World Tree MUSH

     Papetoon: The Desert Planet. There's no better place to go to get away from it all. There's no better place to go to get off the grid. There's no better place to go to get sand in places you didn't know you had. Welcome to the planet on the Edge of Nowhere. 
     At a glance there isn't much special about Papetoon. It's a dry arid place with few obvious landmarks and a thinly spread population. A lot of the people keep to themselves. It is, without a doubt, the exact opposite of how Corneria is in how the latter is such a center for, well, everything in the system. A few major cities are present and those are where one would find the major spaceports, but landing is pretty open anywhere so long as one doesn't land on somebody's house or crops. One town of note is named Seedhill. Seedhill gets its name from having fairly fertile topsoil and the population mostly consists of farmers and other country folk. Plus...they're nearly all foxes. Seedhill is probably one of the more popular places for strangers to visit. While they don't get visitors very often, it happens often enough for the people there to expect it. They have moderate accommodations for guests, including a family-run bed and breakfast hotel. It is reportedly one of the towns that James McCloud used to live in in his younger years. Whether that is true or not is up to the people in City Hall, but the image helps bring a little excitement to the town now and again. 
     There is a place to land for personal craft, but not everybody has craft of their own. A few ground vehicles are present, but there are more machines for agriculture than personal transportation.

     Being back in a universe that while maybe not actually her own, was close enough to feel like home, Krystal decides to do what she had planned to do after leaving Corneria in her own universe, before she ended up here. She intends to visit many of the other planets in the Lylat System, learn more about the galaxy as a whole, and maybe if she's lucky, learn something about the force that she suspects is responsible for both the death of her world, and for nearly destroying Sauria before she intervened. 

     Of all the places she decided to go to first, Krystal interestingly enough decides to start with the one that is the most out of the way. Papetoon, out so far on the edge of the system, that in fact, she was probably closer to her home system than she'd been since she left Sauria. Krystal pilots the CloudRunner down through the atmosphere, approaching Seedhill, having done a little research before coming, learning it was where Fox's father was apparently from. 

     She lands her ship in the spot designated for personal craft, and heads out into town. Expecting the arid planet to be rather warm, she is dressed in a golden colored bikini top with a simple white loincloth hanging from her waist, each are accented with a line along the edges and a pattern of triangles. On her feet are a pair of simple sandals.

     It happens to be some point in the morning for the town, so while the air is dry and certainly warm, it's not as warm as the middle of the afternoon will bring. A few farmers are out working the fields and the approach of a strange ship only warrants a good long glance from under their hats before they press on. People in the town talk, that much is to be expected, and a few folks wander over a little closer to the path leading in from the landing zone to gawk. 
     The buildings are all simple. While Seedhill is not necessarily a town that time forgot, it does have the feel of something a bit less technologically enhanced. They all have essentials for living and they all most definitely have plenty of power, but one would be more inclined to see children playing outside with toys than playing holographic or simulated reality games. 
     In fact, a few kids are the first to rush out to get a better look at the stranger. Two boys and a girl; the slightly older boy and girl stare while the younger male peeks out from behind the other boy. Upon seeing the style of dress, the girl's jaw hangs open for a long moment before she turns her head to hide a giggle. In comparison, they wear very light clothing of some sort of presumably synthetic material that allows heat to escape and the skin to breathe while protecting from the sunslight. For being so far out, the planet is remarkably warm. There are a few reasons for it. 
     The oldest boy speaks up, "What's your name?" Meanwhile, another fox, this one an adult, casual saunters over in the direction of the pups. 
     The girl suddenly interjects, "Why is her fur that color? I want my fur to be that color. That's neat!"

     Krystal grins as she's barely made it further than the path leading from the landing zone when a group of kids come to check out the new arrival that is herself. "Hello there, my name is Krystal." She greets the children warlmly, then responds to the girl who asked about her fur color. "Well, my fur is blue because I'm not from around here. I was born on a planet called Cerinia, and all foxes there have blue fur, or well, they used to." She adds with a bit of a frown, which she supresses promptly. "Would any of you like to show me around and tell me about your home? I'd love to learn about Seedhill."

