Author's note: This is but a verbalization of my burning yet inexplicable love for Star Fox and its amazing characters. This isn't close to a screaming fangirl's kind of fanfiction, though; but a serious attempt to write a good, well-developed story about these characters I familiarize with so much. Now, for reasons everyone knows, I must make clear that Star Fox, and all the terms and characters related to it, belong to their creator Shigeru Miyamoto, and Nintendo. Be aware of the meaning of "fan fiction" if you're willing to criticize my work in certain ways.

I must add that this story takes place after one of Star Fox Command's nine endings; you'll find which one it is throughout the story.

The Winged Fox

Chapter One: Confused

Not so far from the orbit of Corneria, a spectacle of flickering, constantly moving bright lights could easily be mistaken by the start of a new war, but the series of violent maneuvers and brutal explosions belonged to nothing but a small battle between the Star Fox team and a small group of mercenaries from Fichina, sent after a Cornerian commander who was just about to open an investigation in their planet.

"Do a barrel roll!" said Peppy through the team's communications line, from inside the Great Fox.

"Gee, Peppy, I know. You won't quit even after retirement, will ya?" replied Fox with a playful tone in his voice, with the battle right in front of him serving as no purpose of intimidation.

"We're almost done here, Fox…" added Falco, trying to settle a more serious tone in the environment, "...I can see their leader's ship is badly damaged. If we manage to take him out, the battle's over. Even if his friends don't surrender," he said, clenching his hands on the yoke, physically implying he'd take out everyone else as well.

The three Arwings zipped through the air, performing multiple crazy stunts as the enemies struggled to deliver a single hit. With their leader blown to pieces minutes after being mentioned by Falco, the two remaining bogeys retreated in fear. "You did it, Fox!" exclaims Slippy.

"No, Slippy. We all did it," replied his vulpine leader, commemorating the small victory, as they all returned to the Great Fox, which was just far enough to avoid getting hit.

In the small hangar inside the big ship, Peppy awaited with a shy smile on his face. The pilots left and inspected their own aircrafts. "I think my left wing got shot," said Slippy, rolling his eyes and scratching his head as he looked at the small, deformed hole on the edge of the wing, "nothing too serious, but I'm surprised I didn't notice it," he adds.

"I guess that happened when the enemies arrived. They were pretty sneaky, at least from what I've seen…" Fox suggested, stepping forward towards the amphibian. "Nothing you can't fix, right?"

"Slippy, you're an Arwing engineer, for fuck's sake!" berated Falco, looking away, with a rather cruel tone to his voice, "if you have so much trouble flying, you could-" he continued, interrupted by a slow tap on his shoulder.

"Falco, he knows his duty," intervened Fox. "I'm sure he's tired because of that fight; he doesn't need to hear this," he continued, frowning at his blue-feathered wingman.

A moment of silence suddenly hit the hangar, being broken shortly after by Peppy, finally tired of all the conflicts that had been constantly going on in the Star Fox team in the past few months. He then suggested that both Fox and Falco headed to the TV room and played some games to forget all the stress.

As they walked towards said room, Falco didn't let out a word in response to what just happened; instead, he looked down, striding down the corridor with his hands stuffing his jacket's pockets, as Fox looked at him both worried and slightly angry. Moments before even being able to see the door to the room they were going to, Fox pulled Falco by the arm and ran into his room, shutting the door shortly after.

"Falco, what the hell was that!?" Fox's tone rose firmly, but not enough to make him sound like a leader. Instead, he looked at Falco as a concerned friend. "We're all aware that Slip sucks at flying, but he's by far the best engineer we know. We also know he gets emotional really easily, and if we lose him, we're fucked. And I don't wanna say it's your fault if we do."

"Oh, yeah, because the best mercenary team in the Lylat system totally deserves that title when one of its integrants is a complete idiot who can't pilot his own Arwing," he commented, in disgust.

"Dude, it was just one hit. Anyone here could've taken it. He's done worse before, so what's the reason you got so angry?" demanded Fox.

"Fox…" Falco sighed, lowering his voice and turning his eyes to the window, "look, I'm sorry. Okay? Maybe I shouldn't unload my anger on him. I just wonder if you know why I'm actually upset."

"To be honest…" knowing a huge discussion was probably about to happen, Fox backed away and sat on the edge of his bed, looking up, bemused, at his wingman's tired eyes, "...I don't."

Falco took a deep breath and stepped closer to his leader. "You know I love you, Fox… you know how much that's true, too. And… I don't know how to explain this, but this… thing that's been going on between us feels kind of empty… or stupid, I don't know. It's like I'm lost into your thoughts and I just don't know what's going on anymore."

Fox reacted normally, briefly recalling the extremely awkward, yet enchanting moment in which he and Falco officially took a step into the next level. Instead of replying, Fox nodded, letting his eyes say go on.

