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Chapter 2 - A Vixen's Telepathic Powers

Fox and Krystal were overjoyed that not only had they buried the bitter, hurtful past, but they were now actually engaged to be married. Fox held his vixen's hand as the two walked along the shore of Cape Claw on their way back to Krystal's little cottage.

"There it is," said Krystal.

"Nice little place," said Fox. "You like living there?"

"Not as much as I'll like living with you once we're married," said Krystal, putting her head against Fox's shoulder.

Fox walked with Krystal inside the cottage, seeing that it was probably adequate for a single vulpine, but the thought of two residing there was not an idea that appealed to him. He stood in the doorway as Krystal packed up what little belongings, which was mostly clothing, that she'd brought with her after leaving Star Wolf.

"I've always been curious about something," said Fox.

"What's that?" asked Krystal.

"Did all Cerinians wear that type of clothing, or was it just you?" asked Fox.

"You mean the loincloth and bra?" asked Krystal. "The females all wore a loincloth and bra, the males just wore a loincloth, and we all had various little extras like what I'm wearing on my shoulders, arms, legs, and tail."

"Why is that?" asked Fox, scratching at the back of his head.

"Because," said Krystal as she folded up her clothing. "Cerinians believed the vulpine body to be a thing of beauty, and it should be displayed for all to see without of course showing the private areas."

"Really?"

"Well," said the vixen. "That and it was very hot on Cerinia. So wearing a bunch of clothing wasn't very comfortable."

"I see," said Fox. "So there was a philosophical as well as practical reason in the choice of clothing."

Krystal laughed. "I never thought of it in those terms, but I suppose that's accurate."

"It's going to take me a while to get used to the idea of standing in front of all our friends in one of those things," admitted Fox. "Might feel like I'm naked."

"You'll be fine," said Krystal, turning around and smiling at him.

"Easy for you to say," said Fox with a slight chuckle. "You've worn that sort of thing for most of your life. So you're used to it."

"Perhaps you're right," said Krystal. "Tell you what. If right before our wedding you're still uncomfortable with wearing it in front of everyone, you don't have to."

"I'm sure by then I'll be okay with it," said Fox. "I'll just picture everyone else at the wedding in one of those too. Maybe that way I won't feel so self-conscious."

Krystal laughed again. "Whatever works for you, Fox."

The orange-brown vulpine grinned at his fiancée. Looking over at the wall next to him, he noticed Krystal's staff was held there in a simple wooden mounted display. He reached his hand over and grasped the purple, blue, and gold weapon. The same strange feeling washed over his body just like he had felt when he first found the it in Thorntail Hollow all those months ago. It somehow knew what he wanted and extended at his will. Krystal turned around, seeing her husband-to-be just standing there like a statue, with a contemplative expression.

"Fox?" said Krystal. "Is something the matter?"

"Strange," said Fox, not taking his eyes of the spear-like head of Krystal's staff, which crackled with an inner power while the large blue jewel at the center glowed. "It felt like the staff was talking to me. It was like that when I first found it all just over a year ago on Sauria, before I first saw you, imprisoned in that crystal." Fox shrugged and willed the staff to collapse back into itself and handed it to his vixen.

"That is odd," said Krystal. "I've never known of Cerinian staves responding to anyone except those with telepathic powers." Krystal took Fox's hands in hers, but felt nothing out of the ordinary. Unable to think of a rational reason for her staff's inexplicable response to her fiancé, she decided to file it to the back of her mind for another time and picked up her small duffel bag.

"I'm all packed now."

"To Walled City then," said Fox, taking hold of Krystal's belongings in one hand and Krystal's hand with the other.

They made their way through the woods and glades of Sauria until they reached the Walled City where they were greeted by King Tricky. The engaged couple told the king of their plans to marry in a month and hoped that the ceremony could take place on Sauria and that their honeymoon would be enjoyed in Cape Claw.

The King Earth Walker was overjoyed to hear the news. "Alright! That's great you guys! I'm so happy for both of ya, and am honored to host your wedding here. And ya can stay at Cape Claw as long as ya like."

Fox and Krystal gave the Earth Walker monarch a hug. "Thanks for everything, Tricky. We'll see you in a month then, once everything is set."

Together, they walked across from the pyramid to the corner of Walled City where Fox's Arwing was waiting on its stone landing pad. With Krystal sitting on his lap, Fox guided his Arwing up through the sky and into orbit where rendezvoused with the Great Fox.

Upon boarding the ship, they met with Slippy and Falco on the hangar deck. Both were surprised when Fox returned from Sauria so quickly, and even more surprised when they saw Krystal climb out of his Arwing with Fox. Neither the bird nor the toad thought that she would be willing to come back to Team Star Fox after the bitter breakup that had taken place.

"I can't believe what I'm seeing," said Falco, as they all made their way to the bridge. "Krystal, are you actually back with us now?"

"I'm back with Fox," said the vixen, giving her husband-to-be a kiss on the cheek. "Fox tells me that he's retiring and you'll soon be in possession of the Great Fox."

"Yeah," said Falco. "But when I do, it will be the Great Falcon."

"Seems appropriate," said Krystal, smiling.

Fox then spoke up. "Krystal and I just wanted to let you and Slippy know that we're getting married on Sauria a month from now and you're both invited."

"Wouldn't miss it for the galaxy," said Slippy, happy to hear that his two friends were getting married.

"Same here," said Falco.

"Good," said Fox. "Right now, let's head back to Corneria. Krystal and I will need some time to plan the wedding."

"I'd say we start by making a guest list," said Krystal.

"Right," said Fox. "If you'll excuse Krystal and me, we have a wedding to plan."

