The Golden boy of Sargasso (Star Fox fanfic)

Welcome aboard, Fox

A/N: This story will be 15 chapters long. All kinds of criticism (or encouragement :) ) will be very helpful, and thus very appreciated. Big thanks to Nail Strafer for his pre-publication opinion, and to Ixode, Jaslazul and apocope for their betaing. If you don't know who they are, go check their works on ArchiveOfOurOwn.org and fanfiction.net !

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Footsteps!

Panther interrupted his careful examination of the living room, dimly illuminated by a faint colourful moonbeam, and focused on the rustle coming from outside. Yes. Distinct footsteps disrupting the layer of snow stood out from the breeze sweeping along the house's outer walls. James McCloud, the fox hero of Corneria, finally came home, oblivious to his baneful fate, like a moth fluttering towards a candle.

He's probably exhausted from the long trudge. I bet he's rejoicing at the warmth of his home, Panther thought, the cruel irony amusing him. He grabbed the blaster from the coffee table and swung it left and right with his wrist. What a shame.

A rusty wooden gate slammed. A gate James would never cross again. Panther's heartbeat increased. He stood up from the armchair and stomped around in the living room, resisting the urge to peek through the fogging on the window, lest the fox would spot the intruder. No. He should make a good impression. He collapsed back on the armchair, prepared his blaster, and waited.

His first time. And what a first time it was. James McCloud himself. Failure wasn't an option.

As the steps went closer and louder, Panther reviewed his plan for the upcoming confrontation. He had rehearsed it, sort of. Worst-case scenario, Pigma could intervene, but that wouldn't be necessary. This glory would be his, he knew it. He switched on the recording device hanging to his belt, for they'd need proof of the contract's fulfilment. The door opened. He held his breath.

James stomped on the parquet, removing the unwelcome snow from his pants, the feet's thuds resonating in the entire house. He freed his shoulder and feet from his coat and boots, before waddling across the hallway and towards the living room.

Three.

Two.

One.

The two yellow eyes floating in the darkness stunned James on his feet. He let out a sudden and loud scream, for Panther's greatest delight. The cat often forgot the reaction his feline eyes provoked. As the fox's own eyes accustomed themselves to the ambient obscurity, the shadowy figure came into view, whose black fur blended almost perfectly with the dark background. Soon enough, he discerned the young feline, slouched in an armchair, aiming a blaster right at him.

"Good evening, mister McCloud." He smirked. The tip of his weapon motioned towards the sofa across the room. "You must be done in. Why don't you put those legs to rest?"

The now shaking canine pinned back his ears when he spotted, on his left, another figure standing in the shadow: a pig. Panther envisioned with ease James' revulsion upon his partner. His hollow eyes and flabby mouth upon which no smile ever thrived could make the most fragile of the animals disgorge his most recent repast.

"Whatever you think of doing, don't." Panther turned a tad more authoritative. A couple of slow and menacing steps from the swine, who maintained his gaze riveted on James, endorsed his partner's implicit injunction. The pig had no fangs or claws, yet he was far more dangerous than most carnivores. The fox headed to the sofa across the jungle cat, struggling to stop his limbs from trembling. After he sat down, the pig took a stand behind him, as silent as he hitherto was. Not even a grumble escaped his throat.