     The youngest kit suddenly blurts out, "My daddy says interplatanarians can piss off!" He meant interplanetarians, but it's probably not the word that sticks out the most. Without a word more, the shy one turns and sprints away to go hide somewhere else. The other two young ones would almost be embarrassed if they weren't suddenly worried. 
     "He's going to get stuck in the attic again," one confirms of the other's expression and they are forced to rush off after the littler one to keep him out of trouble which leaves just one fox left. This one approaches slowly because he's using a cane, but he can't be any older than thirty. All he can do is chuckle at the outburst. 
     "That would be Jimmy's way of saying 'welcome to our sleepy town'. Thankfully he's on a trip to go get supplies for the store so you'll be spared the pleasure of meeting an old fox that has been out in the light for too many years." He passes his cane, held in his right hand, over to his left so that he can extend his arm in invitation for a handshake. "Call me Red," offers the red-furred fox. "I suppose I'm what passes for the welcoming committee today, Krystal, was it? What brings you around here?"

     Krystal is certainly surprised to hear such a foul outburst from such a young fox, but it sounded like the young one was only repeating something he heard his father say, though that also gave her pause, wondering if outsiders weren't terribly welcome here. Before she can even think much on the matter though, the rest of the children run off after the kit, and she turns her attention to the not so elderly looking Fox who is for some reason walking with a cane. 

     She wonders what may have happened to him, but doesn't want to be rude in asking such things of a stranger. She nods as he confirms her name. "That's right. What brings me here? Well, I'm pretty new to this part of the system, and so I thought I'd do a little exploring, learn some things about Lylat, maybe make some friends along the way. Since I'm a fox, and most foxes come from here, I figured it was as good a place to begin my tour of the system as any."

     Red tips his head to the side with a soft chuckle as an aside. "Well, I can safely say we don't grow any like you around here. Serenia, was it?" He pauses a moment to think, but shakes his head. "Don't believe I've ever heard of it." He swings his right arm around to gesture toward the town. "Still, come, we'll show you around and maybe you'll think of this place as a home away from home." 
     "This is, uh, Seedhill. Most people we get dropping by usually ask about James McCloud: the fox, the myth, the legend." He passes his cane back to his right hand and begins a return route toward the town proper. The wind is calm, so there's not much sand blowing in. Thankfully, this part of Papetoon is less of a sandy sea and more of a scrubby plain. "That's his place over at the end. Or was when I was just knee-high." 
     "He moved to Corneria with his wife shortly after she gave birth, right around thirty years ago? Still his. Or, well, his son's. We take care of it for him in case he ever decides to settle down, or that's what Arc says, anyhow. Arc is...like our mayor? Maybe he'll be around. You staying for the night or leaving early? Some people like the short tour. Others, they get bored pretty quickly."

     Krystal nods to Red, grinning a bit at his chuckle, and the pointing out that they don't see any foxes like her around here. "Yeah, I got that impression from the way the children reacted to me. As for Cerinia, well, it was pretty far from here, but it well... no longer exists..." She admits with a frown coming to her face once more. 

     "I'm trying to figure out what exactly caused it to be destroyed, but I really don't have a lot to go on, and I'm not aware of any power that could blow up an entire planet." She explains, but with that painful subject out of the way for now, she is happy to hear about the home of James McCloud, and answer the question about how long she will be staying. "Oh, I might spend a few days here, we'll see. I don't suppose you can tell me much about Fox, if they left when he was just a kit, but what was James like?"

     "I don't know much about James' kid, no, and I wasn't old enough to really know James, either. His grandfather made a name for the family, though -- James' grandfather, that is -- when he single-handedly took down a bunch of raiders that tried to pillage the town's food supply. The way Jimmy tells it, ha, it was just him against a dozen people that must have been hiding out in the west somewhere. Armed with just a sonic hoe and a hunting rifle." 
     Red waves his left hand dismissively. "Between you and me, it was probably more like six people, and they were starving, but they were going to hurt people, and he saved them all from a fiery blaze and a loss of food that was already scarce." He's not terribly slow, but it is a slower than average pace. Soon enough the center of the town comes into view. It's a cozy place and has about all somebody needs to get by without leaving (except to go buy more stock from a nearby seller). 
     "Don't get me wrong; it was a heroic thing and the McClouds have always been upright folks, but a few of us, like ol' Jim, heh, well, they weren't too happy to see James leave to move to the big city. Kind of like...a betrayal of heritage? But I say that's silly. You have to do for your family and his family was just starting."