"Have fun," said Falco. Fox and Krystal had their back turned, walking away from the avian and toad. So neither one of them noticed when Falco made the intercourse gesture with his hands to Slippy, who had to cover his mouth to keep from laughing out loud. Fox, still walking away, turned around briefly, wondering what the noise was, but just as quickly turned back around.

"Okay," said Fox once he and Krystal got to his quarters and sat down at his desk. "Time to get on the computer and start the list."

"Right," said Krystal, sitting down next to Fox, who opened up a blank document on his computer. "Shall I start giving you names?"

"Shoot," said Fox.

"Let's see," said the vixen. "There's General Pepper, Peppy and Lucy Hare, Slippy and Falco already said they'd come, and Slippy's fiancée Amanda should be invited too. There's Fara Phoenix, Fay Spaniel, Miyu Lynx, Bill Gray, Katt Monroe, Wolf O'Donnell, Panther Caruso..."

"Wait a second," said Fox, looking away from the computer monitor and towards the vixen. "Do we really have to invite Panther?"

"Yes," said Krystal. "Why don't you want to invite him?"

"I don't know," said Fox with a grimace. "Maybe it's because he's an asshole."

"Fox," said Krystal. "Please try to be understanding about Panther. He doesn't mean you any disrespect or harm. It's just how he is.

Fox sighed. "I suppose you're right. At least, he knew to take 'no' for an answer when you declined his advances."

"Yes," said Krystal. "I have to say that when I was with Star Wolf, I was worried I'd have to constantly fend him off, but Panther did prove himself to be gallant when he immediately relented and was willing to be just a good friend."

Fox grew pensive for a moment and then shrugged. "Anyway, one other thing I just thought of. I need to contact my lawyer back in Corneria to draw up the papers to transfer the Great Fox over to Falco. That way it's out of my hands after we're married."

"You gonna miss it?" asked Krystal. "I know it belonged to your father."

"Sure I will miss it for a while," said Fox. "But I have to put the past behind me and look forward to a future with you, and hopefully our future pups."

Krystal put her head on his shoulder. "Sounds like a future that I want to look forward to."

After finishing the guest list, Fox went ahead and contacted Martin Ashley, his lawyer in Corneria, who was surprised to hear that Fox was exiting the mercenary business and that he was letting go of the Great Fox, a ship purchased by his late father, James McCloud. Fox explained that he was getting married and wished to start a family, something that wasn't really compatible with being a pilot-for-hire. Martin said he understood and that getting the paperwork ready to be signed by both Fox and Falco would be no problem. Fox was assured that once he was married, the Great Fox, then to be called the Great Falcon, would be the responsibility of Falco Lombardi.

With the guest list and legal matters out of the way, Fox and Krystal decided it was time to have dinner, and went to eat with Falco and Slippy in the galley of the Great Fox. As the four sat in the galley, Fox played absently with his food, staring at the beautiful blue furred vixen sitting across from him, thinking about how 'Krystal McCloud' had quite a lovely ring to it and how he couldn't wait to start their new lives together.

Krystal noticed the goofy expression her fiancé had on his face. "What are you looking at?"

Fox found the question odd. "You mean you don't know?"

"No," said Krystal. "I'm not reading your mind right now, silly."

"Oh," said Fox. "But I gave you permission to read my mind. I thought you might be in there right now, hearing me thinking about how much I'm in love with you."

"I see now," said Krystal. "I thought you gave me permission just that one time to read your thoughts. I didn't know it was okay to do it beyond that."

"Fox, man," said Falco. "You mean to tell me you let her see everything in your mind?"

"Everything..." said Fox.

"Oh fuck," said Falco, putting his hands over his face. "Now that means she knows all the stuff you know about me, including the embarrassing stuff."

"First of all," said Fox, getting irritated. "Watch your mouth in front of my future wife. Second, letting her see my deepest thoughts was my way of showing her that I trusted her completely and wasn't afraid of letting her know everything about my life."

"You're not going to tell Katt about some of that stuff, are you Krystal?" asked the avian nervously.

"Don't worry," said Krystal. "I won't tell her about the time you were in Corneria City and hired a prostitute, only to find out the prostitute was male."

"Crap," said Falco, getting up. "Why did I tell you about that, Fox?"

"Why? I don't know why you did, but need I remind you that when you told me and Slippy about that you were super wasted?"

"Remind me never to touch a drop of alcohol again, will you?" asked Falco.

"If I were you," said Slippy, entering the conversation. "I'd sell him the Great Fox at a much higher price in exchange for keeping this quiet from Katt.

"That's extortion," said Falco, growing angry with the toad. "You better not say a word, Slippy, or I'm going to kick your scrawny ass."

"Okay, okay," said Fox, quickly rising to his feet. "Everybody settle down. That's an order. Slippy, nobody's going to say anything to Katt about that little lapse in judgment of Falco's. Falco, calm down. Your secret is safe with all of us. I'm not going to say anything, Slippy's not going to say anything, and I'm sure Krystal won't either. Okay?"

"Okay," said Falco, trying to calm down.

Fox sat back down and looked over at Krystal. "Anyway, where were we? Oh yes..." He then took his fiancée's hands in his and gazed lovingly into her eyes. "Krystal, never feel like you have to ask for permission to read my thoughts. I love you so much that day or night, you can penetrate my mind as deeply as you want."

"That is a precious gift you're giving me," said the vixen, deeply touched. "I will cherish this deep trust you have in me each time I enter your mind."

Fox gazed down at her blue-furred hands that he held in his and spoke from his heart. "I could never deny you, not after what we shared at Cape Claw." He released her hands, sat back, and let himself be lost in her turquoise eyes. She gazed back into his green eyes, and it was then that Fox felt her presence in his mind.

