FSE

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Chapter 3 - A Home to Look Forward To

Fox and his crew made their way down the ramp onto Corneria City Spaceport's tarmac, duffel bags slung over their shoulders. After signing authorization forms to secure, refuel, and resupply the Great Fox, he led his fellow teammates towards the security gate. As they walked, he turned to his fiancée. "Say Krystal, have you figured out where we'll get our wedding attire? I can't imagine your run-of-the-mill bridal shop will be selling loincloths."

The blue vixen giggled, "I find it amazing that your world even has stores devoted specifically to clothes for weddings." She shook her head. "I in fact found a place called Costumes for All Occasions that does all sorts of custom articles of clothing." She sent the address to Falco and Slippy through her communicator. "They said they could meet us today at one in the afternoon if that works for..." Her train of thought was then interrupted as she picked up strong emotions of irritation from her husband-to-be. Her frown of annoyance with Fox instantly dissipated when she followed his angry gaze towards the gate and saw the true focus of his ire.

Falco groaned upon also seeing the mob of photographers and sleazy reporters awaiting them. "Ahhh, you have got to be kidding me!"

Fox gave an angry growl. He had in the past tolerated their attention, but had grown to despise their tabloid publications after all the lurid articles and illicit pictures that were taken after his break-up with Krystal.

"I know they can be annoying, but such hate is so unlike you."

Fox closed his eyes and sighed mentally back to his love. "You didn't see the crap they put out after we broke up. It felt like they were sprinkling salt over an open wound." The unhappy memories welled up at Krystal's telepathic probing. Images of sickening articles flashed before her eyes:

· "Fox expels Krystal from Star Fox. 'I am tired of her,' says leader of Star Fox"

· "Krystal Unfit to Fly in Star Fox"

· "Krystal cheats on Fox. Caught in bed with Panther Caruso"

· "Fox swears revenge at Krystal's betrayal."

With those and other such articles, Krystal saw in Fox's mind photographs of scenes she knew never happened, like her in Panther's arms, and unflattering photos of her fiancé. The vixen withdrew from her beloved's mind, feeling sickened by what she saw. Her contempt for this seedier side of the media now mirrored Fox's, and only intensified when they came within earshot of their furiously clicking cameras and insipid questions.

"Fox McCloud! Is it true that you fought Panther to get Krystal back? Fox! How did you feel when you found out Krystal was going to marry Panther? Krystal! Is it true you caught Fox kissing Fara Phoenix? Is that why you betrayed Star Fox?"

"ENOUGH!!" Fox snarled. "ARE YOU SO DELUDED TO THINK WE'D ANSWER ANY OF YOUR MINDLESS QUESTIONS AFTER ALL THE CRAP PUBLISHED BY YOUR ILK?"

One puggish dog in the crowd of reporters tried to justify herself. "The people..." but she was cut off by the angry vulpine, "HAVE BETTER THINGS TO DO THAN READ THE LIES YOU'VE SPOUTED!"

"So you deny that..." She stopped when a heavy paw came down on her shoulder and turned to come face-to-face with an intimidating bulldog.

"You are in a restricted area and are harassing a well-respected citizen of Corneria," said Bill Grey. Behind him stood members of Husky and Bulldog Squadrons, to which Bill turned and barked out an order. "I want all cameras and recorders confiscated!"

Several paparazzi began protesting. "You can't do that! We have a right to..."

"TO WHAT!?! HARRASS PRIVATE CITIZENS TO THE POINT THAT THEY CAN'T EVEN WALK THROUGH WITHOUT YOU SHOVING CAMERAS AND MICROPHONES INTO THEIR MUZZLES!?!" Everyone turned in shock at Krystal's display of anger.

Bill could only grin at Krystal's outburst. "I couldn't have said it better." He then addressed the mob of paparazzi and reporters with a feral grin. "Please tell me that you are going to resist us."

Under the implied threat, the photographers relinquished their cameras and watched helplessly as their contents were erased and handed back to them.

Fox's long-time friend then turned to the Star Fox team. "Head on out, guys. We'll keep these stalkers here until you are gone."

"Thanks Bill." Fox gave his canine friend a grateful smile and hurried through the security gate with his team.

Once out of sight of the detained media mob, Fox turned to Falco and Slippy. "Okay, Krystal and I have places to go to. I'll see you guys this afternoon at Costumes for All Occasions. "

Falco groaned. "You really are going to make us wear loincloths?"

Slippy closed his eyes and huffed. "I am so going to die of embarrassment. This is you getting back at us for all our squabbling and teasing. Isn't it?"

Fox's mouth quirked at how close to the truth Slippy actually came. "Quit whining you two. Just be glad we are not following the more ancient Cerinian wedding custom."

Slippy bit is lower lip. "Do I even want to know?"

Krystal cracked a grin as she sensed her two friend's nervousness. "The bride, groom, and guests would be completely naked for the ceremony."

Falco squawked in alarm. "Naked! No way! I'll wear the loincloth." Slippy nodded emphatically.

Fox placed a paw on each of his friends' shoulder. "I'm glad you two see it my way. Personally, I want to be naked only for Krystal."

Krystal chimed in. "And remember that both Kat and Amanda will appreciate seeing you two in loincloths."

Fox grinned and nodded to his vixen. "I'm quite sure they will. Let's get going." He took her hand in his and the two headed off, with Fox glancing over his shoulder. "See you guys at one."

The two foxes made their way to the garage's long-term storage facility, walking hand-in-hand. Krystal smiled, again delighted at how receptive Fox's mind was to her presence. Fox was still feeling tense from their encounter with the paparazzi, but the moment she started entering his mind in the slightest, the residual tension would drain away. He'd glance to her, giving her a grateful smile, his eyes seeming to encourage her to probe more deeply. And Fox gave a happy sigh at his fiancée's comforting presence.

They found a bored-looking attendant at the counter inside the long-term storage facility reading the latest news on a tablet. Without even looking up, she intoned, "I will need a copy of your receipts and your driver's permit."

Fox wordlessly handed the laminated driver's permit to the female ocelot, and was not surprised at what followed, having seen it happen before.

