"So, have you been well?"

Krystal finished chewing the food in her mouth, and quietly replied, "Okay. Yourself?"

"Been better," Fox admitted sadly. He paused, then asked, "What have you been up to these days?"

"Well, I've been working a part time job at a garden," Krystal informed him. "Just trying to make some extra money until Star Fox flies again…"

"I see…" Fox said. "Well, that's a good idea."

"Thanks," Krystal said. She then asked, "Have you been working?"

"No," Fox answered. "I haven't been up to much, really. Maybe I should have gotten a job, you know? I should have…"

Krystal hesitated to ask, but eventually did, "Why not?"

Fox was hesitant to answer, but decided to be completely truthful. "I've been in a slump, honestly. Kind of depressed. I've just been thinking a lot lately, about a lot of things. I recently realized I needed to see you again. I've missed you…"

There was a moment of awkward silence again. Krystal didn't know how she should reply, and Fox was worried he had said too much too soon. He decided to speak again, and lay all his cards on the table.

"I know you can't be too happy with me about the past, and I know I screwed things up for both of us, but I really want us to be okay again," Fox explained. He was starting to feel very emotional as he went on, "I can't keep going through life like this. I don't want to live with the regret of never trying to make it up to you. I already hate myself for hurting you before. I know I don't deserve a second chance, but I need you to know I care about you, and my mistake has stayed with me every moment since it happened. You don't have to care about me, or even be near me if you don't want, but I have to tell you these things. I hope you understand. I've loved you since I first saw you, and I'll never stop loving you. My love was misplaced when I made you leave; I didn't want you to die, but I didn't consider your feelings or what you wanted. I was stupid. But I never stopped loving you, Krystal. I never will. I am sorry about what I've done to you. I don't expect you to forgive me, but I just needed to tell you that..."

Fox had finished. He didn't know what to expect next, but he had nothing else to add. He could only hope Krystal would take it well. Her first response wasn't at all what Fox expected.

"I made a mistake, too," Krystal admitted. "I never should have joined Star Wolf. They're criminals. That was wrong…"

"Krystal…" Fox pleaded. His last intention was to make her feel guilty about anything. "Please…"

"No, I shouldn't have done it," Krystal said. "I was angry… but it was wrong. I regret turning to them. Fox… thank you, for telling me how you feel."

Fox looked at her, noticing she was also becoming emotional. He replied, "It's the least I owe you. Thank you for having me here."

They had completely forgotten about the food, now totally concerned about each other. Many thoughts and questions raced through their minds, as they wondered what they should say next. Where they should go from here…

"So… what now?" Krystal asked.

"I don't know," Fox answered weakly. "I'd like to try again… but I understand if you don't want to."

"I do," Krystal replied. Fox's ears perked up, and his eyes lit up. She went on, "It has been a long time… I never stopped caring about you, Fox. I was angry, and maybe I hated you for a time, but part of me never let go. I know your heart is good. I missed being together. I'm willing to try to get that back..."

Fox was speechless. A tremendous warmth came over his entire body, and he felt more alive than he had in years. He never thought he'd feel this way again.

She never stopped caring…

"Thank you, Krystal…" Fox said softly.

"No need," Krystal replied. She then said, "I think it's best we don't think about what happened. I just want to start all over..."

"Yes," Fox agreed. "I won't hurt you again. I promise."

Krystal smiled at him, which made Fox even happier. As his eyes met hers, he smiled back. He had regained her trust. He wouldn't lose it this time. He swore that to himself.

"Now, then… shall we continue eating?" Krystal suggested, chuckling.

"Yes! Of course!" Fox agreed.

He felt so happy! So grateful! So alive! He never expected his visit to go over this well. They continued eating their food, each of them feeling better now.

"So, how about TV after dinner?" Krystal suggested.

She wants me to stay! This is amazing! Fox thought to himself.

"Sure!" Fox said. "A movie or something would be great!"

Krystal smiled again. Fox was overjoyed. They were back together, and it was because they never stopped caring about one another.

Peppy was right, Fox realized. Our love was strong enough to endure…

"Delicious," Fox commented as he ate, grinning. "I wish I could cook like this…"

"Thank you," Krystal replied.

They continued to eat and talk together, each of them now totally carefree. The mood completely changed from awkward and somber to comfortable and joyful. It was like it used to be…

After dinner, Fox and Krystal retired to the living room to watch TV. They sat together on Krystal's couch, which was a creamy white color. It was the color of most of the furniture in her house. Krystal flipped through several channels until they found an intriguing action film they both took a liking to. It was a movie about some assassin hired to hunt down these dangerous robots that looked just like people. They both found it quite interesting.

Unfortunately, as a particularly suspenseful scene was unfolding, an emergency news broadcast interrupted the film. Fox groaned, as he was really getting into the film. The news reporter was a short, gray cat who looked very worried. Anticipating something bad, Fox and Krystal began to share this worry. He swallowed hard before making the announcement.

"We interrupt your program for an emergency broadcast. Dash Bowman, the leader of Planet Venom, has declared war on the Lylat System. I repeat, Dash Bowman has declared war on Lylat. Reasons for this are unknown, but every planet is advised to ready their military for defense. Attacks could come at any time…"

Fox and Krystal slowly turned their heads to look at one another.

"We're at war again…" Krystal said quietly.

Fox simply nodded, as solemn as she was. Here we go again…