"Krystal," he said in awe. "You're able to be inside my mind without touching me?"

"Oh yes," said the vixen. "It's the focusing gem on my forehead that amplifies my telepathic powers and lets me be inside your head. Doesn't hurt that I'm also intimately familiar with your mind after our melding on Sauria."

Falco and Slippy watched as the two vulpine once again held hands and gave each other a quick kiss on the cheek. The avian was still amazed that Fox would allow Krystal to do such a thing.

"Wow," said the bird. "Gotta say, you must really love and trust her, huh, Fox?"

"I certainly do," said Fox.

"He loves her so much," said Slippy, "that he would never go to Corneria City and try to hire a prostitute."

"Dammit," said Falco, jumping to his feet. "I'm going to kill you, Slippy!"

Krystal and Fox stood up, watching Falco chase Slippy out of the galley. Fox shook his head. "I swear it's like dealing with children."

Krystal couldn't help but laugh not only at Falco and Slippy, but also her fiancé's observation. "Don't you think you'd better put a stop to that?"

"I suppose you're right," said Fox. "Be kind of hard to lend the Great Fox to Falco if he's in prison for murdering Slippy."

Krystal saw her future husband run out of the galley, only to return a few minutes later holding Falco and Slippy by the collars of their shirts. He brought them back to the dining table. "Okay, you sit there and you sit there," he ordered the misbehaving crew members. "Next one of you who starts any trouble is going to be confined to their quarters until we get to Corneria. Understood?"

"Got it," said Falco, folding his arms like a pouting child.

"I understand," said Slippy, also folding his arms in a similar fashion.

Grumbling, Fox sat back down at the table across from Krystal and smiled once more as he looked into her loving eyes. "You know," he said. "When I first met you, I was deathly afraid of you reading my mind. It was just so... so strange to think that someone could possess telepathic abilities. It made me feel vulnerable. But after I talked to Wolf when I came looking for you in Fichina, he convinced me that I was only as sick as my secrets. I thought about that, and it made sense, but I didn't really, truly believe that until after you probed my mind deeply. Then I felt so completely liberated, like a giant weight had been lifted off me. I'm glad that I don't have any secrets between us anymore."

Krystal watched as Fox stared dreamily at her once more, his eyes fixated on the gem on her forehead. She smiled back at him, and once again he could feel her in his mind. Her presence was warm and comforting to the orange-brown vulpine. He was now like an open book to her.

"Krystal," asked Slippy, "what's Fox thinking?

She knew that her future husband didn't mind the toad asking such a question. "He's looking forward to being married and he thinks the name 'Krystal McCloud' has a lovely ring to it."

"It does," said Fox, still dreamily staring at the future Missus McCloud.

"And Falco?" said the vixen.

"Yes?" said Falco.

"I was serious when I said that I wouldn't reveal anything to Katt that I learned about you from reading Fox's mind," she said. "I would never betray a confidence like that."

"Thank you," said Falco, breathing a sigh of relief. He'd never known the vixen to break a promise in all the time he'd known her, and he didn't expect that she would start now. Satisfied with her assurance, he gave Slippy a baleful glare. The toad put his hands in the air, signaling that he had no intentions of saying or doing anything to piss the avian off; at least not with Fox still present.

Dinner ended, and Fox and Krystal retired to the lounge of the Great Fox for the evening. They sat on a couch, gazing out a window at the countless stars that the ship was passing by. The two vulpine had their heads leaning, touching each other. Being in close physical contact with the Cerinian vixen, Fox could feel her presence in his mind quite strongly. It was soothing to the vulpine, who felt as though nothing else mattered whenever she was inside his head. He drifted to thoughts about how the Great Fox, soon to be the Great Falcon, didn't feel so empty, so lonely with his wife-to-be now present.

"They really did a great job restoring the ship, you know."

"Oh wow!" Fox blurted out. "I could hear your thoughts in my head."

Krystal shushed her fiancé, putting a hand up to his mouth. "Hush you," she thought to Fox. "Now that your mind is so receptive to my presence, I can talk to you telepathically, and you can answer back with your thoughts."

"Oh," said Fox with just his thoughts. "This is incredible!"

"You know," said Krystal, continuing their telepathic conversation. "I hope that you'll be okay with Panther attending our wedding. He's actually a really good guy, and once I made it clear to him that I wasn't interested in having a sexual relationship with him, he relented and told me he would no longer try to proposition me."

"I've been thinking about it,"_said Fox, still conversing with the vixen telepathically. _"I'm not going to get mad at Panther anymore for his hitting on you, or for taunting me. Truth is I probably deserved some of those taunts because of how awful I treated you. I promise I will never, ever treat you like that again."

"I believe you," Krystal thought back to him. "Fox, where do you want to live after our honeymoon?"

"Been thinking about that,"_thought Fox. _"I was born on Papetoon, but raised on Corneria. So that's really my first home, but Sauria sounds pretty inviting. With all the money I've saved, I don't see why we couldn't have homes on both planets."

"I wouldn't be opposed to that."_Krystal mentally said, _"What about work? What do you want to do?"

"Krystal," Fox thought back to his vixen, smiling at her, "I've made quite a bit of money from mercenary work. I don't think we'll have to worry about working for money for a long time, or maybe even ever. That being said, I plan on maybe getting a job at the Cornerian Military Academy as a flying instructor in the future, just so I can still be involved in flying, though that might be after our pups get older."

"I can't tell you how happy I am that you want to have children with me," said Krystal, holding her fiancé tighter. "How many do you want to have?"

"As many as we can," Fox mentally replied. "I grew up as an only child and I always wanted siblings to play with. Plus, having brothers and sisters would have helped me better deal with the loss of my mom and dad. It would have been nice to have had siblings so we could comfort each other."