She reached with one hand to take a sip of her coffee while accepting Fox's driver's permit with the other, glancing at the picture and name. Eyes widening in shock, she spat her hot beverage all over her desk. "Shit!" She frantically grabbed paper towels from a nearby cabinet and quickly wiped down the mess.

Fox smiled placidly, hearing Krystal's telepathic giggle. "You knew that was going to happen."

He shrugged and waited patiently for the attendant to finish wiping her mess. "It's not the first time this has happened. After a while, you learn to expect it."

With the counter hastily wiped clean, she looked up, still unable to believe she was in the presence of The Fox McCloud and Krystal. "I'm so sorry Sir! What can I do for you?"

Fox gave her a reassuring smile and placed his claim paper on the once-again clean counter, noticing her name badge. "Don't worry about it, Ophelia. I'm here to retrieve my ground car from long-term storage."

Ophelia took the claim paper in a shaky hand and started looking up the information on her computer.

Fox glanced to Krystal and thought. "Ophelia would be a nice name for our first-born daughter." He immediately felt a burst of her love surging through his mind, briefly making him weak in the knees and bite his lower lip to suppress a whimper.

Oblivious to the telepathic interactions between the two foxes, Ophelia ferreted out the information on Fox's ground car and retrieved his vehicle access key. She handed the electronic card, along with Fox's driver's permit and receipts, to the tod just as he recovered.

He took the items. "How much do I owe for the vehicle storage?"

The ocelot shook her head. "Nothing, Mister McCloud. There's a note in your file stating that all storage expenses are to be covered by the Cornerian Defense Force, by order of General Hare."

Fox opened his mouth, and then closed it, at a loss for words. Even mentally, he didn't know what to think, much to Krystal's amusement. He then shook his head in bemusement, "Peppy always did look out for me." He then turned to the ocelot and nodded, smiling to her, before turning towards the garage.

The two walked down the row of vehicles until they reached Fox's ground car, still plugged in its charger, its fuel cells maintained at full capacity. Both got into the vehicle, with Krystal in front passenger seat. Fox started up the motor, activated the comm unit, and dialed a number.

A moment later, a feminine voice answered. "Fox? Is that you?"

Fox could only smile at hearing his old friend's voice once again. "Hello Fara. Did you get the wedding invitation?"

"I sure did. Congratulations! Is Krystal with you?"

"Yes, I'm with Fox." Krystal chimed in. "Will you be able to attend our wedding?"

Fara gushed. "I wouldn't miss it! I'm really happy you and Fox made up and are together again."

Fox smiled to Krystal and nodded. "Believe me. We are both very happy to be together again and engaged." He paused before going on. "Say Fara. Could you meet Krystal and me at the Manor? I'm going to reclaim my old home."

Fox didn't hear Fara's response because in the next instant his mind was filled with Krystal's questioning thoughts. "Manor?! How did you end up owning a mansion?"

_"Remember when you first probed my mind deeply and went through my childhood memories growing up with Mom and Dad?"_Fox thought back to when he was a pup as he felt Krystal focus her powers on him.

Back at Cape Claw when Fox had first opened his mind to her probing, she had been so focused on Fox himself that she had not seen his memory of his surroundings. She once again revisited a memory of Fox playing in his home's front yard. Fox once again relived a moment where he heard his mother call him in for dinner, his gaze turning to his mother standing at the front door. Through Fox's eyes, Krystal gazed upon a two-story mansion looming up in front of him.

The memory faded and Fox met Krystal's gaze, his eyes damp from longing for his dearly-missed mother. "After Mom and then Dad died, I no longer had the heart to live there anymore. Fara was kind enough to arrange to have the house kept up and maintained even though it was vacant. I had by then been living mostly on the Great Fox, except for that apartment where I lived where you visited me after we met...before we broke up."

Krystal placed a comforting hand on Fox's cheek. "Are you sure you want to move back then? I can sense how much you still hurt at losing them."

With her love still in his mind, Fox imagined the mansion filled with pups running around, some of them possibly blue like their mother. "Yes. I want to build new, happy memories there with you and our future children."

Krystal leaned over and kissed Fox between the eyes. Their mental conversation was abruptly brought to an end by Fara's voice over the comm unit.

"Fox? Are you guys receiving me?" She called out.

Fox grinned down at the communication unit in his car's center consol. "Sorry for losing you there Fara. Krystal only now found out about the McCloud Family Estate."

They could hear the fennec laugh. "Oh? Did your wife-to-be just now learn you were a little rich boy?"

Fox could only smirk at the comment. "That's funny, coming from the sole heiress to the Phoenix Corporate Empire. We both know your family is the far wealthier one."

"Oh sure. Go ahead and rub my muzzle in my portfolio."

Fox laughed. "I'm just happy that the Cornerian government was grateful enough after the Aparoid War to pay off the 80-year-loan Dad took out to buy and outfit the Great Fox. Your dad was even kind enough to salvage it from the Aparoid home world and rebuild it for me free of charge."

"At least we know Krystal is not marrying you for your money."

Krystal could only roll her eyes and grin. "Oh please! Fox is all the treasure I need. He just feels like he needs a big house for all the pups we'll have."

Fox kissed his vixen on the cheek. "Besides, Krystal helped me earn some of the money that went into paying off said big house. The only thing I need are the access keys that I entrusted you with to take care of the place while I was away."

Fara paused to check her appointment calendar. "I can meet you there in just over an hour, at ten o'clock."

"That works for me. I'll see you there." He then broke communication and put the car into gear, setting about driving them to their next destination.

The two sat quietly while Fox drove, guiding his ground car down the highway along the outskirts of Corneria City. Krystal could sense that her fiancé's mind was on his parents and gave his hand a squeeze. Her gaze drifted to the passing countryside, thinking about the home Fox was taking her to. It was only when she noticed the wrought iron fence and the stone markers beyond that she realized why Fox's mind was on his parents.

Fox drove through the open gate and along the narrow road a short distance within the sea of grave markers and pulled into one of several parking spots that intermittently lined the road. The two got out and Fox led his wife-to-be along a narrow path.