     Krystal is happy to listen to Red talk about James' grandfather's exploits as he takes her on a tour through town, not even seeming to mind the slower pace, as it felt nice to relax and not be in a hurry to be anywhere for once. "Well, stories do often get bigger the more they get told, so I see your point about it likely being more like 6 rather than twelve assailants. In any case though, he sounds like quite the heroic man. As for James leaving, I feel like it's selfish to say he's betrayed his heritage to leave. If the stories I've heard are true, if it wasn't for James and his son, we might be living under the iron fist of Andross at this point."

     "We actually didn't feel much of the great war around here, but some people are still sore about it. We know how to keep to ourselves and, well, there's not much reason for conquering us. Too far away from all the rest of the worlds and all and not much around but dirt and sand. I guess that makes us the lucky ones." Red points out a few buildings. 
     "That there is the main store. Doesn't look like much, but you should be able to buy just about anything you need inside and they do enjoy keeping it cool. There's Janet's place, and Roscoe across the way. There's my house." The ember-hued fox points to a place that says Bed & Breakfast. "If you want a room I can go ahead and get one set up for you. I'll make it's on the south to avoid the direct light, unless you like it extra bright early in the morning." 
     It's at this point that another vixen comments, "Do all city girls dye their fur these days?" She's not asking Krystal, but it's spoken loud enough to be heard likely on purpose. Well, there's no getting around the fact that Krystal is different-looking, but for the most part most of the residents will have little reason to believe that she isn't from Papetoon also. 
     Red also points toward the way leading to the old McCloud estate and a figure walking toward it. "That's probably the hired help cleaning the place over at James'. He might be able to give you a tour of the house if you ask nicely. I hear it's something like a museum at this point."

     "That's fair, though I don't know if I'd be able to blissfully live here knowing that the galaxy around me was getting taken over. Sure the war may not have effected you while it was going on, but who knows what the future holds." Krystal responds to Red's points about the war not effecting them. She follows as he points out the buildings, figuring if she stays for a bit she may need to know where things like the general store are. As he points out that his place is a Bed & Breakfast, she smiles. "Well, it sounds like we'll be seeing more of each other then, a room at your place sounds lovely." 

     Her attention is finally drawn from Red as a nearby vixen comments on her fur color, assuming she's from one of the nearby cities it would seem. "I don't dye my fur to make it this color. I'm not a city girl, I'm just visiting from off world." She explains before turning back to Red. "A tour of the old McCloud estate? Sounds great, I'll have to ask about it later, unless you're done with your little tour showing me around town."

     The vixen making passively aggressive comments about such fur color merely barely-audibly mentions an 'oh' before going quiet and turning her attention away. Red, notably, seems to outright ignore it, if he heard it at all. "Well, there's not much more to really say. The McLaren's live in the house near the fields over where you landed." He lifts his cane to gesture toward the farmland. "Cassie and her sister live back behind the wells." 
     The wells in question aren't the old-fashioned stone and wood constructs with a bucket that some might think of, but instead are sandy-colored cylindrical tanks standing vertically with the main reservoirs at the top. With as flat as the land is, it likely provides great natural water pressure. 
     "Jimmy's wife, Bea, runs the communications office over there beside the store. If you need to make any calls without going through your ship, just pop on by. Most of the folks around here have comms in the house, too, but it'd give Bea some company. Don't judge her by the temperament of her husband. She's like a second mom." 
     Red straightens up as much as his right leg allows him to stand in such a way. "Speaking of, my Mama takes care of most of the service at my place. Just ring the bell on the desk when you decide to drop on by. If you have any luggage or anything, just let her know, and I'll help bring them in." His smile is genuine. The young fox takes a step toward the B&B. "I really should go set up a room for you." The poor guy, it might take a while with the way he shuffles along. "Just don't get too hot, hm? And remember to smile! You're always welcome here in Seedhill."

     Krystal tries her best to follow as Red gives her the rundown of the various people that live in town and what they do. It was a lot to keep track of for the fact that she'd just arrived here, but she appreciated the effort in trying to make her feel at home and know who everyone was. As Red starts heading toward the B&B to set up a room for her, she smiles and waves after him. "Don't work yourself too hard on my account, but thanks very much for showing me around, I really appreciate it." With that said, Krystal heads over toward the McCloud Estate, curious about getting a chance to see the supposed museum. She looks around a moment for the previously indicated hired help, and tries to flag one of them down to ask for a tour.