Krystal looked into Fox's eyes. She could feel how much he loved her, and she felt the same way about him. The blue furred vixen felt herself passionately kissed by the orange-brown tod, his tongue licking at her face and cupping her breasts. She was still dressed in traditional Cerinian attire, and the scant clothing was causing Fox to grow increasingly aroused. He knew that she could pick up on his overwhelming desire to mate with her, and so he stopped his kissing.

"No," he said, this time speaking out loud instead of telepathically. "Krystal I... I do want to make love to you, I want you to give me little pups we can love and cherish right now, but I know how important it is to you that we wait until after the wedding to consummate our marriage."

"Oh, that means so much to me," said Krystal, hugging him. "Being chaste until one was married was very important in Cerinian culture. I know how much you want to make love to me, and I want to make love to you too, but I would feel like I'm betraying the customs, the ancient traditions of my people if I did that."

"Then we'll abstain from sex until after the wedding," said Fox. "But for now, I want to kiss you, my lovely vixen."

Krystal closed her eyes, feeling the orange-brown vulpine's lips pressed against hers. The two kissed deeply before she broke free. Pressing her forehead against his, she opened her telepathy fully, projecting her love for her vulpine directly into his mind. Fox felt Krystal's intense love for him flood through his very being and went limp from the overwhelming experience, whimpering happily as Krystal held him in her arms.

The Great Fox continued on its journey to Corneria and Fox and Krystal said goodnight to each other mentally before retiring to their quarters for the night. Krystal went to her room, directly across the hall from Fox's. Inside, she washed her face and hands before getting undressed. Naked, she went over to a mirror and looked at her own figure. She was in near perfect physical condition and it was all she could do to restrain herself from going over to her fiancé's room and letting him take her right then and there. Conscious that she would regret having intercourse with Fox before they were properly married, she sat down and began her nighttime ritual of meditation.

Across the hall, Fox was busy washing his face and hands like he did every night before going to sleep. Stripping his clothes off down to his underwear, he threw the garments into a hamper in the corner of his room. He walked over to the mirror on the wall and examined himself. He grinned as he flexed his arms, admiring that, like his future wife, he was in excellent shape. He looked over his body, thinking about how badly he wanted to walk across the hall, open the door to Krystal's room and make sweet love to her. He shook his head, dismissing the idea. As much as he wanted to do it, he knew he would regret it if he took Krystal before their wedding. Cerinian custom was very specific that a male and female were to be chaste until the wedding ceremony had been completed. Fox knew that he couldn't completely live up to that, having been Fara's lover years ago, but he would not deflower Krystal until they were properly wedded.

Yawning, Fox stretched his arms before climbing into bed and pulling the covers over himself. He felt a little lonely since Krystal's presence was not currently in his mind, but still he was incredibly happy. This had been the greatest, most important day in his life so far. As he lay in bed, his thoughts drifted to how lonely he had felt after Krystal had left Star Fox and joined Star Wolf. It pained him back in those days to think that not only had she left Star Fox, but that she might have been running right into Panther's arms. The thought of the dark cat making love to her, night after night, making her calling out his name, was unbearable to him. Much to his relief, Krystal had never slept with him. Fox thought back to earlier in the day when Krystal had returned to the Great Fox with him. He felt a few tears run down his face, thinking about how lonely he would feel if he ever lost her again. Without his sweet, loving, blue-furred vixen by his side, he might very well lose the will to live. Digging his head into the pillows on his bed, Fox yawned once more and closed his eyes, drifting off into sleep.

*****

_Fox opened his eyes, finding himself on the bridge of the Great Fox, sitting in his command chair. He slowly rose to his feet and looked around. He was the only one on the bridge. _

"Wonder where Krystal is?"

He left the bridge and started searching for her, checking the galley, the lounge, and the hangar bay. He could feel his heart beating faster and faster. Sweat was accumulating on his forehead. Where was she? In a mad dash, he ran to her quarters and opened the door, but she was nowhere to be found. He searched throughout the room, trying to find her belongings, but there was nothing, absolutely nothing, not even her Cerinian attire. He tried calling out to her mentally. The only response he got was complete, dead silence. He ran back to the ship's bridge, hoping to contact King Tricky.

"Tricky, Tricky, where are you?" he said into the ship's communication monitor. The King Earth Walker appeared on screen.

"Oh, thank the Great Maker," said the vulpine. "Tricky, I can't find Krystal anywhere. Is she back on Sauria again?"

The King Earth Walker gave the orange-brown vulpine a disgusted look. Fox knew something was seriously wrong. He and Tricky had been great friends for years, and he'd never known the dinosaur to give him that kind of stare.

"You have some nerve calling me, Fox," said Tricky.

"Why?" said Fox. "What's wrong? I don't understand."

"Don't act like you don't remember, Fox," said Tricky. "You promised her that you would never keep any secrets from her, that you would trust her with all your heart, but you drove her away again."

"No," said Fox, gasping for air. "That can't be. I promised her that I would always be with her."

"You lied," said Tricky. "It was even worse than before. Not only did you fail to trust her, you treated her like trash."

"No!" shouted Fox. "That can't be!"

"You did all of that, Fox," said Tricky, looking angrier by the second. "Everyone on Star Fox was so appalled at how you treated her that they left you the day it happened."

"What happened?" asked Fox, fearing what the King was about to say.

"That day they went to go look for Krystal when she didn't report for duty in the morning. They went to her quarters, but there was no response. When they opened the door, they found Krystal lying face down on her bed. They thought she was sleeping, but they couldn't rouse her from sleep. It was then they noticed the note and bottle on the nightstand next to her bed."