Krystal remained quiet, not even intruding upon her beloved's mind, and let herself be led by him, taking in the surroundings. Far from any traffic or other city noise, no sound could be heard, except for a light breeze blowing through the trees. When Fox stopped, she followed his gaze to look upon a wide tombstone. Extending out of each side was a carved statue of an angelic fox. Inscribed into the polished granite were the names: "James McCloud" and "Vixy Reinard" and over James' name was the Star Fox emblem. Sadly, there were no remains to lay to rest. Vixy had been vaporized in that car bomb planted by Andross and James' body was never found after Pigma Dengar's betrayal.

Fox sniffled a bit and then cleared his throat. "Hi Mom. Hi Dad. I wanted to introduce you to your future daughter-in-law. This is Krystal. She's become the love of my life. She knows me so completely, right down to my very soul, and said she'd marry me even before I could proposed to her. She fills the void that had been in my heart ever since I lost you." He looked to his fiancée with a wane smile. "We intend to give you many grandchildren, and are already thinking up names for them." Tears now began to flow freely down his face and he struggled to keep his voice from breaking. "Oh, I so wish you could have met her. You both would have loved her."

Krystal herself was moved to tears, feeling Fox's sadness welling from the depths of his soul. "You would be so proud of your son. He's saved this world so many times now and is considered a hero to the people of Corneria and all of the Lylat system."

Fox's grief turned to Krystal's own devastating loss. "I just wish I'd have known of and been able to save Cerinia as well." He pulled Krystal into an embrace, resting his chin on her shoulder as she rested her own chin on his shoulder. "I so wish I could have met your parents too."

Krystal's own grief welled up, made all the worse because the only memorial to her parents and all the others who perished was an asteroid field, remnants of her destroyed home world.

The two held each other in a moment of shared grief. Fox sniffed. "Do you think your parents would have liked me?"

Krystal pulled back from the hug to tearfully meet Fox's own watery gaze. "Without a doubt, Fox. My whole family would have seen what a wonderful soul you are. We Cerinians are very perceptive about such things and Mother and Father would have literally adopted you as their son."

Fox looked fondly at the blue vixen. "Then wherever they are, I hope they can see all the grandchildren we'll be giving them too." His gaze turned once again to his parent's grave. "Dad, Mom, Krystal and I will be moving back into our hold home." With a lopsided smile, he went on. "We'll need all that extra room for all the children we want." He took a deep, shaky breath and sighed. "Well, we best get going now. I need to show Krystal where we'll be living after our honeymoon."

Krystal gave him a fond smile as the two turned to walk back to their car. She then stopped dead in her tracks, suddenly picking up emotions of malice and avarice from an individual nearby. "Fox! Someone's near! I can sense her excitement as she is watching us. It feels like the excitement a treasure hunter would feel."

Fox's hackles rose. "Where? Can you sense in which direction she is?"

_ _ Krystal closed her eyes and reached out with her mind, feeling the ebb and flow of living things surrounding them until she was able to focus her telepathic sense on a female avidly watching and listening to them beyond a line of trees atop a small, nearby hill. "Yes. I can sense her. She's at the top of that small hill to the left, at our ten o'clock."

The two resumed slowly walking towards their car while Fox let his eyes shift over to the direction Krystal had pointed to. After drifting his gaze back and forth over the line of trees there, he saw several intermittent flashes of light reflecting off what he realized was a long, telephoto lens. A cold, sickening feeling settled into the pit of his stomach when the implications sank in, followed by indignant rage at such a violation of what should have been a deeply private moment between them.

Krystal herself seethed. "That fiend! She must be one of the reporters from the spaceport that followed us here after Bill finally released them. Did she actually record everything we did and say here?"

The fact that there probably was a boom microphone with that camera was not lost on Fox, and he refused to allow this stalking photographer get away with those recordings. An idea immediately formed in his mind just as they reached their car, which Krystal quickly picked up on. While he went to the rear of his car and opened the trunk, Krystal placed herself directly between the paparazzo and Fox, blocking her view of his actions.

Fox quietly withdrew his sniper's rifle from its case within the car's trunk, attached its power cell, and moved the setting to EMP. Fox looked up from the car's trunk and met her eyes. "I can't let her see this thing, when I pull it out of the trunk, before I can destroy those recorders."

The vixen nodded and closed her eyes. "Leave that to me." She then entered Fox's mind more deeply and in moments was seeing herself from his point of view. "Keep looking at me, but focus on her location." In the next instant, she saw herself blur and the trees atop the hill far behind her sharpen into focus. Seeing their stalker through Fox's eyes, she carefully shifted her stance over until Fox had to look over her shoulder and through her hair to see the photographer.

With the tabloid reporter's view of his activities fully blocked by Krystal, Fox slowly lifted his sniper's rifle out of the trunk and carefully rested the end of the long barrel on his fiancée's shoulder, barely protruding the end of the barrel beyond her shoulder-length hair.

Both of them growled in disgust when Fox sighted the same puggish bitch from the spaceport in his scope. As one, they held their breath, becoming very still. A second later, he squeezed the trigger, sending a strong electromagnetic pulse racing down the barrel and straight to its target.

*****

Priscilla Kane listened raptly for any further words while she kept recording every movement and sound the two foxes were making. She knew she'd make a fortune on this exclusive footage when she sold it to the various media outlets all eager for juicy material on the famous couple. She had already alerted her followers on her various social media sites of some upcoming news regarding Fox McCloud and Krystal.

She frowned in frustration as the two stood silently at the open trunk of the car and wondered what Fox was showing Krystal. Unfortunately, she couldn't see what Fox was doing as that damnable blue vixen was completely blocking her view. Suddenly, the image in her viewfinder abruptly went black and she heard a brief crackle in her headphones before they went silent. In the next instant, she heard a POP echo across the cemetery. Frowning, she flipped the power switch off and back on for her camera, but got no response. She quickly took out the battery and replaced it with a fresh one, but still got no response.