     The path leading to the old McCloud estate looks pretty enough for being on the edge of a small farming town. The path is fenced and gated, yet the gate is open and nobody seems to be present on the property. The path leads back further than just a normal yard, but isn't too terribly long. It puts the two-story house literally at the end, as was mentioned before, and helps it stand out a bit. The path shows signs of overgrowth with casual trimming every so often. Scrubland grasses grow in the yard, although they are slightly more lush due to the nature of the (some might say) blessed soil the town possesses. 
     The building itself isn't too remarkable, but it's built in such a way to withstand any of the sharp winds that might blow through during storms. The flat land around the village extends as far as the eye can see, so there isn't much to break the wind when it really does pick up. Thankfully, as some might say, it doesn't happen too often. 
     An older fox walking nearby along the front of the fence stops at the need for help from the young lady there. His muzzle is mostly gray and his whiskers look rather bent and frazzled. He wears a wide-brimmed hat to keep the sunslight out of his eyes. "Help you?" he asks. "If you're here for a look around the ol' place, I just saw somebody headin' right on in, so feel free to go find 'im." The older fox turns to look with a squint over at the house and he points. There's movement inside visible through one of the windows. "O'er there, y'see? You find 'im you tell 'im that path needs a trim again. This place deserves more respect, but I haven't got the time."

     Krystal isn't terribly surprised that the vegetation around the estate was left to grow a little longer than some might say was 'well kept'. The town was small, and it seemed everyone had their job to do, so finding people and money to tend to the estate was probably not easy she imagines. In any case, before long, a graying old fox greets her and offers that someone just went into the estate and that she should find them and tell him that the path needs to be trimmed. She smiles and nods. "I'll be sure to relay your message, thank you!" She offers before making her way down to the home itself, heading up to the front door and attempting to open it, expecting it wouldn't be locked if this place was supposed to be a museum.

     In fact, the door isn't even fully latched shut. At a prompt, however, it slides open rather quietly. At a glance, the inside of the house doesn't have as many modern enhancements, technologically-speaking, with it being mostly abandoned for thirty years. That probably says a lot about the loyalty and dedication of the town, but that doesn't say much for anybody else. Surely the Cornerian military would reach out, offer assistance, help to keep the place up? Do they know? Do they care? 
     The movement that was seen came from within and to the left, the next room over, which is likely the living room from the way the rugs and furniture are arranged. It doesn't look like much of a museum. It just looks...like a home, a slice from time, everything put on pause. The observant eye will notice that some of the furnishings aren't as old as the others. Somebody took the time and effort to make it look like this, to make it look as if it had been lived in and not just a house left behind like a shed skin. Surely James and his wife took their stuff with them when they moved, but maybe not everything? 
     From within that room there is the sound of papers being shuffled and investigation will easily show somebody leaning over a desk, facing away, looking over something. Or looking for something.

     As the door opens at a slight push, Krystal slips inside quietly and begins looking around the home, or as much of it as she can see from the entrance. It was interesting to see it had been kept to the time when James and his family left, more or less. The level of technology reminded her of her own childhood to an extent, even if things here were even older than what her family had when she was just a newborn kit. She wondered a moment, what the family did before James became a famous pilot, guessing they may have been farmers, like many others around here. 

     Catching movement and rustling of papers to her left, Krystal turns and walks to the edge of the room, looking at the person shuffling through papers. "Hello? Sorry if I'm interrupting you. Just met a fox outside who said something about the path needing trimming. I was also wondering if there was a tour where I could learn more about the McClouds and their estate."

     As Krystal begins speaking the figure turns to look over his shoulder to see who it is. The scarred white muzzle of a wolf might flash a hint of realization to the vixen in as much time as it takes for realization to brighten the wolf's purple-colored eye. A sudden rustle of loose papers fluttering into the air toward the floor announces the twisting motion the wolf takes as he does so, spinning on his feet while pivoting at the waist, to level a quickly unholstered and drawn pistol in the fox's direction. 
     "Of course, blast my timing. Star Fox had to come around while I'm here." Wolf O'Donnell averts his gaze long enough to look past Krystal toward the entryway and back again. "Is Fox here with you? Don't you lie to me, girl." The wolf's cyclopean gaze is steely and cold, but underneath it all there's something else. It's impossible to read without effort, but there IS something there. It's not fear. Embarrassment? Nervousness? For what? And why? "I've no doubt you two hooked back up after your little lovers' spat, joined at the hip again, so if he's here you'd better tell me now."