"What... what are you talking about?" asked a terrified Fox.

"SHE TOOK HER OWN LIFE, FOX," roared Tricky, gnashing his teeth at the vulpine. "She couldn't stand the way you treated her anymore, so she got hold of some poison when Star Fox was at an outpost, wrote a letter and then swallowed the deadly pills to end her misery."

"No," said Fox. "No, no, no!"

"Yes, Fox," said Tricky. "You made Krystal kill herself!"

Fox dropped to the floor of the bridge and curled into a ball of misery, screaming and crying.

*****

Krystal was still up, having decided to have a long, deep meditation session to center herself telepathically and think about all that had happened to her that day. She had gone from living by herself on Sauria, having left Star Wolf months ago, to having the deepest, most meaningful mind meld with her now fiancé, Fox McCloud. This day had been the most important ever in her life. She couldn't help but drift into thoughts of what living with Fox would be like after they got married just one month from now. She thought about all the wonderful times they would have together, spending the rest of their lives as husband and wife. She thought about how Fox said he wanted to have as many pups as possible. It warmed her heart. Neither of them had any living relatives left, and the thought of creating a large McCloud family was what she wanted more than anything. She wanted to be a mother, raising a brood of pups into proper adults and she could think of no better father than her beloved Fox McCloud.

Suddenly, she picked up some disturbing thoughts coming from across the hall. "Fox?" she said aloud. Something was wrong...very, very wrong. Getting to her feet, she quickly put on a pair of panties and bra and rushed out or her quarters. She pounded on the door to Fox's, trying to get a response from him, but there was no answer. Knowing how to override the lock on his door, she quickly did so. Inside his quarters, she saw her orange-brown vulpine, sweating, trashing around in his bed. She knew from the outwards appearance and the thoughts coming from him that he was having a nightmare. She went to him, tugging on his arm.

"Fox, Fox, Fox!" she said aloud.

The orange-brown vulpine awoke and sprang up from his bed. Sweating and breathing heavily, he looked over and saw Krystal was there.

"Krystal, you're... you're here," he said.

"Of course I'm here," she said. "Where did you think I'd be?"

Tears welled up in Fox's eyes and he sobbed heavily. "Oh, Krystal! It was awful. I had a horrible, horrible nightmare. I couldn't find you. Then I talked to Tricky and he said I drove you away again. He said I made you take your own life!"

Krystal took hold of her beloved tod, nuzzling him between his tearful eyes. She stroked his ears, trying to calm him. "Oh, Fox. It's okay. It was just a bad dream. I've looked into the deepest part of your mind and I know you would never, ever do a thing like that. I know you love me more than anything, even your own life."

She sat on the edge of his bed, holding and comforting him. She didn't concern herself with anything else but trying to get the love of her life back to his old self again. She wiped away his tears and felt that his mind was slowly coming back to normal.

"Fox?" she said.

"Yes?" said Fox.

"I still want to remain pure before our wedding, but tonight I'm going to sleep next to you."

"Are you sure about that?" asked Fox.

"Yes," she said. "With both of us right next to each other, I'll be able to keep the nightmares away while you sleep."

"You have that kind of power?" asked Fox, brushing the last of his tears away.

"I do," she said. "Come on, let's go to sleep now. You'll feel better once I've entered your dreams. I promise you that."

"Alright," said the vulpine, laying back down. "Krystal?"

"Yes?"

"I love you."

"I love you too."

Together, they laid back down in Fox's bed and drew the covers over themselves, with Krystal spooning him from behind while pressing her hands against his temples. It took time, but eventually Fox drifted off to sleep once more with Krystal's comforting presence in his mind.

*****

Fox was back at the Star Wolf base in Fichina. He looked around, seeing that Wolf O'Donnell was standing close to him, as was Panther Caruso. He looked at them, thinking that they would be arguing like he'd seen them do before. They remained silent, so he decided to strike up a conversation.

"So," asked the vulpine. "Have any of you seen Krystal?"

Panther and Wolf looked at each other, confused by Fox's question. Fox noticed the strange looks on their faces.

"Why would you even care, McCloud?" asked Wolf with a look of contempt.

"Indeed," said Panther. "Why would she even want to be with you when she's having so much fun with me?"

"Wait," said Fox. "You're... you're with Krystal?"

"Damn right I am," said Panther, giving Fox a smug grin. "Best piece of ass I've ever had in my life, and I've had my fair share."

"You're lying!" yelled Fox. "Krystal would never sleep with you."

"Oh yes she would," said Panther. "Just ask her yourself."

Fox turned around, seeing Krystal approaching them. The blue furred vixen snuggled up against Panther, making him purr loudly. "Hi, handsome kitty-cat," said the vixen. "How's the best lover in all the Lylat System?"

"Better for seeing you," said Panther, putting his hands on her posterior. "Fox doesn't believe that you're my lover now."

"Believe it, McCloud," she said. "Panther is the greatest lover a girl could ever have."

Fox could feel his heart beating uncontrollably, sweat forming on his forehead, his breathing quick and shallow. He opened his mouth to speak, but felt someone tapping on his shoulder. He turned around to see who it was.

"Krystal" he said. "But I thought you were..." He turned around again, only to find that Panther, Wolf, the first Krystal, and the entire Star Wolf base had vanished into thin air to be replaced by an ethereal forest he'd never seen before. He turned back around, seeing Krystal standing by him, smiling lovingly.

"It's me, Fox," she said. "I'm in your dreams now. I will protect you from anything that's the slightest bit unpleasant."

Fox took hold of the vixen. "This is a dream?" He looked around in bewilderment and then looked back at the apparition before him. "Are you a dream too?"

"Yes, this is a dream, but I'm not" she said. "And I'll always be with you in your dreams, and never allow you to be tormented by nightmares again."