The sound of a car's electric motor abruptly snapped her attention back to her quarry. The pug dog frantically gathered up her camera and recorder and raced to her car. Once inside her vehicle, and deciding that she had recorded enough, she pulled the memory disk from the recorder, opened up her portable computer, and inserted the disk. Priscilla frowned in growing frustration when nothing could be detected on the disk, when the disk itself appeared to not be even readable. She muttered to herself and started the car motor. "Just fucking great!"

She had only traveled a short distance when she was forced to come to an abrupt stop because Fox McCloud had pulled his vehicle up in front of hers, blocking her path. Thinking that she could perhaps salvage the situation, she reached for her comm unit in the hope of recording some comments from the vulpine`, and got out of her car. Any question she might have asked froze in her throat as she looked on in alarm at Fox stepping out of his car with a long-barreled rifle.

Fox stood there with the stock of his sniper's rifle resting against his hip and the barrel pointing to the sky and gave her a contemptuous sneer. The bitch reeked of fear and looked on with wide, dilated eyes when he leveled his gun on her. Fox charged up his rifle, letting a quiet whine build up while his target frantically tried to place a call for help on her communicator, but before a connection could be made, Fox pulled the trigger.

A loud POP sounded off, making her jump, and suddenly her communicator went dead. She glanced up in time to see Fox point the barrel of his rifle at her car. Another loud POP rang through the cemetery and her car's motor and all its electrical systems died.

Krystal opened the door on her side of the car and stepped out with her comm unit in hand, pointing it at Priscilla. "Looks like you scared the piss out of that bitch, Fox. Let's see how the paparazzo likes a taste of her own medicine."

The pug widened her eyes in horror when she realized that she had wet herself and that Krystal had just taken a photograph of her. She turned and ran to her car, diving inside the open door and tried to start it, but everything was dead. Priscilla looked down at her portable computer sitting on the front seat, thinking that perhaps she could send a call for help through it, but its screen was also black. With a sinking feeling, she realized she was stranded.

*****

While Fox drove on out of the cemetery, Krystal sat in the front passenger seat typing on her comm unit with a look of glee and uploaded the photo of the pug bitch in her wet pants to her personal online blog. "Glad you had that arsenal in your trunk. We should use it to hunt more paparazzi. See how they like being on the receiving end."

Fox laughed at her suggestion. "Sounds like a wonderful retirement pastime, though I don't think I could get away with it. I doubt she'll ever be able to claim any damages for all the electronics I fried since I could press criminal charges of stalking against her, but I don't think my 'hero' status will protect me if I start hunting them."

The blue vixen could sense the immense feeling of satisfaction filling her fiancé's mind as he drove. He then gave a sigh and glanced towards her and gave his temple a tap. Taking the invitation, she entered his mind. "What is it, Fox?"

_ "If that bitch we left stranded back there is any indication, I'm sorry to say we can expect more paparazzi stalking us. I think we should talk to each other like this when we are out. That way, nobody can overhear us."_

_ _ Krystal reached over and gave his leg a squeeze. "I think that's a good idea, and it's been getting easier with each day for me to read and send into your mind. I was actually able to see through your eyes when you took that first shot."

"I was wondering about that. It felt like we were acting as one. I often wish you could be in my head all the time, day and night, but I expect it would take you some concentration to do so."

Fox's desire for her telepathic presence brought a smile to the vixen. His mind was now so open to her that it took her almost no effort to slip in. This gave her hope that even though Fox was not a telepath, they would still be able to partake in one of the most intimate and sacred of Cerinian traditions. With that thought, she sat back, closed her eye, and relaxed her mind while still remaining in Fox's.

While the tod continued driving, he found himself marveling at the fact the he could still feel her in his head. He briefly glanced at her, sitting there with her eyes closed and heard her bemusedly think to him. "Eyes on the road, Foxy." His eyes snapped back to the task of guiding his ground car along the highway, and it dawned upon him that she was actually seeing through his eyes again.

They continue along the outskirts of the city until they reached a suburban neighborhood along the coast. Fox continued driving his car, eventually reaching an area where the homes were far recessed from the street and spaced far apart on large parcels of land. With a final turn, Krystal saw at the end of a cul-de-sac a large mansion with undeveloped lots on each side, further enhancing the privacy of the area.

A tall stone wall surrounded all three lots, with a solid steel gate guarding the entrance. When Fox pulled up to the gate and sent the coded signal, the gate slide sideways upon well-lubricated tracks to reveal a long driveway between two rows of trees leading up to the mansion half-hidden by the surrounding trees. When the gate was fully open, Fox drove through and continued along the driveway until he reached the mansion, pulling his ground car up to the front door, and stopped the car's electric motor. He turned with a wistful smile to his love. "Welcome to the McCloud Family Estate."

Both got out of the car and Krystal looked up at the magnificent structure. "Wow. Even after seeing this place in your memories, I still can't get over how big it is." She turned to him. "I never had any idea you were this well off."

Fox rubbed the back of his neck bashfully. "It's Dad who we have to thank, really. When he first started Star Fox, he made quite a bit, especially when word got out about all his successful missions. When he took out that 80-year-loan for the Great Fox, he paid only the minimum necessary each month and set the rest aside. After he and Mom got married, he had this place built in the hopes of raising a family here."

A sense of melancholy welled up in Fox's heart. "I was the first of what was supposed to be many fox pups that my parents wanted to have. I'll never know for sure, but Mom may have even been pregnant when she died in that car bomb."

Krystal placed a hand along the side of her fiancé's face and sent waves of her love into him, soothing his mind. "I can see why you now want to move back in. You not only want to fulfill my desire to have children, but you want to see this house filled with the large, loving family you feel you should have had here."

Fox smiled and took her hand in his, drawing it down from the side of his face to kiss it. "When I took up the mantle of leading Star Fox, I continued paying off the mansion like Dad did. Once Andross was defeated, I kept doing escort runs, pirate hunts, and so forth to make the payments on the Great Fox and its upkeep, putting the rest into paying off the mortgage here. The payment for saving Sauria was huge. I was able to overhaul the Great Fox and had more than enough left over to pay off this mortgage. After you joined us and we kept doing freelance missions, I continued to set aside my share of the pay, and now since the Aparoid War, I am debt free and we can live here comfortably with a large family on just the interest on the fortune I earned."

