STARFOX: THE PROPOSAL

Fox was pacing around the Great Fox's bridge, going over the security precautions for the tenth time with Falco, Slippy, and Peppy.

"Are you SURE everything is okay?! You know what to do if there is an emergency?"

"YES!" everyone screamed in frustration. They were all tired of hearing Fox worrying over nothing, and Fox understood their impatience.

But he couldn't help it. This was one of the rare times they actually had a break from Andros's attacks and could relax. He was also nervous because he was going on a date with Krystal and he wanted to make sure nothing would go wrong while they were away from the ship.

"I'm sorry, guys. I'm just nervous. This could be my only chance to ask Krystal for her hand. I just want to make sure everything is in top condition in case something happens," he said.

Peppy walked up and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"We understand, Fox. But you have to relax sometime, too. Enjoy your time with Krystal and don't worry about anything. Trust me, if anything happens, we will alert you immediately." He gave him a smile and a thumbs up so Fox wouldn't worry.

Fox managed a small smile.

"Maybe you're right. Thanks, guys."

He dug into his pocket and took out the small, black case containing the ring for Krystal. A New worry came over him.

"What if she says no?"

"Fox," Falco said as he too walked up and stood beside him. "We all know Krystal. She's crazy about you. Why would she say no? She'll love it."

"Yeah," Slippy chimed in. "This will be the best surprise for her!"

Fox nodded as he watched his friends give him encouragement. He put the little box back into his pocket and began walking towards the door. He then stopped and turned around, his face with concern once again.

"Maybe we should go over the emergency signals again?"

"FOX!" his friends insisted in union.

"You're right," Fox nodded apologetically after a moment. "I should just enjoy myself." With that he left for the final time.

Falco chuckled as he sat down in a chair and fired up the computer. "So who's ready to play while the cats are away?"

Krystal was nervous too as she looked at herself in the mirror for the hundredth time. She made sure there were no wrinkles in her dress and that her fur was brushed right. Before she could fuss over another thing, there was a knock at the door. Krystal knew it was Fox and she blushed. She looked into the mirror one more time to make sure she was presentable and walked over to the door. She opened the door and smiled as she saw her boyfriend standing there in awe.

"Hello, Fox," she said. She found it difficult to met his eyes.

Fox's heart nearly leaped out of his chest, Krystal was so beautiful! No, not beautiful. GORGIOUS! He had no idea she had owned such a fancy dress.

Krystal knew Fox was wearing his best uniform, but she felt bad for being all fancy now. She blushed and turned away.

"Is there something wrong? You're staring at me and I don't know what you're thinking."

"You're beautiful!" was all Fox said as he stared into her eyes. Krystal blushed, but she finally had the courage to look him in the eyes as well.

"Don't you think we should go to dinner before it gets too late?" Krystal asked a moment later, breaking the silence.

Fox snapped out of his trance, too.

"Oh, yes! Of course!" he offered his arm to her. "My lady?"

Krystal chuckled and wrapped her arm around his.

"Quite the gentleman tonight, I see."

When they got to the restaurant, Fox began to feel nervous again. He managed to pull the chair out for Krystal to sit, but would glance around occasionally for anyone who could be a spy for Andross. He shook his head and took a deep breath. Everything is fine...Everything is fine...

He noticed Krystal was looking at her menu and Fox wondered if this would be a good time to ask Krystal. No, it wasn't time. He wasn't ready yet. He knew their waiter would arrive shortly to take their orders. Yet, his hand sank into his pocket and he felt the little box inside. Suddenly, Fox felt sick.

"Would you excuse me?" He asked Krystal before standing up and quickly walking to the restroom. Krystal only stared after him in confusion. She had noticed how nervous he was acting and she felt worried.

The waiter arrived and greeted her. He asked what she wanted, but she told him she was waiting for her boyfriend to return and needed a few more minutes. He nodded and left her.

Krystal looked in the direction Fox had left and waited for him to return.

Fox was starting to sweat as he stared at himself in the mirror. "Come on, Fox. All you have to do is ask! How hard is it to ask?!" he said outloud to himself. A jaguar was washing his hands and glancing at Fox in confusion. Fox didn't notice and leaned closer to the mirror. He then pointed at his reflection and glared at himself in the mirror.

"Don't start acting like a chicken! You're just nervous because it is the first time you two can go out together in a long while. Don't mess this up, Fox! You're the man!"

He then noticed that the Jaguar was staring at him. Fox blushed, but tried to shrug it off.

"Sometimes you gotta motivate yourself, you know?" he chuckled nervously.

The jaguar said nothing and walked out, but not before giving Fox one last glance.

Fox sighed a relief when the jaguar left and reached into his pocket, pulling out the ring box. You can do this, he said to himself. He put the box back into his pocket and walked out the restroom.

Krystal smiled when she saw Fox coming back. He sat down in front of her and smiled apologetically.

"Sorry about that. Didn't mean to keep you waiting."

"It's alright," Krystal smiled. She squeezed his hand and looked down at her menu. "The special tonight looks really good. Perhaps we could order some wine, too?"

"Yeah, that sounds great," Fox agreed, even though he wasn't looking at his menu. His focus was on theirs hands touching. His heart began pounding again and his face began to turn red.

The Waiter returned and the couple ordered their meals and the wine. The Waiter nodded and thanked them. He took the menus and left to get their orders prepared.

Krystal leaned forward until her knees touched Fox's and was staring deeply into his eyes.

Fox was a bit confused.