He smiled warmly at her and leaned in for a kiss. "And I'll be here for you too, until my very last breath."

The two locked their muzzles together, kissing each other deeply. Krystal then drew him down into a bed of flowers until he lay on his back. Her whole body below her neck then seem to melt and flow around Fox, solidifying into a blue-furred blanked that wrapped itself snuggly around Fox to keep him safe. With Krystal's love pouring into and soothing his mind, Fox felt like he would never have to worry about a nightmare ever again as long as he had the love of his life sleeping beside him.

*****

Fox woke the next morning after the most restful night's sleep he had in a long time. With his returning awareness of his surroundings, he realized he was laying on his back and could feel the weight of a warm presence on his front and chest. It then came back to him with a jarring suddenness that Krystal had rescued him from his nightmares and she was now sleeping with him.

Seeing her slumbering on top of him, it all came back: Krystal waking him up from that first horrible nightmare where he had driven her to suicide, followed by that awful dream of his love in Panther's arms being cut short by her presence invading and actually taking control of his dream. He had no idea where that strange, otherworldly forest was, but could only assume it came from Krystal's mind somehow. His eyes became moist when he recalled the wonderful sense of love and security that suffused his very being when she literally wrapped herself about him like a blanket.

Tears coursed down his cheeks and onto the pillow under his head, just thinking of how fortunate and blessed he was that she had forgiven him and still loved him, despite what he had done to hurt her. He wrapped his arms about the still-sleeping vixen and pulled her weight down against his chest in a heartfelt hug, his body shaking in a barely-suppressed sob. In the next instant, he felt her comforting presence invade his mind. He didn't even have to think his thanks to her. Krystal could plainly see the deep gratitude radiating from his soul.

That gratitude quickly metamorphosed into a deep love and in the next instant, Fox's muzzle latched onto his vixen's in a passionate kiss. Caught by surprise by the sudden move, Krystal breathlessly returned his passion upon finding her muzzled locked to her tod's. With an overwhelming sense of desire welling up from his heart, Fox's hands drifted down to her shapely rump, which he lovingly groped through the thin fabric of her panties. The intimate touch served only to fuel her passion, driving Krystal to grind herself against her vulpine.

His mind now at war with the desire of his heart, Fox desperately struggled to reign in his passion. "Krystal. I want you so much now...but we can't. Not yet."

Reluctantly, his fiancée broke the kiss and slid off of his chest to roll onto the bed next to him. "I know....Oh Fox, I want you so much too, and if you had insisted, I'd have given myself to you....I'm glad we both abstained though."

Fox sighed and rolled over onto his side. The sight of her shapely body and her lustrous blue fur, covered only in her panties and bra, made the orange-brown tod's heart ache with barely-suppressed desire. "I don't think we can sleep together again. We almost gave in."

Krystal gazed back at her fiancé and shook her head. "Fox, I'm not going to let you sleep alone anymore. I refuse to allow you to have any more nightmares."

"But Krystal...." He began, but was cut off.

"We'll wear modest night clothes. I can get a nightgown and you can wear pajamas." She cupped his cheek ruff. "Please Fox. Let me protect you. I cannot bear to see your mind tormented like that."

Fox closed his eyes and leaned his head into her cupping hand. He shuddered to think what a return of his nightmares might do to him. Even now, her telepathic presence eased his mind. "Okay....We'll sleep together from now on....but for now, I think I need a cold shower."

Together, they got out of bed and Fox walked Krystal to the door, which slid open just as Falco and Slippy were walking by.

Seeing the two vulpine standing there, nearly naked, the bird could not resist making a lewd comment. "Damn. Back together for only one day, and you two are breeding already."

Both vulpine blushed and Fox replied, flustered. "It's not like that...."

Slippy giggled. "Sure looks like it, and here I thought you two were going to wait until you were married."

Fox huffed in annoyance at his two friends. "If you two must know, Krystal's been sleeping with me to use her powers to keep me from having nightmares."

Falco could only grin and eye the foxes skeptically while Krystal walked across the hallway to her quarters. Fox gave his two friends a dirty look before turning back into his quarters to take his cold shower.

*****

Fully washed and refreshed, the two foxes joined their teammates in the ship's galley. While they ate, Falco asked them. "Say Fox, what exactly are your plans once we reach Corneria anyhow?"

"For one thing, we need to meet with my lawyer. I've asked him to draw up papers for me to turn the Great Fox over to you."

"Oh yeah. I forgot about that." Falco nodded, his mind already running with all the possible things he'd do as the leader of Star Falco.

Fox went on to say, "Which reminds me. For the rest of the journey back to Corneria and for the entire return trip to Sauria, you and I are going to sit down and go over all the specifications of the Great Fox. Understand Falco, I'm not giving you this ship, I'm lending it to you. So I expect you to take good care of her, and that means you'll need to know it's systems from bow to stern."

The bird frowned at the unexpected conditions being put on him. "Why? All I need to do is hire a mechanic, and let him take care of maintenance. Hasn't that been what Slippy's been doing?"

The Star Fox leader held up his hand. "Slippy may have been doing that job, but I made sure I knew how to do the basics too, when I took ownership of the Great Fox. I needed to be able to do repairs myself in case Slippy was not around or unable to do his job. As commander of this ship, you'll need to be able to do so too."

Even Falco could not deny the wisdom of that assessment and slumped in capitulation. "Yeah, I get what you mean."

Slippy piped up. "Is that all we'll be doing on Corneria?"

Fox replied, "Krystal and I will be doing a few errands." With a blush, we went on to add. "We'll also be getting fitted for Cerinian wedding garments."

"What are these wedding garments like?" The toad asked.