He wrapped his arms around his vixen in a loving embrace and kissed her. "And now, I am able to retire where Dad couldn't, and I can't think of a better place to raise our children." He turned her to face out away from the house. "I mean, look at this place. This huge yard is perfect for fox pups to play in, and we even have our own private forests on each side where they can explore, build tree houses, and get up to all sorts of mischief to their heart's content!"

Just at that moment, a sporty roadster rolled up the driveway and came to a stop in front of the two betrothed foxes. Fara Phoenix shut the motor and stepped out to greet her two friends. She gave her old boyfriend a loving kiss on the cheek. "Fox, it is good to see you again."

She was surprised to get a return kiss on her cheek from the normally bashful tod. "It's good to see you too, Fara. I'm glad you could make it."

The fennec heiress stood back with her hands on Fox's upper arms, tilting her head. "You've changed...and for the better too. I was expecting a blush, especially after kissing you in front of your fiancée. What happened?"

Fox chuckled, feeling so incredibly at ease and looked towards the love of his life. "Let's just say that I have absolutely no secrets from Krystal."

Fara looked on back and forth between the two. "There's something more to it than you two are letting on. Isn't there?" She walked over to the blue vixen and embraced her in a hug. "Whatever you did, Honey, I'm glad you succeeded in helping him open up where I wasn't able to. Fox is such a sweet tod that so deserves to be happy after all he's been through."

Krystal returned the hug in thanks. "I'll tell you later how and why we got back together and are now engaged. Let's just say that we've become weary of prying eyes and ears."

Fara stood back and fished out the access key to the mansion, sighing. "I'm afraid that some of your secrets may be out soon. I got word that social media sites on the net are running rampant with rumors about you two when that Priscilla Kane bitch posted that she had an exclusive scoop she was going to soon reveal."

Fox uttered a snarl full of contempt. "Would that be this female pug who is a paparazzo?"

Fara withdrew the key and paused, looking quizzically at her friend. "Yes?"

Fox gave an angry growl. "Yeah. I had taken Krystal to the cemetery to introduce her to Mom and Dad, and we caught the bitch. She had the gall to try to record us in a very private moment, and on sacred ground too."

Fara noticed Fox's expression change to a satisfied smirk as he recalled how he dealt with their stalker. "Okay Fox. What did you do? I have the impression that there will be no exclusive footage of you two."

Krystal gave a barking laugh. "Ha! You damn right about that. Fox took out his sniper's rifle from the trunk of his car and shot at the bitch with an EMP, frying all her cameras and recorders and wiping their memory. We then confronted her and you should have seen her eyes bug out when she saw Fox standing there with that long-barrel gun pointed at her. The bitch wet herself when Fox fired several more EMPs at her at close range, frying out her communicator and then disabling her car and any electronics within."

Fox grinned nastily. "We left here there too. She'll have to walk for hours before getting anywhere near where she can hitchhike back to town. You should check the photo Krystal posted to her blog."

Fara's eyes widened and she quickly took out her communicator, scrolling through the social media sites and discovered Krystal's photo of the paparazzo queen herself, Priscilla Kane, standing with wide terrified eyes and a wide, wet blotch covering the front of her pants. "Oh my stars! How the mighty have fallen! Krystal, your photo has gone viral already. Way to go girl. See how the paparazzi like a taste of their own medicine."

Shaking his head in bemusement, Fox could only chuckle. "Krystal even suggested I take up paparazzi hunting in my retirement. I bet I could make some of them shit their pants." He grinned when both vixens giggled, before turning to the front door of his home. "Well Fara, let's see how things are inside."

The fennec vixen stepped forward, walking up onto the veranda, and pulled out an access card, which she swiped over the front door's knob. With a click, the door unlocked and Fara opened it, handing the key card to Fox. All three stepped across the threshold and into the vestibule, facing the double winding staircase. The interior of the place was eerily quiet, with only natural sunlight filtering through the windows and glass ceiling. Fara turned to her friends. "Well, I think I'll let you two go through the house to do what needs to be done. I need to get back to Space Dynamics."

Fox reached out to his old girlfriend. "Wait. Before you go. There's something I'd like to ask of you."

Fara paused and looked quizzically towards her former boyfriend. "Yes?"

Fox sighed. "I'm still concerned about news media, especially paparazzi. Even though I destroyed all the recordings from that Priscilla bitch, she did overhear me at the cemetery saying to Mom and Dad that I planned to move back here after our honeymoon. This place is not some closely guarded secret. I'm afraid that once word gets out, I'll be having to deal with telescopic cameras and boom mikes all around the perimeter of this place."

Placing a hand under her chin, the fennec nodded. "Mmm. You have a point. You'll have to find a way of making it impractical for them to try stalking you in your own home."

"Exactly. Some sort of defense system will need to be installed."

Krystal chimed in at that moment. "Well, I saw on the house and in your memories that the corners of this house extend out like small towers. Why not turn the tops into turrets?" She then recalled how Fox dealt with that paparazzo at the cemetery and had a devious grin.

Fox noticed his fiancée's grin and somehow knew what Krystal was going to say. "And put EMP guns in each of those corner turrets!"

Krystal arched her eyebrow and grinned at her fox. "Did you just read my mind?"

The vulpine could only chuckle at the ironic question. "I'll leave the mind reading to you." He then turned to Fara. "So what do you think? Can Space Dynamics come up with a way to outfit my home with defense turrets?"

The fennec slowly nodded while looking pensive. "I think so. A house this large should have space for a small fusion reactor to generate the power for the guns in the turrets. I'd make them capable of more than just generating EMP though, in case more drastic measures were needed." She started walking back and forth in the vestibule, her mind whirling with the possibilities. "I think we might be able to install an energy shield around the perimeter of the property, including the undeveloped lots on each side." She then stopped and nodded to Fox and Krystal and turned towards the front door, opening it. Fara looked back at the couple. "I'll talk to Daddy and run it by him, but I think we'll be able to do that for you."

"Thank you Fara. You are the best." He paused and thought for a moment, glancing at the blue vixen. "Well, perhaps I should say, Second Best."