     Krystal is more than a little surprised to run into Wolf here, so much so that she really feels in hindsight she should have known it was him sooner. It was only when he turned toward her and she saw his face and that eye patch on his left eye making it rather unmistakable that this was the same wolf she met on Corneria. As he quickly aims a blaster at her, she holds up her hands, her tail lashing nervously. 

     "Relax, it's just me, I don't actually know where Fox is right now. I just came her to do a little looking around. Not sure what I really expected to find here either, I was just curious, and this seemed like as good a place as any to start with in wandering the system. As for us being lovers, you're certainly jumping ahead a bit there. I've barely met him, even if he is the only vulpine I've come across around the world tree, before I came here anyway."

     There is an unmistakable impatience as the lupine stares down the other down his sights waiting for a concise reply. Upon hearing what is said, Wolf's right eye narrows. Honestly, using the possibility of other selves from other worlds is a bit convenient and he's not entirely convinced this is the -other- Krystal just yet. 
     At present, Wolf still wears a black muscle shirt, but is now sans jacket for obvious reasons. His pendant glimmers in the light that shines in through the windows. Jerking his chin to his right in gesture to an armchair in that direction that actually isn't all that dusty, Wolf says, "Have a seat. You know that the Fox you're talking about wasn't actually born here, yeah? Why are you so curious?" 
     While Wolf's posture may relax only slightly, he does not lower the gun. "There's nothing on this planet but sand and hidden sorrow and booze." He waits a beat, then asks an incredible question: "Are you following me?"

     Krystal shrugs at Wolf's question about why she came here, since the Fox she knows wasn't born here, though it was an alternate version of this planet she would presume. She blinks though, a shocked expression washing over her face as he asks if she is following him. "Following you? I honestly didn't have the slightest clue you were here until I stumbled onto you this very moment. As for why I came here, like I said, I don't know what I expected to find, I am just curious to see more of this system and maybe I subconsciously chose here because I'm feeling a bit homesick and while it isn't home, at least it is where a lot of other foxes are from." She explains with a bit of agitation in her voice at being grilled for just randomly running into Wolf on this middle of nowhere planet. Seriously, what are the odds?

     The imposing figure of the wolf doesn't react to the answers given and, in further response, presses his thin lips together and tips his pistol to one side in the direction of the chair. "Sit," he flatly commands, but adds, "And I'll put my gun away." He's really not one to say 'please', it seems. 
     One of his ears turns to listen to see if he hears anybody else, taking the time to get a good look with hearing and sight, to see if anybody else is around. No immediate sign given, Wolf's body language grudgingly relents to the possibility that this might be the same vixen Panther discovered on Corneria not too terribly long ago. He exhales slowly, deeply, and honestly seems ready to put that dagger-pointed pistol away given a degree of cooperation. Well, if that's what one calls it. 
     "So, fine. Let's say that's the case. Why not? If your plan is to blend in with the locals you're going to need other clothes, bleach your fur."

     Krystal finally does as asked and takes a seat in the armchair. "Fine, I'm sitting down." She comments as she watches Wolf's every move, she thinks for a moment 'paranoid much?' but isn't about to say that out loud. When he turns back to her and comments about blending in, she shakes her head. 

     "Who said I was trying to blend in? I don't plan on staying here forever, as tempting as it is to just be able to live out a quiet existence and not worry about everything else. As if I could really shut myself off like that. No, I just felt I'd stay a few days, maybe I learn something interesting, maybe I don't, then move on to the next destination."

     Wolf grunts. The pistol is put away. Slowly he turns to the side to straighten up some of the scattered documents that remain upon the desk. This actually puts his eye-patched side facing Krystal leaving him apparently blind to her actions while he sorts through the mess. "Well, you picked one heck of a time to drop in. Since this place doesn't have anything to do with your Fox, I trust you'll have the sense to not tell him I was here." While he sorts the papers, what look like they could be hand-written letters (which can be an oddity), he pays attention to what is on them before tucking each away in a specific order. Either that or he's definitely searching for something. Pirate's steal things, right?