"Look, I don't mean to be some kind of overly dramatic boyfriend, or whatever it is that we're supposed to call ourselves, but I feel like a placeholder. Someone that's there to fill the void left by Krystal," explained Falco, trying to hide his sadness and confusion with mild anger and discontentment.

"Falco, what are you even trying to-"

"Since she joined Wolf's team with that Caroso guy, you've been acting so desperate and dramatic about things," he interrupted. "Don't pretend it's not true. I wouldn't have thought you'd ever feel love for me if Krystal never existed. At least that's what I suppose, considering what I know from you."

"Bullshit," said Fox, "don't even pretend that's true. If anything between Krystal and I had been completely true, she wouldn't have left me. I never knew what happened. Sure, see it from another angle, assume I'm using you to replace her if you want; but I think that seeing her leave made me realize how stupid I was. I've had eyes for you before I even met her, I just didn't know it was mutual."

"...and you found out just because she left," said Falco, a tad ironically.

"You make it sound like it's so terrible..." Fox sighed, elaborating his thoughts, "...yeah, I found out because the impact she left by joining Star Wolf and leaving me alone all of a sudden was absolutely terrifying. But although my love for her was flawed and untrue, she made me realize how much I need someone else. Just… just look at me!" Fox rose his voice at Falco, standing up from his bed and pointing at himself. "I'm a mercenary who's saved the whole Lylat system more than once. And you know how much stress that implies. Hell, you've been with me most of the time," he sat down again, putting his elbows on his thighs and covering his eyes with his paws, starting to tear up. "I guess falling for Krystal was easy because you simply decided to go missing as I had to go alone on that Sauria mission. I think I really thought you were gone…"

Falco just stood there, quietly, staring at his beloved fox getting in a serious conflict with his own emotions. "You really think I was gone for real? Just like that!?"

"It's hard to figure you out, Falco. It's always been," Fox said, wiping away the small tears near his eyes.

Silence took over, as both realized how loud they were talking to each other. During a relatively long pause, Falco decided to sit by Fox's side on his the edge of the bed, without touching him.

"I'm sorry, Falco."

"I… yeah, I guess you should be," the avian looked away, trying not to lose his pride.

"Falco, I…"

"I don't think you're lying about this, Fox," Falco interrupted, "It's just that… it's hard to figure you out as well. Even if what you're saying is true, you haven't really done anything much to prove that something's actually going on. I've never felt that between us. Not for real," he hesitated, "...what I know is that I really like you, dude."

"Well…" Fox reached for the avian's long blue hand that was resting onto the bed sheets, "...I guess this lack of courage could be because I didn't know you were this much into me, hehe…"

"It really did take you a while..." Falco smirked at Fox and both went silent, looking deep in each other's eyes, trying to understand what they really felt for each other.

That moment of soothing silence was unexpectedly broken by a loud emergency alarm. Aware of the regulations, the vulpine and the avian rushed to the Great Fox's cockpit, immediately snatching their safety helmets.

"We're under attack!" warned Peppy, terrified "I think that group we defeated wasn't alone after all!"

"Yeah, no shit!" said Falco.

"Star Fox team!" Fox wiped away the storm of mixed feelings from five minutes before, clearing his mind and changing his voice to the tone of true determination, now gathering the group's attention. "In your positions, now! There's no time to reach the Arwings, so we'll have to deal with the attackers using the Great Fox's defense mechanisms!"

"Understood!" yelled Peppy, jumping onto his seat and strapping the emergency apparatus.

"Roger!" said Slippy, following the hare's actions.

Falco, however, stood still for a moment, looking directly at Fox's eyes, as if the alarm and the imminent death threat meant nothing compared to what he had to deal regarding the fox sitting right in front of him.

"...Falco? Falco, what are you waiting for!?" barked Fox, pulling the bird out of that sudden daze, as he felt the ship shake with all the laser beams coming from all directions. "This is an emergency situation! Get in position! Now!"

"Fox…" Falco opened his beak to say what Fox presumed to be something stubborn, when a missile shattered the cockpit's windshield, sucking out everything that wasn't safely attached to the ground. Falco included.

Fox tried yelling his name in absolute terror, but the sound had just been sucked out along with his wingman. He had only caught the glimpse of Falco being violently pulled out of the cockpit and into open space, noticing his terrified expression as he disappeared. Seconds later, the Great Fox's emergency shutters covered the broken windows, replacing the natural view with a video feed from outside, as oxygen was pumped back into the room. McCloud could only identify a medium-sized ship speeding away.

Looking down, shocked, he clenched his fists and punched the armrest of his own seat in pure, boiling anger. He's… he's probably-

"Fox, they're escaping!" exclaimed Peppy, interrupting Fox's own thoughts.

"Then what are you waiting for!?" barked Fox, with all the anger he could possibly feel, "go after them! Immediately!"

"Roger that…" said the terrified old hare.

Fox turned his eyes to Slippy. "Put this thing in full throttle!" he commanded.

"Yes, sir!"

End of Chapter One