"Ha! That's a good boy. You give your future wife the proper respect she deserves." Fara grinned upon seeing Krystal blush at the comments about her.

The tod took his love's hands into his, drinking in her bashful gaze. "She has more than my respect. I worship her, and give her all my adoration."

Krystal reached for Fox's temple with one hand and probed his mind, becoming deeply moved at sensing how his love for her had grown even more profound. She turned her head towards the fennec vixen upon hearing her clear her throat.

"I think I'll leave you two to go over things here. Fox, I'll contact you once I have the feasibility study done on those home defenses. See you later, you two." With that, Fara turned and walked out the door.

Fox turned to Krystal and gestured towards the stairs, taking her hand in his. "Let me show you around."

The two went up the curved stairs to find themselves in the upper living room. All the furniture was covered in sheets. Lights streamed in from the floor to ceiling windows curving in the background. Columns in the foreground bracketed a railing beyond which was a circular opening to what lay in the ground floor below. "This was where Slippy, Bill, Miyu, Fey, and I used to hang out as children. We'd play games here, or watch movies."

He led Krystal around the stairs to the left and led her down a short hallway. On the right, Fox opened a set of double doors. Inside was a huge bedroom, though it appeared to be devoid of any personal items. Again, the furniture was covered in white sheets. Doors on one side opened into a large, well-appointed bathroom. The far end of the bedroom opened up into an enclosed patio to the back of the mansion. "This was one of two guest bedrooms," he paused and chuckled, "though Dad did tell me that if I ever got married, my wife and I could move into this room."

He led her back out into the hallway and through another set of double doors towards the right. Inside, Krystal immediately knew that this had been Fox's childhood bedroom. Though smaller, it had a panoramic view out the bay window, protruding from the corner of the house. On the dresser, gathering dust, were models of Arwings and other spacecraft. Posters of Cornerian military ships adorned one wall. "This was my bedroom, until Dad died, though I didn't stay here all that much once I joined the Cornerian Military Academy." He turned and nuzzled Krystal affectionately. "Once he's ready to have his own bedroom, I think I'd want our first-born son to have this room."

Krystal kissed him on the cheek. "It would be a wonderful room for a growing fox pup."

They walked back out the hallway and to the right, stopping briefly to open another set of double doors. Inside the room was completely empty. "This would have been a bedroom for another brother or sister." Fox sighed and closed the door. He led Krystal between the central stairway and railings overlooking the entry vestibule below to another hallway mirroring the one they had just left. "These three bedrooms mirror the ones we just saw, though the two on the right are just as empty. I'm thinking that last bedroom on the right, which mirrors my old bedroom, you could pick and choose the furniture for our first-born daughter."

Fox's knees buckled in the next moment when he felt Krystal's love surging through his mind. He stood there, whimpering happily while hugging Krystal for support. After absorbing his vixen's telepathic adoration, Fox kissed her affectionately and led her down a set of straight stairs on the left, at the end of the hallway. At the bottom of the stairs, they found themselves overlooking a large living room with a kitchen on the left that was almost as large. In the far right corner beyond the living room, extending into a circular alcove protruding from the corner of the house, was a breakfast nook. Like above, all the furniture was covered in white sheets. Adjacent to the kitchen was an empty, unused room. "This could possibly be a playroom for our pups when they are still too young to have their own bedroom upstairs." They walked further across a short hallway and through an arched opening. "Formal dining room. We never did use it all that much, except for special occasions when Mom and Dad invited friends over."

He guided Krystal through double doors at the end of the short hallway into another room with various furniture and objects, all covered in white sheets as well. An octagonal room opened out at the end of the room into the corner of the mansion. "Mom would paint and do pottery here. This could be a good place to do all sorts of hobbies." The two turned back and Fox led her back down the short hallway, across the vestibule and down into an opposing short hallway. He briefly opened the double doors on the left, allowing Krystal to glance in. Several couches and tables were arrayed around the room, all covered in white sheets. "This could be a good place for our children to do homework when they start school. There's a library right next to this room too." He turned to his right and opened another set of double doors at the end of the hallway. Old, bound printed books sat on shelves along one wall. The other wall had shelves filled with data disks containing everything from written text to music to video. At the far corner of the library was another octagonal room with two couches and tables facing each other, all hidden under white sheets.

Fox guided his fiancée back towards the vestibule, turning to the left to go behind the spiral stairway to an open room with polished flooring, devoid of any furniture. The back of the room ended in a circular wall with windows extending from the floor to the ceiling of the second floor. Krystal glanced back and up towards the front of the house, seeing the circular railing to the upper living room where Fox and his friends used to play. "This room was called the ball room, though we never had any formal balls here. We could probably use this room whenever we hosted parties for our friends though." He walked towards the circular wall at the back and opened the double doors to the outside. Beyond was a backyard, partially overgrown with foliage and only minimally maintained. Beyond it, they could hear the waves from the ocean rolling onto the shoreline. "My parents never got around to doing anything with this open space back here." He turned to Krystal. "What do you think we should do all this space?"

Krystal stepped up to stand next to her beloved and looked out onto the backyard with a faraway look. "I noticed that many homes on this world have these manicured lawns and flower beds, with some stone decorations and such. Back home, we Cerinians instead opted for a more natural setting. Yards were covered in lush foliage that was allowed to grow where it wished. There were no lawns. The ground was covered in mossy earth, sand, and rocks. We also loved ponds with running water cascading into them. Many homes also had gardens in their yards. This place is so huge, we could probably grow all our food here."

Fox pulled her close against his hip, hugging her with one arm as they looked out onto the land extending behind their future home, with all its potential. "Perhaps I could help you recreate a small bit of Cerinia here."

The blue vixen appreciated his sentiment. "I don't know. It would depend on if we could find plants the resembled those from back home." She shrugged and leaned against her tod. The two stood there gazing out at the overgrowth for a moment longer before turning back into the mansion.