     "Fox doesn't need to know you were here I suppose, since as you said this is not the actual house he was born in, I suppose even if he still was born on a similar version of this planet the details wouldn't all be the same. Besides, I get the feeling telling him would just unnecessarily ignite tempers, and we don't need that, now do we?" Krystal says to Wolf with a nod, watching as he packs the documents away, indeed noticing that some were hand written, so either that was more common here, or they were pretty old, or very personal letters. "I don't suppose you're interested in telling me what you're looking for?"

     "Glad we understand one another," comes the response from the gruff-sounding wolf. It would seem that, for the moment, that's good enough for him. "And, not that it's any of your business, but I'm looking for the missing page." He sighs and kneels down to slide the things over, to gather them up, and stands again to place them upon the desk where he begins the sorting process once more. "The cooling from the vent up above must have hidden the top page away somewhere." Reaching over, Wolf picks up a paperweight that seems to be a very similar fox design as the one Fox uses on the side of his mothership, the Great Fox. Krystal likely doesn't know it, but it may burn like an ember of recognition in the future if she ever does see it. 
     O'Donnell puts the paperweight down atop the stack of papers and begins to look around the desk for wherever it may have gone. "I didn't think the air flow was enough to displace it. Everything was in place a few weeks ago." Suddenly leaning in to reach behind the desk with a deep grunt and a flick of the tail, the sound of paper rustling immediately follows. "Ah ha."

     With the fact that Wolf answered the question without really telling her anything, Krystal raises an eyebrow and is tempted to move closer and try to sneak a peek, but considering Wolf could have blown a hole in her just a moment ago, she stays seated. "A missing page? Missing page to what? James McCloud's diary?" She asks with a slightly jesting tone, wondering if Wolf was willing to share any more detail, or if this conversation was going to lead nowhere.

     The fact of the matter is that Wolf actually revealed a very important detail to Krystal in his explanation, but if it goes missed it's more to Wolf's benefit than otherwise. It would just lead to more questions. "Again, not that it's any of your business, but nothing is exactly stopping you from having a look around while I'm not here." Putting everything in order, slipping that top page over the stack underneath that signature paperweight, Wolf scoots the chair in front of the desk back into proper position. His leaning in to snatch up the paper pushed it crooked. For being Fox's father's old place, Wolf seems to be careful about detail. 
     "It's correspondence between James McCloud's father and General Pepper regarding James' entry exam results for the Cornerian Academy back when James was still in school. They were very close and Pepper had a gut feeling that James was destined for military greatness, whatever that means." The gruff-looking mercenary moves a claw along the line of written text near the bottom of the top page. 
     "Pepper had such a good feeling that he offered to endorse James' entry into the Academy, since the McCloud family has never really known wealth, and the bottom two papers are James' pop's reply -- or at least the start of it -- to actually give permission for his son to enroll at a younger than average age. He...didn't get to finish or send it."

     Krystal still doesn't stand up, but she does scoot up closer to the edge of the chair. "Interesting... I wonder what kept him from finishing the letter? Though, I'm also a little curious why you're so interested in James' schooling, again, not that it's any of my business. I mean, I guess I came here somewhat randomly and was just looking for anything interesting, but something tells me it runs a bit deeper for you."

     "Don't be nosy," comes a rather curt reply. The lupine turns his head to regard to vixen for a moment. It might even border on a little too long of a stare. It's like he's mentally using a ruler to size Krystal up -- this is something he does with people, though, and some find it very disconcerting. 
     Eventually, his gaze breaks and he reaches over to pull that chair out of place, spinning it about, and sits on it backwards with his arms resting atop the back directly facing the fox. "All right, I don't have time to play twenty questions with you. But the truth is that James' father died young because he was stubborn and prideful and made a dumb decision. James died young because he was stubborn and prideful and made a dumb decision. Do you see the pattern here or do I need to spell it out for you?" It could be very fascinating for Wolf to reveal this all, but it still doesn't explain why he has a personal interest in dropping by.

     Krystal nods to Wolf as he tells her to not be nosy. "Sorry, I deserve that..." She offers before looking up at Wolf as he stares at her to the point where she starts to feel like he's a predator sizing up his prey. She's about to just stand up and leave when Wolf turns the chair around and sits, deciding to lay everything out for her, everything but the part about how this all involves him. "Basically you're saying that your Fox, perhaps even 'other' Fox, might have the same fate if they don't learn to temper their pride and stubbornness. But what does any of this have to do with you?"