"What are you doing? I mean, not that I don't like it..."

"I don't know," Krystal admitted. "I heard somewhere that when two people are on a date they should touch each others' knees and stare at each other for a few minutes without saying anything. Apparently, it can increase the bond and get to know the person more. I only want to know if it is true."

It sounded a bit silly to Fox, but they had nothing to do but wait a while for their food. He nodded and followed Krystal's lead. They sat with only their knees touching and stared into each others' eyes in silence.

The only thing Fox could think about was Krystal. He had forgotten about his worries of Andros attacking or the Lylat System being in any danger. All he could think about was Krystal and when he first laid eyes on her. It had been love at first sight. He still couldn't believe the same vixen was here before him. And that someday she may actually be...

Krystal was thinking the same about Fox, and his hand offering to help her out of danger the first time they met. She could tell something was bothering him. But what it was, she was still having a hard time to figure it out.

Without realizing it, they both leaned forward and their noses touched. Fox kicked the table and it woke them up.

"Sorry, that was my mistake!" yet he was cursing at himself for interrupting the moment. "Krystal...I …I..." He tried reaching for the ring box, but it wasn't there. He then noticed there was a big hole in his pocket and that the box had tumbled out. He saw the box on the floor lying open and the ring was rolling away from their table. "Would you excuse me for another second?"

Krystal had no idea what Fox was up to and watched him as he left her alone again. She noticed Fox had got down on all fours and was crawling around the floor as if searching for something. It was silly to see him do this, and she blushed as she noticed other animals watching Fox's strange behavior.

Fox desperately searched for the ring and looked underneath chairs and tables. He knew he was probably causing a strange and silly scene, but all he could think about was getting the ring for Krystal. A waiter did not see him crawling around him and tripped over him, spilling the large try of food all over the floor and Fox. Fox didn't stick around to wait for him or the waiter to apologize and finally spotted the ring. It was heading for the kitchen.

A-ha, Fox thought to himself and quickly went after it. He dove for the ring and slid on his belly into the kitchen. The cooks and chefs stared at him, but Fox had the ring in his grasp!

After apologizing to those in the kitchen, Fox quickly returned to Krystal, who looked as if she had something on her mind she wanted to say.

"Fox,i don't know what's going on with you. You have been acting strange all night and you keep leaving the table. Is it me? Have I done anything to upset you?"

"What?" Fox asked in confusion. "No, of course not!"

"Then what has got you so nervous tonight?"

Fox sighed and took her hand. "I'm sorry about my actions. I was just trying to gather my courage and make sure I didn't lose anything special."

He got down on one knee and pulled out the ring box. "Krystal, I have known you for a few years now and it has been wonderful having you part of my team. But now...I don't want it to end...ever. I have grown close to you, something I never thought would be possible. But ever since I met you...my life has been very different."

Krystal blushed and found it difficult to look him in the eyes again.

"What do you mean? What are you trying to say?" she asked, but judging by his behavior she had a good idea what it was about.

Fox opened the ring box to reveal the gorgeous ring and smiled.

"Krystal, I would be proud and overjoyed if you accepted to be my wife. Will you marry me?"

Krystal stared at him for a very long moment until she too began to smile. So this what all the fuss had been about.

"Oh, Fox! You silly dog! Of course I accept your proposal!" she chuckled.

Fox couldn't believe his ears.

"What? Really?"

"Of course, really!"

Fox wanted to howl with joy, but he forced himself to keep it in. He stood up and they held each other close. Fox kissed her and put the ring on her finger. There were cheers of congratulations from the other animals in the restaurant. But neither fox could have been more happier.

Falco, Slippy, and Peppy were at the controls of the Wii. The pushed and shoved and were causing quite a ruckus. At first, Peppy didn't want to fool around with the other two and wanted to keep a lookout on the radar screens. But once he saw that Rob 64 was keeping everything in check and control, he soon relaxed and joined in on the fun.

Flaco blew up Slippy's ship on the game and cheered in victory.

"Ha, take that, Slippy! I told you I would win that round!"

"Aww man! You always chose the hard courses," Slippy pouted.

"I was never too good at these sort of stuff anyway," Peppy said, accepting his defeat.

It was then that Fox and Krystal returned from their date and they saw the state the Bridge was in. Peppy blushed, he knew what Fox and Krystal were looking at.

"I tried to tell them to keep the place tidy, Fox," Peppy tried to explain. "But these young folks just can't seem to keep anything clean."

"Come on, old man!" Falco argued. "Even you were starting to let lose. Besides, half of this mess is yours."

"It is not!" Peppy insisted.

Fox crossed his arms and sighed, "Men..."

The trio noticed that their commanding officer looked upset about this. They stood at attention. Peppy began to sweat, but he will take full responsibility. Slippy gulped while Falco remained silent.

Fox smiled and Krystal began to giggle.

"Forget about protocol today!" Fox announced. "It is our day off and it is cause for celebration!"

"You mean you're not mad?" Peppy asked.

"Of course I'm not mad. Go ahead and enjoy yourselves."

"I guess that means everything went well with the date?" Slippy asked after breathing a sigh of relief.

"Yes," Krystal nodded. She squeezed Fox's hand. "I accepted his marriage proposal."

"Ha!" Flaco smiled. "I knew you would!"

The celebration went on until late that night. Everyone was exhausted and most of them had fallen asleep. But not Peppy, he was busy cleaning everything up.

Geez, am I really the only one who keeps these young ones together? he mumbled to himself.