Fox closed and locked the doors behind him and then turned right, leading Krystal through a single door into the owner's suite. He stood there, lost in memories. Krystal stood by his side, seeing Fox's recollections of his parents. Aware of her comforting presence in his mind, Fox turned to her. "I'd think Mom and Dad would want us to use their old bedroom. As much as I miss them, I need to focus on the thought that this is our bedroom now."

He led her across the room, through an archway and into a circular sitting room protruding in the corner of the house. "This would probably be a nice, private place to cuddle on those winter days."

Krystal stood in the middle of the circular room with her eyes closed, letting her mind go still. "Actually, this would be a perfect spot for me to do my daily meditation."

"Then I hereby decree this sitting room to be henceforth named Krystal's Meditation Room." He hugged his vixen from behind and murmured. "It will be the place where my wife can maintain her truly wonderful telepathic powers, which she can freely use on her loving and devoted husband."

Krystal turned her head and nuzzled her amorous tod. "I'm glad you love my powers so much."

Fox closed his eyes and sighed happily. "How could I not? Everything you've done to me with your powers has been truly wonderful and left me wanting you to never leave my mind."

Turning back, they returned to the main bedroom and into what had been his father's private study. "I was thinking that this is way bigger than I need. What would you say if I had this divided, keeping one half as my private study and the other half could be the nursery?"

References to her upcoming motherhood again sent butterflies through her stomach. Krystal again felt compelled to kiss her fiancé passionately. "I love it! This house is so huge. It will be wonderful to be able to keep our infant pups so close by."

"I thought you'd like the idea." Fox smirked. "Of course, we'll probably not get much sleep those first few months after each of them is born, but at least we'll always be close by at night to give them all our love." He turned towards the set of double doors on one side, and opened them. "I suppose it will be stressful for a while, raising newborns. So we'll have at least this to help us relax."

Inside, Krystal's jaw dropped at the huge bathroom within, with two separate water closets and two sinks, but also a large jetted tub for the two of them to share, and a large separate shower. Krystal peeked inside the shower and was astonished at the number of body jets that lined the sides, with two separate detachable shower nozzles. Fox pulled a leaver inside the shower and Krystal was further astonished to see a cascading waterfall come out of a slot in the wall on one side. Krystal gave her future husband a smoldering look full of passion and desire. She spoke to him in a husky voice full of promise. "If you think you love my telepathic powers now, you'll discover soon enough what I can really do. Come our wedding night, you are mine, Foxy."

Fox swallowed nervously. His mind raced quickly through all the implications of his future wife's promise. He didn't know if he should be excited or terrified at the prospect, but thinking back to all she had done for him through her powers, he realized that his trust in her was absolute and he'd gladly surrender himself to her, completely and utterly.

Krystal watched all these thoughts race through his mind and was immensely pleased at seeing how much he trusted her powers, even not knowing what she had in store for him. "You've made me a very happy vixen, Foxy. I can see in your mind how much you want to please me, what with all you have in mind for our future children and to provide this beautiful home for all of us. I promise to make you the happiest tod in all of Lylat."

The orange-brown vulpine was at a loss to know what to say or even think. His gaze drifted towards the door in the corner of the bathroom. He opened it and led Krystal through and inside a vast walk-in closet. All the clothes were gone, except for his father's old flight jacket and Cornerian Defence Force dress uniform, both covered in plastic bags, hanging in the corner. A few of his mother's gowns hung next to the uniforms as well as one tuxedo, also covered in plastic. Other than that, the closet was completely bare, with the exception of a safe stored in the corner. Fox walked over to it and placed his hand over the palm scanner, which read his paw pads' unique features and promptly unlocked. He opened the door and withdrew an ornate jewelry box which he held up to her. "I am certain Mom would've wanted you to have this."

Krystal's eyes welled with tears as she accepted the box, deeply moved by the gift of the precious treasure within. The two sat there on the floor of the closet while she opened the box and looked inside at Vixy Reinard's collection, each pendant, bracelet, and collar with a story to tell, she was certain. She also found a beautiful jeweled tiara that just happens to match well with the focusing gem on her forehead. She lifted it out of the box and stood, quickly walking out of the closet to one of the bathroom mirrors.

She stood there and fitted the tiara into her hair above her headband, looking at her reflection until she noticed Fox walking up behind her. "It does match your focusing gem rather nicely."

She turned around and kissed him soundly on the lips. The two stood there, body and muzzles pressed together, tongues exploring each other's mouths for several minutes until Fox broke off, panting. "I think we should probably stop now, while we are able to."

Krystal panted in reply, feeling herself blush. "Y-yeah. You're probably right."

Together, they turned and headed back into the closet. Krystal took the tiara off, placed it back in the jewelry box, closed the lid, and handed it back to Fox. "For now, that safe is probably the best place to keep this until we move in."

After her fiancé returned the jewelry box to the safe, they turned to see a narrow door at the opposite end of the closet. Krystal asked her vulpine, "What is that door for?"

"I don't know." His own curiosity piqued, Fox reached for the door knob and pulled the door open.

Inside was a small, dark room. Fox felt around the wall just inside the door until he found the light switch and flipped it. Under the dim light, they could see a tight, spiral staircase leading down into the basement. With him leading, Krystal followed the tod down to a hidden room below.

The floor and walls were bare concrete, devoid of any fixture or paneling. Looking around, they could find no windows to the outside. Immediately to one side of the staircase was a simple door to a small bathroom with a toilet and sink. Fox walked across to the opposite end of the room to another door, which he opened. Looking inside, he at first thought it was a closet until he noticed another door to the left, which he opened outwards. "Oh! This leads to the swimming pool."

Krystal followed him out, glancing back thoughtfully at the hidden room they had just gone through. "It's as if that room was meant to keep things within hidden."

"I'd say," Fox affirmed. "In all the years I've lived here, I never knew that room existed." He shrugged and continued on around the swimming pool. He pointed to the circular room in the far corner. "That's the hot tub." Both tub and pool were of course empty. Krystal's fiancé led her up five steps, through a door, and into a short hallway with another door on the right. "We also have a steam sauna."

"This house seems to have everything," said Krystal, shaking her head in amazement.