     O'Donnell rests his chin atop his arms and just stares at Krystal, although not with the same steeliness as seconds before. "Fox is an impulsive brat with little respect or regard for the todd that fathered him. He's arrogant and cocky and drifting a bit too far from where his father would want him." There's a lot of held-back anger in what he says, if anger is strong enough of a word to describe it. 
     "I honestly can't tell if his success is skill or luck or which more than the other, and he just rides it like a wave, standing tall and proud and raking in the glory, as if he were some kind of hero." Wolf's lip curls upward into a visible yet silent snarl at voicing this last word. 
     "I may not know your Fox, but I'm willing to bet he's inclined to be just as self-important and self-serving."

     Listening to what Wolf has to say, and taking in his outward emotions, as by now she had given up trying to sense anything from him through her telepathy, finding Wolf's skull to be very much a brick wall on that front, she at first isn't sure what to say. Though she starts with the obvious.

     "Well, remember, I don't know him either. He was nice to me when we met, but I'd expect that from someone who, like me, has been stranded away from their home universe, and for a bit longer even, then finally meets someone who is like them, especially of the opposite sex. I'll admit I was quite happy to see him also, a beacon in the storm I was lost in, as it were. But I now know that while there may or may not be a way back to my universe, I will be content to live in yours, assuming the other Krystal doesn't decide there can be only one and tries to kill or drive me out... Not that I really see that happening...." She trails off before collecting her thoughts a bit. 

     "Anyway I'm rambling now. You make it sound like Fox is riding high on his successes, and unless someone can burst his bubble and bring him back to reality, he's a danger to himself and possibly others. It also sounds like, you care about him, at least in some small way, even if you seem to strongly dislike who he's become." She looks up at Wolf, trying to gage his reaction for if she's right or not.

     She said it: You care about him. It was a loaded gun and Krystal decided to pull the trigger. 
     "This conversation is over." 
     Wolf abruptly stands up and turns to put the chair back into place, although a bit hastily this time, and wanders over to the end of the living room opposite the main entrance and steps into the side-hall and out of sight. A door opens and the sound of a few heavy things being moved around is audible, before the sliding closet door is forcefully slammed shut. 
     Reappearing into view, the whole action taking but a few seconds despite how drawn out the tenseness and aggression displayed may make it seem, Wolf holds an old sonic hoe that looks like it's been around for a long time and begins walking across the room. He's...going to garden? Or is he stealing it? Nevertheless, Krystal may have an answer to what she was wondering.

     As Wolf abruptly ends the conversation and storms out of the home, Krystal is unable to conceal a small smirk forming on her face, not that anyone was probably going to see it. That reaction more or less proved she was right, while also making it quite clear that this is a touchy subject, not that she didn't expect it would be. When she looks out the window and sees Wolf with a sonic hoe, that raises an eyebrow on her. She stands and makes her way outside, watching to see what the heck Wolf is doing with that tool.

     It takes some doing, but Wolf gets the old device to turn on. It makes no noise, but a few lights show that it is powered and ready to use. The tool is about as long as an average garden hoe, only material is synthetic and the blade is a semicircle instead of flat. However, it doesn't function as a blade in the traditional sense. Instead, it uses high-frequency low-amplitude sound to displace and cut. It has a very limited range, so it's perfect for weeding. 
     Wolf is weeding. He's...trimming the path, as requested? It's a slow methodical process and could take several minutes to clear the main walkway completely. His posture shows his ambient anger, his ragged scarred ears lie back, and he doesn't lift his eye from the task at hand. 
     In essence, he leaves the house unattended, as it usually is, while fuming all by himself. Of note, the living room seems much like the entry hall in that some of the furniture appears to be newer than the rest and other odds and ends seem to be related to James McCloud but couldn't have been present in the home before he and his family left for Corneria. It would seem some items were brought back from Corneria to here.

     It certainly didn't take telepathy to sense that Wolf was more than a bit heated after their conversation, and Krystal had a feeling trying to talk to him would be futile, and he just needed his space right now. So she leaves him to the trimming and heads back into the estate home, looking around a bit. It's not long before curiosity brings her to the papers Wolf was looking at, and she begins to read them.