When Fox didn't reply, Krystal supplied the answer. "We'll be wearing just loincloths and I'll also be wearing a bra."

"A loincloth?" Falco crowed. He turned to Fox, his eyes sparkling with merriment. "I'm definitely taking pictures. I bet you'll blush so much it will show through even your orange-brown fur."

Slippy giggled. "I'm sure glad I don't have to appear nearly naked when I marry Amanda."

Fox arched frowned at the teasing from his two friends. "I wouldn't be too quick to laugh. As my two closest friends, you two will be expected to stand with me, and guess what you two will be wearing."

"WHAT?!?" both toad and falcon exclaimed.

"That's right. You two will be wearing loincloths as well."

"You can't be serious!"

"Yes I am, Falco. I expect both of you to respect the traditions of my fiancé's people and be attired in only Cerinian-style loincloths when you stand by me at our wedding."

Slippy groaned. "This is so humiliating. How can you do this to us?"

Fox heard a telepathic giggle in his mind. "You can be so sneaky sometimes. You made up this so-called Cerinian tradition to get back at them for teasing us, didn't you?"

"You damn right I did. Those two have been having too much fun at our expense. I figured turnabout was fair play. Besides, I think I'll be less embarrassed about being nearly naked if they also wear loincloths."

Krystal decided to go along with the joke and countered Slippy's complaint. "It is not humiliating. It is a great honor and symbolizes the fact that you two are our closest friends, or are you saying that you don't consider us your friends?"

Slippy slumped in his chair in defeat and groaned. "All right. You win."

Falco, still hoping to avoid such embarrassment, tried to cajole his way out of this predicament. "Can't we just stand as your best friends without the Cerinian symbolism? We promise not to make fun of you anymore, Fox."

Fox shook his head. "No you can't. I've chosen to wear a Cerinian wedding loincloth to honor the traditions of Krystal's people, and I expect you two to do the same." He then gave his two friends a sly grin. "Besides, I know two pink ladies who would love to see you two barely dressed like that. Are you telling me you two wouldn't want to show off to Katt and Amanda?"

The falcon sighed in resignation. "Show off to Katt? Sure. I'm just not too keen on showing off to everyone else."

"We'll make sure that your respective girlfriends have the best view of you two."

Their two friends groaned again, but were at a loss for words. Considering the discussion over, Fox and Krystal stood up. "Now if you'll excuse us, Krystal and I need to get on the comm to place a few calls ahead of our arrival to Corneria. Falco, let's meet this afternoon to start going over the specifications on the Great Fox. "

"Yeah. Okay." He watched the two foxes walk out of the galley and looked back down at his food, having lost his appetite.

*****

That afternoon, Falco's education on maintaining the Great Fox began. With portable computer tablet in hand, Fox guided his friend through all the bridge systems. "Falco, to begin with, I don't expect you to remember every minute detail on everything in this ship." He handed the tablet to the avian, "but hopefully, you'll have a good general idea of where everything is and how to look up particular systems."

"So how is this going to help me?"

While his friend held the tablet, Fox drew a finger across its screen and scrolled down its menu. "So let's say the forward targeting system goes offline, you can call up its schematics here. See? It indicates the control is under Panel 3G and where on the bridge it is."

Falco looked up from the diagram and spotted the panel in question under the console to the right of ROB. The two knelt down while Fox removed the panel cover and looked over the underlying circuit boards and relays. The vulpine then connected a cable from the tablet into a socket next to the left-most circuit board. "Okay, now call up the diagnostics menu."

While Falco watched the tablet go through its routine, Fox discretely unplugged one of the fuses under the panel. Once the diagnostic routine was done, it flashed its result. "Hey, it says that Fuse 12 is defective!"

"Okay. So call up the diagram."

The ace pilot did and then looked under the panel where the fuse was supposed to be. "What the hell? It's missing!"

Fox held up the fuse for his friend to see. "That's because I pulled it out while you were looking at the tablet. Good job, you quickly diagnosed the problem and located where it was. Now if the fuse had burned out, you'd call up the ship's inventory. See? We have 14 spare fuses of that type." He then plugged the fuse back in its slot and Falco could see immediately on his tablet that the diagnosis was now reporting back as nominal.

And so the afternoon went, with Fox guiding his friend through each of the bridge's subsystems. ROB-64 was even taken offline temporarily so that he could show his avian friend the basics on the android. By dinner time, the falcon was gaining a new level of respect for his friend, never having realized before what it took to command the Great Fox.

Sitting at the dinner table with his friends, Falco found himself rubbing his temples. "Damn. There's so much to remember. How do you do it, Fox?"

"Don't worry, you'll get the hang of it. By the time we're back to Sauria, you'll be familiar with it all."

"I feel like my head is going to explode."

Krystal sensed her avian friend's mental distress and offered to help. "Falco, maybe I can help." She got up from her chair and walked up behind Falco and raised her hands up to near his head.

Falco eyed her uncertainly and the vixen could sense his nervousness. "Don't worry. I'm not going to read your thoughts. Just face forward and close your eyes."

When he did, Krystal lightly placed her hands in the bird's temples. "Now breathe deeply and let your mind go blank....That's it." She then closed her own eyes and slipped into a semi-meditative state, clearing her own mind and becoming relaxed herself. When her own breathing slowed and matched her friend's, she projected into his mind the same sense of peace and calm she felt.

Falco suddenly felt his tension headache drain out of him and slumped in his chair. "Oooooh wow."

The vixen opened her eyes and smiled, feeling happy to have helped her avian friend. She let her fingers slip away from the bird's temples and walked back around the table to sit next to Fox, who asked, "What did you do?"