They continued on through the door at the far end of the short hallway and found themselves in a semi-circular room that was below the ballroom. Looking around, she saw several pieces of exercise equipment in the corners, while the center was covered in an exercise mat. "You could probably practice your staff here, Krystal."

The vixen nodded, "Mmmm. On cold days, I agree." She followed her tod through the opposite door and found herself in a room with two sectional sofas with coffee tables, all of which were also covered in sheets like in the rooms above. At the far end, in a circular room in the corner, was a round table with chairs. Looking inside the circular room, she saw a book case on the right filled with board games. "This room makes me think a bit of the lounge aboard the Great Fox."

The orange-brown vulpine affirmed, "Yeah. This is the recreation room. It will be a nice place to relax with friends too. We even have a bar." He pointed to the opposite corner of the room and then walked towards and behind the bar, opening the door behind it. "Wow! It's still stocked! I see some really old vintage wines, meads, ales, and quite an assortment of spirits back here."

Krystal giggled. "Better not tell Falco!"

Fox barked out a laugh. "Ha! He'd be hard-pressed to keep his promise to never drink again."

He closed the wine closet and led his blue vixen through double doors next to the bar. In the hallway beyond, he pointed to the left. "That leads to the five-car garage. It's quite deep too. I'll probably keep a Landmaster tank in there."

Krystal laughed. "Once a mercenary, always a mercenary."

Her vulpine chuckled. "You didn't complain about the arsenal I keep in the trunk of my car. It definitely came in handy in taking care of that Priscilla bitch at the cemetery."

Her only response was to kiss him on the cheek. "That's my Foxy."

Still pointing down the hallway towards the garage, he indicated the double doors on the right. "That would be another bedroom, though last I recall, it was not furnished yet." Turning around, Fox led Krystal towards the bottom of the mansion's central staircase, and pointed to the far hallway. "The double doors on the left are to another bedroom, and the single door on the right leads back to the swimming pool."

He then turned to his left, with the staircase behind him, and pointed to the three sets of doubled doors in front of them. The doors on the right opened up into an empty room. "I think this was supposed to be another office, but I really don't see the need for another one when I have the one upstairs. I might turn this into a workshop." Opening the doors in the middle revealed the laundry room. "Not much to see here." Behind the doors on the left, Krystal saw three droids stored in their alcoves: ROB-16, ROB-32, and ROB-48. "Once we are ready to move in, I'll activate them to start cleaning and maintaining the place."

He closed the doors and turned to take Krystal's hands in his. "So there you have it. That's the McCloud Family Estate. I hope you like it."

"Oh, it's amazing. All those rooms, each with something to do, and plenty of space for a growing family, and even a hidden room."

Fox frowned as he recalled the windowless room hidden under the owner's suite. "I have no idea what to do with that one."

The blue vixen stood there, pondering that room. In her musings, her mind drifted back to steamy, erotic novels that Katt had given her and an idea started forming in her head. She bit her lower lip, unsure of how her fiancé would feel about what she had in mind.

"Krystal?"

She placed a finger on his lips to quiet him and then placed a hand on each of his temples and brought her forehead against his, opening her telepathic powers to their fullest. "I need to look deep into your subconscious."

Unsure of her reasons, but unconditionally trusting the love of his life, Fox asked. "What do you want me to do?"

"Close your eyes, breathe deeply and steadily, and clear your mind as best you can of all conscious thought."

When he had done so, Krystal plunged into the deepest recesses of her fiancé's mind, beyond where his conscious thoughts formed, beyond even where his dreams and nightmares took shape, to where she found his innermost self. There, she saw forgotten memories of his infancy and the source of his habits and instincts. Finally, she found what she was looking for. Deep in his mind, she saw his deepest, darkest desires and found that what she suspected was there, what she had seen signs of in his outward behavior. Deep down, Fox McCloud was a submissive at heart. It explained why Fox so willingly submitted himself to her telepathic powers, and his complete trust in her, even when he didn't know what she was going to do to him. More than ever, she realized how precious that trust was and vowed she would forever protect it.

She withdrew from the depths of his subconscious and telepathically caressed his conscious mind. "Oh Foxy. I found what I was looking for."

"What did you see?"

"Your deepest, darkest, most desperate desires."

Fox's breathing quickened, and his heart began to pound in his chest. He tried to think of all the fantasies he had had about the vixen who now probed his mind. He found himself wondering what the hidden room had to do with his desires.

"Let me show you what we can do with that room." In the next instant, Fox saw images of what his fiancée was considering doing with him in that hidden room. Fox saw himself in her mind's eye, tightly bound, gagged, and blindfolded, being teased until he was begging to climax. He saw himself strapped down to a bench while Krystal mounted him with a strap-on. He saw himself suspended from the ceiling, squirming and moaning while she dragged her claws through his fur.

Fox openly moaned, feeling his hard erection pressing uncomfortably against the insides of his pants. "Oh Great Maker! Krystal....I....Oh, Krystal." He was panting, delirious with repressed desires now set free, and collapsed in the arms of his vixen.

Krystal grunted as she found herself having to support the tod's weight and eased him down onto the floor. She ran her hands along the back of his neck to sooth him and help him calm down.

Fox found himself staring at his vixen with a look of wonder. "H-how?"

She cupped his cheek and nuzzled him affectionately. "What I found in your subconscious was that deep down, you are a submissive, Foxy."

"The images you projected in my mind....They evoked feelings in me that I didn't even realize I was capable of. It's awakened desires I never was aware of." He nuzzled her back and leaned his forehead against hers. "Should I call you Mistress?"

Krystal giggled and tweaked her fiancé's nose. "Let's not rush things, Foxy. What I showed you was what you are potentially capable of. So, we could, if you wanted, turn that hidden room into our private dungeon, and just take our time slowly trying different things there, and explore what we are comfortable with."

Fox shakily got back to his feet and nodded. "Yeah. When you think of it, a hidden room under our own bedroom does scream 'dungeon'." He then cleared his throat, "but let's not get ahead of ourselves. We need to get married first. Wouldn't you agree?"

With a final look around, Fox smiled and took her hand in his and led her up the curving stairs back to the vestibule on the main floor and out the front door, locking it behind them.