     The papers feel old to the touch, yet they aren't brittle. With the scattering they took a moment ago, they're still in good shape so they aren't as fragile as they might appear to be. It starts off with a cordial greeting in the way one friend would greet another and has all the tones of familiarity one would expect. Most people at that time used modern audiovideo communication and messages, so the use of written letter seems to stand out as being something rather special. 
     As Wolf had stated, Pepper immediately follows up with a rather excited review of young James' exam results placing his flight combat aptitude and present critical thinking ability and psychological index as a new record and that he would personally endorse James' enrollment at the Academy on Corneria which would cover transport, extended lodging, food and utilities, and school tuition. He also makes sure to mention that an endorsement from him directly would set James up with a fast-track up the ranks of a military career. 'I'll do whatever you feel it would take to allow your son to grace our halls. He has the potential to be a shining example of the good this system can provide within the Cornerian Alliance. Certainly, with both of our blessings, there is nothing that your star fox cannot accomplish.' 
     After that, the letter takes a personal turn and delves into conversation relating to things only James' father and General Pepper really knew about and it continues on in such a fashion until closing. The second letter lies just underneath the first and is addressed in return and carries a date only three days off from the arrival of the first. It seems to hint toward an approval, but it remains unfinished.

     "So, James really showed the potential to be an incredible pilot, even when he was just a young boy." Krystal muses to herself after reading most of the paper, not bothering to continue beyond skimming when the letter got into personal stuff between James' father and Pepper. She gently puts the papers back where she found them, and moves to exit the estate home and start walking toward the B&B, feeling she'd seen enough for today, and now she just wanted to relax a bit with a cup of tea, and call it a day.

     The exit that one has to take puts Krystal within arm's reach of Wolf. He's only about halfway done with the care that the path needs. Normally he may not care quite so much, but he now has a lot on his mind. Upon seeing the vixen walking by and away, Wolf speaks up. 
     "I've tried hard to beat him down a peg or two and give him a wake-up call." It's frustrating to think that he hasn't really succeeded in it yet, but he has his own problems that hold him back that are not becoming part of a conversation. "That fathead is going to do something really stupid again one of these days and I won't be there to bail him out." That...could have an interesting implication, but Wolf doesn't elaborate and chances are it's not the best time to ask him. "Can't-" He growls as the hoe chips part of the stone walkway. "Can't show him who's better if he goes and gets himself killed," he adds, perhaps to derail such implication from his previous statement. "He's such a fatheaded pup," he mumbles and then continues going about trimming.

     Krystal stops and looks at Wolf as he speaks up, looking a little surprised he was willing to talk to her after the way things went earlier. She chooses not to comment on the competition for who is 'better' but still smiles a little at Wolf's sentiment. "Well, if you two are rivals like that, I'm not surprised he doesn't listen to you. Maybe I can talk some sense into him, maybe not. But I will certainly try, I promise you that." She offers before suddenly remembering that there is more than one Fox. "To both of them, if I have to." She adds, and stands where she is just in case Wolf has anything else to say.

     The lupine continues to work in silence for a brief moment. "I'll give you a piece of advice for free. A drowning dog will pull you under and drown you too in his desperation. Don't allow yourself to be pulled under. Know when to let go. Some people just can't be saved." Wolf rests the trimmer and raises a hand to tap a finger to his head. "I remember what James always used to say to me when it came to self-preservation of any kind: Never give up. Don't think. Trust your instincts. When the time comes, just act." He lowers that hand and points it at Krystal. "Hesitation can get you killed, and there's no greater hesitation than in deciding when to let go of a lost cause." He turns away and begins trimming once more. It's getting hotter outside as the day ages. 
     "And yet I still hesitate," he says juuuust under his breath in a way that may not be clear to hear.

     Krystal nods at Wolf. "That's good advice, thanks. I truly hope things aren't as dire as you paint them, but I guess I won't know till I get to know either Fox better. Though I guess since I haven't met the Fox of your universe, nor do I know where he is, I'll start with the one from mine, put my feelers out so to speak, see what I get from him." Krystal offers before giving Wolf a smile and a wave. "Take care of yourself Wolf." She says warmly before walking away.

     Wolf grunts in response and looks away with a squeeze of his eye and a clench of his teeth, then follows up with a deep sigh. Some things just can't be put into words. Some things are better left unspoken. The problem with getting away from it all, you see, is that it's all waiting for you when you come back.