"Know how I was projecting my love for you into your mind yesterday? It did something similar to Falco, except that I projected the mental calm and peace I feel when I meditate."

The bird opened his eyes and gazed back at the vixen in deep appreciation. "I'll say. It felt like you were washing my tension headache away. One breath, my head was throbbing, and the next breath, I felt it just flow out of my mind. Thanks Blue."

"Your welcome, Other Blue."

Fox laughed at the nicknames his fiancée and best friend had for each other. He then took her hand in his and kissed it. Gazing lovingly into her turquoise eyes, he said to Falco, "Now you have just an inkling of why I love her telepathic powers so much."

*****

That evening, Fox went to his quarters and dug up some old pajamas he had not worn in a long time. The vulpine was used to sleeping in his boxers, but didn't feel confident that he could resist giving into his desires for his blue-furred vixen. He also didn't want to tempt Krystal unnecessarily either. He felt her telepathic presence just moments before the doors to his quarters opened. She stood there, in what he realized were his spare pajamas. "I didn't really have any night clothes of my own that I could use, but I know you wouldn't mind if I borrowed these. I'm also wearing my panties and bra underneath."

Her fiancé smiled gratefully. "Thanks. You look beautiful in them. If you want, I'll get you something nice to wear to bed once we arrive to Corneria."

The vixen shook her head. "It's okay. I'll just wear these until we are married. Besides, we'll be sleeping naked afterwards."

The tod swallowed a lump in his throat and replied hoarsely. "Please Krystal. Don't tease me like that."

She approached her fiancé and placed a hand on his temple, calming his mind. "Sorry about that. Let's just cuddle in bed until we fall asleep. I'll even promise not to make your dreams erotic for now."

Fox's heart skipped at the implications of his wife-to-be's reference to what would amount to her giving him wet dreams with her telepathic powers once they were married. Just thinking about it in the slightest gave him shivers all over his body.

Krystal of course read these thoughts from her fiancé but didn't say anything further about it. "Shall we just cuddle in bed until we fall asleep?"

"Yeah. I'd like that." He pulled back the comforter and climbed into his bed, quickly followed by his love.

The two relaxed in each other's arms, kissing each other languidly, simply enjoying the close contact. Feeling her gentle presence caressing his mind, Fox felt completely at peace, content to just continue kissing his vixen, and soon drifted off to sleep in her arms.

Krystal felt herself drift off to sleep, and focused her thoughts on the dream forest she had dreamt with Fox the night before, using her mental discipline to slip into another lucid dream.

*****

Krystal looked about her dream forest, and seeing a depression in the ground, willed it to become a shallow pond filled with warm water. In keeping with her promise not to make Fox's dream erotic, she made a modest one-piece swimsuit form about her feminine figure. She then sat in the pond and waited for her love to slip into REM sleep.

The moment she sensed Fox begin to dream, she immediately took control, not even giving any possible nightmare a chance to form in his mind. She made her tod's dream self appear in the pond with her. "Hello Fox. Glad you could come and join me."

Like any non-telepath who didn't have the mental training she had, Fox was not even aware he was dreaming, and Krystal decided to not tell him this time. "Oh, uh...Hi Krystal....This is such a nice pond...The water seems so warm too."

"MmmMm. It sure is." She then drew him into a warm kiss, continuing their nocturnal snuggle that had started before they fell asleep. Fox returned her affection, melding his muzzle to hers.

Fox didn't know how he ended up in this idyllic place, but it didn't seem to matter. He wrapped his arms about her and laid his head against her shoulder. "Oh Krystal, I feel like I'm in paradise, just being with you, my angel."

Hearing him call her an angel, the vixen decided she would be just that for her dream vulpine. Wide, lustrous wings of pure white extended from her back. Fox looked on in awe of her, at a loss for words.

"My sweet, loving tod. You are in paradise, and your angel loves you dearly." She then drew him into her arms and wrapped her wings about him. In a cocoon of blue fur and white feathers, Fox felt his mind flood with such intense love that it left him overwhelmed.

Krystal herself was in tears of happiness. While she poured her love for her tod into his mind, she could plainly see the intense love he had for her, welling from the very depths of his soul. She had no doubt that he was in the most profound sense her soulmate.

*****

The Great Fox continued on its journey back to Corneria. Each morning, Fox and Krystal would wake up in each other's arms. Both continued to grow ever closer and spend almost all their time together. Even Falco and Slippy could not help but notice that Fox seemed so much more cheerful and carefree. Both foxes were rarely apart now, and almost always telepathically communing.

Every day, Fox would go over the Great Fox's systems with Falco, from the bridge, to the hangar deck, to the engine room. Krystal would often be right there at his side, telepathically adding her input from time to time while Fox explained one system or another to the future commander of the Great Falcon.

They all noticed a change in Falco as well. Having realized that there was more to commanding this ship than he had first realized, he had decided to devote all his efforts into understanding everything he needed to know to be the leader of Star Falco. The avian even found himself asking Slippy for his insights into various aspects of the ship, and toad and falcon would sit together, going over engineering specifications.

It did leave Falco mentally strained though. The bird was now pushing himself beyond what he was used to, and he gratefully accepted Krystal's telepathic soothing of his fatigued mind each evening during dinner in the galley. The four friends would sit and laugh while exchanging stories and telling jokes. They would then spend their evenings relaxing in the ship's lounge, watching the stars. Often, Falco and Slippy would challenge each other in computer games. Krystal and Fox would as always just sit quietly and snuggle, always telepathically thinking to each other. And every night, Krystal would sleep with Fox in his quarters, and the orange-brown vulpine, comforted by his blue vixen's telepathic presence, would fall asleep, knowing he would dream of his angelic vixen and be untroubled by nightmares.